Didactic itineraries with smartphones to promote environmental education and digital competence among secondary school students

Abstract

Secondary education students are often unaware of the environmental problems of their city. On the other hand, smartphones are widely accepted and used by this group. However, its use in the classroom is highly questioned. With the intention of promoting an improvement in environmental education and in the digital competence of secondary school students in the use of these devices, this experience was carried out. Didactic itineraries with smartphones were carried out around the city of Alcoy in which a series of tests were carried out and use was made of geolocation, augmented reality, social networks and various mobile applications. A questionnaire was passed to the participants (N = 447) with the idea of knowing the degree of acceptance of the activity, and n = 367 responses were obtained. The results show that the students highly value the activity and its tests. Likewise, as the age of the students is older, the interest in the activity decreases gradually. For all these reasons, it is necessary to propose activities that seek to educate students about the environment, as well as the proper use of smartphones and their various applications.