Integrating the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in Information and Documentation teaching

Abstract

The results of a teaching innovation project on the integration of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in the undergraduate program in Library and Information Science at Complutense University of Madrid are presented. In addition to an initial introduction to SDGs and sustainability, over a semester, students from five subjects carried out a series of activities focused on SDGs. At the beginning of the academic year (September-October 2023), a survey assessed students' knowledge of SDGs and sustainability. At the end of the year (December 2023-January 2024), four focus groups were conducted to evaluate the impact of these activities on their education. Overall, it is observed that students' knowledge of SDGs and sustainability increases with their level of education, being higher among students in later academic years. On the other hand, students' attitudes towards working for the SDGs from libraries become less optimistic as their disciplinary knowledge increases. Finally, participants consider that education on SDGs should be seen as part of basic education, taught in the early years of the program, and through experiential methodologies to allow them to experience firsthand the social reality they intend to address. However, they do not perceive it as relevant to their future careers, especially if they intend to work within private companies.