Abstract:

The entrepreneurial activity can be considered as an engine of economic development at local, regional and national level [1]. During the last years, there has been a positive and solid correlation between the promotion of the entrepreneurial spirit and economic results in terms of growth, innovation, job creation, technological change and increased productivity.

The promotion of the entrepreneurial spirit has the support of the Andalusian Government with the “Plan de Promoción Empresarial” (Business Promotion Plan) and the 14/2013 Law, to support entrepreneurs [2, 3]. From the University of Jaén, proposals and measures included in the “Plan de Formación Práctica para la Empleabilidad” (Practical Training for Employability Plan) have been made [4].

Nowadays, the promotion of the entrepreneurial spirit is a fundamental objective in the Universities due to the favorable economic situation. Raising awareness among students of the value of entrepreneurship as a tool for job creation is a task that can be carried out transversally through the degree studies. In the case of University Engineering Degrees it is necessary to guide and motivate students so that they are able to identify opportunities in their professional field, since they usually have concerns related to entrepreneurship.

On the other hand, Information and Communication Technology (ICT) have radically transformed in recent years the way in which university teaching is exercised. The environment in which we learn, the sources of information, personal relationships and experiences, have undergone notable changes. The Personal Learning Environments (PLE) is a concept that allows the design of training around key competences such as the competence of learning to learn and digital competence [5].

Students use social networks, share videos and images, use online calendars, blogs, wikis ... and integrate them into their learning, both formal and informal. In addition, there are more and more, teachers who join the lessons in different contexts to support their teaching: social networks such as Facebook, blogs, personal e-portfolios or the Wiki for collaborative work in the development of projects that stimulate creation, editing and content management.

In this work, personal learning environments will be created to initiate entrepreneurship to engineering students. In this area, the tools that help the student to read, reflect and share the contents in the field of entrepreneurship will be used to develop this competence in an effective way.

References:
[1] A. S. Thomas and S. L. Mueller. “A case for comparative entrepreneurship: Assessing the relevance of culture” Journal of International Business Studies, 31, 287-301, 2000.
[2] Decreto 219/2011, Plan para el Fomento de la Cultura Emprendedora en el Sistema Educativo Público de Andalucía.
[3] Ley 14/2013, del 27 de Septiembre, sobre el apoyo a emprendedores y su internacionalización.
[4] Plan de Formación Práctica para la Empleabilidad de la Universidad de Jaén. https://www10.ujaen.es/sites/default/files/users/factra/practicasexternas/Normativa [Consultado feb 2016]
[5] J. Adell y L. Castañeda. Los entornos personales de aprendizaje (PLEs): una nueva manera de entender el aprendizaje. En Roig, R. y Fiorucci, M. (eds). Claves para la investigación en Innovación y calidad educativas. La integración de las Tecnologías de la Información y la Comunicación y la Interculturalidad en las aulas. 2010. (19-30) Alcoy: Marfil

Keywords:

Entrepreneur, personal learning environments, Engineering.