The University defines six subjects core topic in order to achieve transformative learning in the student

How do we ensure that, beyond the acquisition of knowledge, university students become responsible citizens who understand their profession as a service to society? Under this premise, the University of Navarra held the fourth edition of the Innova Forum. Two hundred teachers have participated in this meeting which is part of Strategy 2025 and in which the six themes core topic have been defined to be applied in the academic center to achieve transformative learning in their students: transversal competencies, critical thinking, autonomy of student, sense of service, internationalization and knowledge integration.

With the degree scroll teaching for transformative learning, the President of the University, Alfonso Sánchez-Tabernero presented the meeting and highlighted the importance of innovation in the teaching and the need to have a defined purpose . "We must never forget the why and the what for. We will continue to find new ways to make this impact on students more and more lasting," he confirmed.

During the forum, six videos were shown in which some twenty professors from different Schools and centers shared their experiences on these six topics, which were then discussed at a roundtable. The participants were José María Torralba, professor at School of Philosophy and Letters; Elisabeth Viles, professor at Tecnun-School of Engineering; Concepción Naval, dean of School of Education and Psychology; and Ricardo Piñero, professor at School of Economics.

"The teacher must awaken the desire to know," said the voice-over in one of the videos. The goal is to teach students to argue, beyond preconceived ideas; and to be creative, to devise new solutions to solve problems: "Let's help students to ask themselves questions about the topics," said José María Torralba.

Service-learning

The meeting addressed the need to define the transversal competencies that students should acquire without turning their backs on the demands of business and society and the opinion of the graduates themselves. Professor Elisabeth Viles spoke of the need to provide students with the tools to achieve autonomous learning. And Concepción Naval explained the Service-Learning methodology as the way to provide student with not only theoretical knowledge but also a more experiential teaching . "Learning acquires an affective, social and ethical dimension. In addition to theoretical approaches, the student acquires social and moral virtues that will serve him throughout his life".

In the same vein, José María Torralba pointed out that social responsibility"should be something common to all universities. We have the mission statement to train the professional of the future not only in terms of success but also in terms of service".

During the colloquium the concept of "internationalization" emerged, understood as the need to have a academic staff capable of managing intercultural environments and opening horizons in the classroom. "We train students for a global environment. We need to be clear about what is happening in the world and transmit it with solidity, respect and demand," added Ricardo Piñero. The internationalization, understood not only as the acquisition of linguistic competencies but also as the understanding of problems, which have become global.

The Vice President of Office of Academic Affairs, Pablo Sanchez-Ostiz, closed the meeting and presented the main conclusions. "Strategy 2025 is about putting the focus on transformativeEducation . We must reflect on our role as teachers so that we can really awaken in students something other than the mere transmission of knowledge. Let us equip them with tools so that they can continue where our work ends," he said.