Science and Technology as a Global Challenge: Evaluation of Attitudes and Notes from the course “Global Innovations”

Octavio Mucino-Hernandez, Arizona State University | Annel Vasquez, University of Guadalajara | Tomas Carrozza, Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata | Jeanne Simon, Universidad de Concepcion | Martin Andres Perez Comisso, Arizona State University | Lindsay Adams Smith, Arizona State University | Mary Jane Parmentier, Arizona State University

In this study, we present the results of a pedagogical experiment called “Global Innovations: Latin America'', a bilingual, multi-modal, hybrid and synchronic course developed in Arizona State University (US), Universidad de Mar de Plata (Argentina), Universidad de Concepción (Chile) and Universidad de Guadalajara (Mexico).
This course analyzes the intersection of society, science, and technology from a decolonial perspective, with the purpose of providing the students with the concepts and research methods for collaborative, international and horizontal research-experience. Students from different geographical regions become peers and investigate the social and human impact of emergent technologies in their respective locations and create meaningful products that contribute to knowledge mobilization in their communities or groups. The students have a global research experience through digital means that helps them to situate their own positionality (gender, class, ethnicity, values, political orientation) regarding the advancement of technology and scientific production in their regions.
Using a mixed methodology, we compare the attitudes and perceptions of the students with the learning outcomes. Throughout the study, we describe the process of the creation and application of this model, assessing the achievements and areas of improvement from an institutional perspective. This presentation will focus on (1) the governance of a multi-university pedagogical experience, (2) the processes of collaborative curricular design, (3) the learning outcomes of the students and (4) the implications of this kind of pedagogy in the construction of professional skills and critical thinking in college-level and grade-level students in the American continent. Global Innovations is relevant in the articulation of new institutional and intellectual alliances for inclusive foresight and anticipation of emerging technologies in different countries, and the co-production of new interactive tools for global knowledge mobilization.