**4.1 Methodological aspects**

Based on the results concerning the methodological aspect, it is evident that the students are aware of the connection between their professional practice and what happens on the streets. The 27 projects demonstrate the importance of deconstructing dominant discourses in society.

*It is common for us to focus on the product rather than the discourses behind the product. As engineers, we should, however, consider the people who will be using the product, and because of the social gaze, we are now more aware of the discourses of power in society.*

*The purpose of this project was to allow both grades to break out of their routines. As a result, they can develop their creative abilities and apply what they have learned.*

The results demonstrate how the participation of artist Daniel Andújar enhanced the deconstruction of discourses. It is evident from the results that his works have contributed to the reflection of social minorities and excluded groups. As a result of the projects, the university is not engaging in formative practices that reveal marginality and exclusion.

*We became aware of how our upbringing influenced our view of society. We were forced to rethink our understanding of urban space after seeing Andujar's work and realizing that elements were invisible to us.*

*Marginality, Social exclusion or Segregation. These terms were studied in the classroom, but this is the first time we have encountered them during training. As a result of Andujar's look and experience, we became aware of how hypocritical we can be with other members of society at times.*

This section demonstrates how the students' experience revealed that the project was not rigid and static but changed over time as their research progressed. Furthermore, the results show how the SDGs have made such transformations possible for students.

*We have to reflect on our reality because of the SDGs. Our practices and approaches emerged as we discovered projects related to the SDGs.*

*Our research used the SDG approach extensively because it helped us tackle real-life issues. As a result, the project was alive because the problems were alive.*

These results demonstrate a correlation between the arguments expressed by the students and other faculty members. Specifically, it illustrates that students perceive the university as a linear space, disconnected from reality. The challenge of this approach provided the opportunity for a change of perspective.

*A Transpraxis Approach to Higher Education: A Case Study on Methodological Orientations DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.109203*

*At university, we are used to solving cases on paper and in papers that do not make sense to us. These projects are being developed for the first time based on our experiences and realities in social and cultural contexts. We believe this is very significant.*

*Our engineers are responsible for taking a realistic view of society and starting with reality. There is a strong presence of this approach in this project; therefore, it makes sense to apply it. It would benefit the university to have more projects of this nature.*

The following extracts from the written documents illustrate the main results of the methodological aspects of training, which were reflected in the results of the interpersonal aspects.

#### **4.2 Interpersonal aspects**

An essential aspect of interpersonal aspects is how this research project engaged two universities with different knowledge fields to collaborate on a single project. As a result of this approach, the students' prejudices and stereotypes about the other degree and the students taking it were broken down.

*The first impression of the other degree was very damaging because we did not find any relation between social educators and engineering, as they are opposite careers. This adverse reaction was caused by the prejudices that exist in society.*

*Collaborative work has been vital in this process. In the beginning, it was not very easy, as we thought it would not work because of the differences. However, finally, we realized that we must work collaboratively and understand all perspectives as professionals.*

It is evident from the written fragments that students deconstructed the fragmentation of disciplines that affected their understanding of the university. This was done to break away from the academic fragmentation of the curriculum. The following example illustrates this situation.

*It is incredibly enlightening that the university uses a methodology that combines different disciplines; this teaches us that we should not work separately but collaboratively without prejudices or stereotypes.*

It is also significant to note that this aspect facilitates students' ability to reflect on their learning experiences. As students in both grades worked on deconstructing binary aspects, they demonstrated reflexivity. It is narrated in the following manner:

*The experience has been gratifying, as it has provided us with different knowledge and points of view. Furthermore, this experience has made us realize that there is not just one truth but that we can create new things with these unions.*

*We consider that the proposal shows us how we will need the collaboration of different professionals to carry out specific projects in the future. Therefore, this experience will be essential to respect and broaden our vision and knowledge.*

In the selected fragments, stereotypes and prejudices about their peers are deconstructed. Additionally, this resulted in self-criticism of their social and personal positions. As a result, these lively interactions impacted the workshop's methodological, interpersonal, and teaching aspects.

