INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGIES IN THE VISION OF HIGHER EDUCATION: THE CASE OF RESEARCH PROCESS OF THE AUTONOMOUS UNIVERSITY OF BAJA CALIFORNIA

Due to the global development the worldwide use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) for teaching and learning has led to major transformations among the prevailing Higher Education systems. In this context, the potential value of ICT is widely recognized by several international organisms and policy makers. Still, due to the nature of this trend, the process of incorporating technology in Higher Education (HE) faces significant challenges in order to provide tangible benefits for the learning processes and the correct alignment between technology, society demands and Higher Education Institutions. Moreover in Higher Education, the international experience has shown that the conditions and effectiveness use of technologies vary according to the context of each institution, country and region. Therefore in order to fulfill its function as one of the most important means of global development, it becomes clear the necessity to contemplate an integration of ICT to educational programs as part of today's Higher Education's development vision. The purpose of this paper is to present the most relevant aspects of the process and research method applied for developing a proposal for strengthening the vision of the Autonomous University of Baja California (UABC) in relation to the integration of ICT to its educational programs. The above mentioned research process had a qualitative design which included a documental research about the recommendations of international organizations regarding the incorporation of ICT in HE, the ICT in HE policies in Mexico, the regulations and educative model of UABC, and the analysis of the best experiences of three reference cases of Higher Education Institutions in the country. The study of reference cases was focused in their processes of incorporation of ICT in educational, organizational and institutional infrastructure. Furthermore the research methodology was challenged to the identification and homologation of concepts and terms provided, in order to validate the proposals generated from the case of reference analysis and policies' study. The results were generated in function of the university's educational model strengths and the conditions of ICT integration within its educational programs, demonstrating the need to include a basis for the development and continuation of the absorption of educational technologies in support of the university's vision. Also as part of the final proposal those were reflected in the 2011-2016 UABC Institutional Development Plan. This in order to, raise quality standards and to increase the equitable education access by diversifying the offer supported by ICT. Finally, this will signify in an opportunity for the continuity and update of valuable knowledge that goes in line with the knowledge society demands and the global development.