La extensión universitaria. Una herramienta pedagógica enfocada al desarrollo local

Abstract

THE UNIVERSITY EXTENSION: A PEDAGOGICAL TOOL ORIENTED TO LOCAL DEVELOPMENT The objective of this study is to analyze the university extension as a pedagogical tool focused on local development and its influence on the student training process. The research is of a basic quantitative type and the design is not experimental-transectional. The study sample, intentionally non-probabilistic, was made up of two hundred and fifty university students from the Metropolitan Region of Chile, to whom a Likert-type questionnaire was applied, validated by expert judgment. The results indicate that teachers use teaching strategies focused on extension actions, whose cooperative work involves the participation and communication of all the actors in the process. Thus, it is possible to respond to specific problems of the community. It is concluded that extension activities allow the development of capacities and abilities of each individual, directed towards common goals, connecting populations with research and training of future professionals. lations with research and training of future professionals.