Innovation in university teaching fosters meaningful and contextualized learning and enables alignment with the Sustainable Development Goals, particularly SDG 4 (Quality Education) and those related to the topic of the proposed activity. In this work, Responsible Production and Consumption (SDG 12) and Climate Action (SDG 13) are particularly relevant. Furthermore, the use of digital resources in the educational environment has proven to be an effective approach for improving accessibility, motivation and prior preparation of students towards practical learning.

This work provides the results obtained from a teaching innovation activity developed within the project “Digital active learning to improve students’ practical skills and motivation in a coordinated manner across subjects related to food analysis”. The activity was carried out in the subject “Analytical Control of Contaminants in Food” from 4th course of the degree in Food Science and Technology. It involved an interactive virtual tour through a university laboratory where different miniaturized analytical techniques could be explored. These techniques were aligned with the principles of the Green Analytical Chemistry. The tour was created with the Genially online tool, and through it, students explored different lab stations, each dedicated to a specific technique. One of these stations was dedicated to the AGREEPrep tool, which it is a resource recently developed for assessing the sustainability of sample preparation methods in analytical chemistry. In addition, during the tour, the students also faced challenges that tested and encouraged them to explore all the lab stations.

The activity was carried out in two phases. First, prior to the laboratory practices, the students independently explored the virtual tour. This way, they became familiar with the theoretical and practical concepts, thereby improving their use of the subsequent in-person practical sessions. In the second phase, after completing the laboratory practices, the students worked in groups to evaluate the sustainability of the analytical method carried out in the lab and, based on the result obtained, they had to propose improvements to make the analytical procedure more sustainable. Afterwards, these proposals for improvement were presented in a classroom session. This activity fostered the integration of theoretical and practical knowledge, as well as the development of transversal skills, such as critical thinking, informed decision-making and the capacity for innovation in the scientific field.

The results obtained from both the work submitted by students and the satisfaction and self-assessment surveys showed a significant improvement in the understanding of the concepts studied. Students positively valued the virtual tour as an effective resource prior to laboratory practices, highlighting that it helped them feel more prepared and motivated. However, they also indicated that evaluating the sustainability was complicated for them, as they believed this aspect required more time and explanation.

Ultimately, this experience demonstrated the great potential of using immersive tools and digital resources to enhance teaching in the field of experimental sciences, while contributing to the development of professionals more committed to addressing current challenges.

Acknowledgement:
“Action funded by the Universidad Rey Juan Carlos in the call Proyectos de Innovación Educativa 2024/2025, with project code PIE24_094”

Keywords: Teaching Innovation and Sustainability, Digital Active Learning, Green Analytical Techniques, Experimental Sciences.