Cross-curricular education for solidarity in the training of psychologists and educators

Abstract

The European Higher Education Area involves major changes in the teaching/learning process for the acquisition of transversal competences, such as social and civic skills. A need for active learning methods is established in order to develop students’ ability to make decisions and learn independently, reflectively, and critically, thereby promoting these skills. Considering the importance of a program for the training of ethical and solidarity values within the university curriculum (Educational Innovation Program, PIE10-127), we carried out a comparative study on ethical values in college students before and after the program application and an evaluation of the effectiveness of different active methodologies to promote the acquisition of solidarity and its impact on performance. Participants in this study were 4,103 university students, aged 18 to 57, from the Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences of the University of Malaga. The results show an increase in the acquisition of solidarity skills following the implementation of the program and that active methods have a positive impact on academic performance. Hence, the conclusion is that there is a need to strengthen these values.