Pre-professional Community Service Internships in Virtual Learning Environments

Abstract

Community service projects and activities allow a comprehensive academic training of university students by exposing them to real learning environments. The Escuela Superior Politécnica del Litoral (ESPOL) promotes the development of it´s students´ professional skills through active learning in the form of pre-professional practices. Student training practices were modified as a result of the SARS-CoV-2 virus through the establishment of social distancing as a main bio safety policy. This article shines a light on the experience of the students who carried out community service practices during the social isolation produced by the pandemic. Seventy students participated in the project "Noise pollution in the city of Guayaquil during isolation and reactivation of activities", students used mobile devices to measure the noise level of the city of Guayaquil from their homes. The results of this study indicate a high efficacy of the use of virtual technologies future community service projects. For this reason, it is suggested to consider this type of practice in future community service projects in virtual mode.