Abstract:

Education is an essential human virtue that, besides empowering people with knowledge, shapes their behavior, enriches culture, and fosters ongoing progress in the development of a country. Nowadays, mining education is becoming essential considering the importance of this productive sector for our society. Nevertheless, most people disapprove of mining activities as a consequence of the social and environmental problems caused by illegal mining. According to Ecuadorian statistics, the mining industry contributes the most to the local gross domestic product (GDP) and therefore to the national economy and growth of the country. There is thus a need to educate the community on these issues to raise awareness of the reality and encourage understanding of the importance of this activity. Currently, our higher education system does not count on an official protocol to educate high school students and communities on these societal issues. For this purpose, the project "Mining Education for the Community" aimed to develop a pilot plan for education in geological-mining topics through the service-learning (SL) methodology. The objective of this community project was to train high school students and women dedicated to mineral selection (jancheras) on topics related to earth sciences, with the participation of mining engineering and geology students from the Escuela Superior Politécnica del Litoral (ESPOL) as training facilitators.

This non-formal education approach lasted eight months and was deployed in three stages:
(i) screening of the level of knowledge of the participants, conducted through a quiz;
(ii) design and implementation of educational activities, for which slides, videos, and interactive workshops were prepared; and
(iii) final assessment of the knowledge acquired through a summative evaluation.

According to the connectivity conditions of each beneficiary group, the training sessions were conducted online for high school students using zoom, Edmodo, and Kahoot tools, and in-person for the jancheras group (due to lack of internet connection) through workshops. The students who participated in the project were selected according to the required profile (junior students, level 300 I), assuring the necessary minimum knowledge for the execution of the projects. The faculty teaching staff oversaw and monitored the entire process. As a result of the project, 14 students of Mines and Geology from ESPOL were enrolled in the pilot mining training plan, through which they were able to strengthen their soft skills and professional competencies. In addition, 25 high school students and 65 women (jancheras) were trained in topics related to basic geology, mining safety, and conservation of natural resources. The results of the final assessment showed a 15% improvement in the knowledge of the trainees. Hence, there was evidence that the project had a positive impact on the participants, empowering the community with knowledge of significant mining and environmental issues, as well as an understanding of the importance of mining activity in the world today.

Keywords:

Service-learning, community outreach, non-formal education, mining.