#### **4.3 Teaching aspects**

These results demonstrate the relevance of defining dialogic teaching as active listening and criticizing traditional university curricula. This result, in turn, led to selfcriticism on the part of the students of both degrees.

*As a result of these projects, we believe we are engaged in learning. Furthermore, as future professionals in this liquid society, all of us must have the opportunity to learn from everyday life and real-life experiences.*

*Our project reflects on how the university operates within a Neoliberal framework in many instances. Therefore, it is impossible to overstate the importance of training and learning.*

As a result, the joint project has been influenced by the social and historical contexts. It is evident from these results that curriculum content should be linked to these contexts. In addition, this situation shows how one of the project's competencies has been social responsibility and civic engagement.

*Linking our project with what we experienced in the space made us come up with a more coherent and inclusive proposal. In addition, we have gotten to know the realities around us.*

*We have learned from the territory and the city for the first time. We have related curricular content to the realities that people live in their territories.*

As the students explain, culture and heritage play an essential role in education. Moreover, the students describe how the classroom should be a place of fundamental transformation, in which students can leave behind their experiences of memorizing and replicating industrial systems.

*We have been able to work on the contents of these two subjects in a very dynamic, lively, and enriching manner as a result of the joint project. At the university, proposals are generated that goes beyond the traditional because the traditional does not work.*

*This project has allowed us to understand how university education needs a change in the learning process, as these experiences make us think and go beyond.*

These examples demonstrate the importance of promoting university training that creates transformational learning environments. Here is an example of one of the transformation projects that aimed to generate self-sustaining modules for seasonal workers in the city of Lleida. As shown in **Figure 1**, these students also conducted sensory ethnography in the historic center of Lleida, exploring the streets and finding this message: "Shelter for seasonal workers, now!"

Based on this message from the historic city center, the students developed a proposal to provide sustainable and easy-to-maintain spaces for people who do not have access to housing for various reasons. As a result of approaching this social issue from a transdisciplinary perspective, this group gained a thorough understanding of subsidy legislation. Furthermore, they proposed how it should be implemented in the city. As a result, the opportunity to work closely with Daniel Andujar on sensory ethnography became a reality. According to the members of this group, the approach is as follows:

*A Transpraxis Approach to Higher Education: A Case Study on Methodological Orientations DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.109203*

*We had done the sensory ethnography, and the street told us it wanted to. From there, we decided to carry out this proposal; we thought about institutional power and the power relations that it generates. The street itself showed us a reality ignored by the organs of power.*

As a result of research conducted by the two training groups, social educators and industrial engineers, the following proposal has been developed for the generation of temporary worker housing spaces in Lleida, in which different sensors are installed to enable the modules to be self-sufficient. The modules consist of a kitchen, a dining room, a laundry room, three bedrooms, and two bathrooms. The students developed a prototype of a self-sustaining facility based on the social needs they identified during their ethnographic research. A vital goal of this approach was to ensure one of the principles of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights: everyone has a right to well-being, including access to food, shelter, health care, clothing, and other essential social services. The emergency caused by Covid-19 has exacerbated the situation in Lleida's historic center. In addition, the fruit-picking campaign has exacerbated the problem of day laborers in the city, which is already recurrent. These workers often slept on the streets or were housed in tiny, poorly ventilated apartments. The extreme situation experienced during the pandemic is also an indication of social rejection and exclusion. The lack of coherent social policies and structures highlights the students' good reading of the city's problems.

This project illustrates an intervention in HE made possible through community involvement and the involvement of individuals who contribute to everyday life. Based on the study results, it is evident that higher education needs to rethink its methodological, interpersonal, and teaching aspects critically. From a critical perspective, this entails defining a Transpraxis Approach that is consistent with the evolution of society.

