In response to globalisation, and the cultural, socio-economic, and educational changes it implies, higher education must offer a comprehensive education that favours personal and professional growth. To do this, it must promote competence-based learning through active teaching methodologies. This study will analyse the use of Project-Based Learning (PBL) methodologies in the context of transversal subjects, as an efficient technique to develop interpersonal communication and teamworking skills. This research is quasi-experimental, with a pre-test/post-test design with an equivalent control group. The sample consists of 610 university students from the Community of Madrid, of whom 387 participated in the PBL (Experimental Group: EG) and 223 did not (Control Group: CG). A reliable and validated questionnaire on personal competences was used as a measurement instrument. The hypotheses on the effectiveness of PBL as a technique for the development of interpersonal communication and teamworking skills in the context of transversal subjects are confirmed. The results suggest that greater use of active methodologies to promote the development of transversal or generic competences is highly recommended and that the insertion of transversal subjects into university curricula may be highly beneficial.

Have you ever thought what would happen if a ransomware infected your laptop? This type of virus kidnaps files and encrypts them, and the only way to recover the data is by paying in bitcoin or some other cryptocurrency. This situation is undoubtedly terrible. All of your work, projects, and personal files will not be available (unless you pay the ransom). The first time students watched a video that contextualizes this stressful situation, they thought that they had been attacked by a computer virus. Fortunately, the panic only lasted a few seconds. This is the way to start a game called breakout or escape room. The difference between these two words is that, in the first case, the goal is to open a padlocked box, while the objective of an escape room is to find the key that allows to get out of a room. Both games are similar, containing riddles, puzzles, problems and some clues that would help the players to find the solution. This study analyses the use of a breakout game for educational purposes, more specifically in a university context. The experiment conducted mixes game–based learning methodologies with engineering students learning Linear Algebra, Calculus or Cryptography, which has allowed us to obtain promising results about the usage of this methodology.

This research analyzes the effect of implementing a Service-Learning (SL) program in the Environmental Education (EE) subject of the Primary Education Degree. The SL project was evaluated and the change in Attitudes towards Sustainable Development (ASD) of 44 preservice teachers was measured, considering Environment, Economy, Society, and Education as dimensions, using a pretest-posttest experimental design with no control group. The assessment of the SL project was favorable in all items (the purpose of the project, the training aspects, and the logistical and institutional aspects) and a significant improvement in ASD was observed in all dimensions. No significant differences were found in ASD based on the gender variable. It can be concluded that the inclusion of SL projects in the EE program significantly improves ASD while aligning education with the SDGs.

Alliances for sustainable development are forms of cooperation between different actors (governments, international organisations, the private sector, civil society, etc.) that seek to contribute to the objectives of the United Nations 2030 Agenda. SDG 17 focuses on revitalising the global partnership for sustainable development and mobilising the necessary means for its implementation. The purpose of this paper is to analyse the characteristics, benefits, and challenges of partnerships for sustainable development within the framework of SDG 17. There are different types of alliances for sustainable development, depending on the actors involved, the objectives pursued and the coordination mechanisms. Some of the factors that favour the success of alliances are trust, communication, complementarity and commitment. In general, it is observed that alliances contribute to awareness raising, knowledge mobilisation and exchange, and innovation for sustainable development. In this sense, the relationship between education and SDG 17 is close, first of all, through the dissemination and promotion of values consistent with sustainable development. Secondly, and in relation to SDG 4, the creation of networks between educational communities, governments and companies, become essential instruments to achieve inclusive, equitable, and quality educational systems as established in different agreements such as the Declaration and Integrated Action Plan on Education for Peace, Human Rights and Democracy (1995), the Universal Declaration on Cultural Diversity (2001), the Bali Declaration (2008), the New Delhi Commitment (2012) or the Declaration of Buenos Aires (2017). The UNESCO Associated Schools Network is an example of an alliance whose objective is peaceful coexistence in the world community. In this chapter, SDG 17 will be addressed from the perspective of the educational field and its relationship with SDG 4, the different international declarations and conventions, both binding and non-binding, in education and the development of different networks and alliances, international organisations that promote inclusive, intercultural and quality education for peace and the development of peoples.