### **5. Discussion and conclusions**

Using the research findings, it has been possible to describe which methodological aspects should be considered when designing an educational proposal in higher education. This is due to the teaching assistant. These methodological aspects have been delineated through principles by analyzing the content of joint projects involving students from different disciplines.

On the methodological front, joint projects have played a significant role in developing the TA to promote relevant professional practice in each degree through exchanging and disseminating knowledge between the two disciplines. According to the EHEA, this approach corresponds to specific and transversal competencies [70]. One of the objectives of this research included the ability to identify, pose, and solve problems in realworld situations. Using sensory ethnography, students identified and provided solutions to urban social problems. They deconstructed different social and dominant discourses, betting on real projects rooted in their communities [71] and realizing situated learning [72, 73]. In turn, the work with the artist Daniel Andújar and SDG emphasized critical thinking about the lived reality of the historic center and its community [74].

It is evident that the importance of exploring collaborative work in university education cannot be overstated [75]. Therefore, students can identify self-criticisms of their processes and analyze their positions regarding other degrees, creating a sense of re-flexibility. Additionally, the various excerpts emphasize the importance of collaboration between different grades to exchange knowledge across disciplines. As a

result, learning can be democratized [76], and various social boundaries can be deconstructed. Therefore, it is not significant where the discipline comes from, but rather understanding differences to propose educational practices that contribute novel knowledge and methodologies to university education.

In teaching, working with sensory ethnography enabled students to relate the research to their everyday lives. By examining the fragments, it was easier to see how the curricular content was shaped by the experience of living in the territory and the historical context. As a result of understanding the context's social relations, they gained a more comprehensive understanding of the power relations experienced in these spaces (gentrification, regeneration, or social exclusion). As a result of these observations, it was possible to investigate the competency of engagement with the socio-cultural environment within university education. It is possible to understand teaching as a space that fosters critical thinking and social responsibility using a teaching model based on dialogical communication.

As a result of these findings, the inclusion of content from practice and personal experience is further supported. Students approached their projects with an awareness of the potential impact they might have on the everyday lives of those living in the historic center. This was because they brought their subjects closer to the lived realities of the historic center. Nevertheless, the results demonstrate the importance of working within a heritage context. As a result, we can define real projects that align with society's needs today. It is possible that dealing with the heritage context results in more open and enabling situations. It is connected to the way of life of the residents of these areas.

Based on this combination of findings, it appears that HE should be transformed into a space for debate, critical knowledge production, and the connection of training to relevant social issues. Accordingly, based on the research objectives and the analysis of the main results, ten principles are outlined as a dialog representing an interpretation of the data. Using critical pedagogy in HE, the Transpraxis Approach is built on the following principles to implement a transdisciplinary methodology.


*A Transpraxis Approach to Higher Education: A Case Study on Methodological Orientations DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.109203*


This self-developed decalogue has been developed based on the experience gained during this project. However, these findings cannot be generalized, and the case study may limit their applicability. Therefore, it is necessary to conduct further research in order to gain a complete understanding of the role of teaching assistants in university education. Consequently, this research will continue during the academic year 2022– 2023 by proposing a Transpraxis Approach between the Degrees in Primary Education and Digital Design and Digital Technology at the University of Lleida. Through this continuation, these principles can be verified. By doing so, we can transform university centers into learning environments. These centers will be critical of society and in harmony with the way of life of its citizens.

Higher Education has not explored a novel conceptual and practical framework due to this research. Instead, this study illustrates the importance of using critical pedagogy conceptual frameworks to implement the Transpraxis Approach. As well as offering innovation in curricular understanding, it commits to a view that moves away from mercantilist concepts that are disconnected from current reality. Therefore, this research provides a window into understanding university education as an enabling and transdisciplinary element that responds critically and inclusively to real-world issues.

### **Conflict of interest**

The author declares no conflict of interest.
