The Impact of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Use on Renewable Energy Research and Environmental Sustainability in Higher Education

The integration of Information and Communication Technologies in higher education offers transformative opportunities for addressing global challenges like renewable energy and environmental sustainability. This study explores the impact of ICT use on enhancing scientific research competencies among university students. Using a quasi-experimental design, 60 fourth-year undergraduate students from the National Agrarian University of the Jungle were divided into experimental and control groups. The experimental group participated in an eight-week intervention programme that incorporated ICT tools such as SPSS, NVivo, and Mendeley to facilitate research planning, execution, and presentation. Pretest and post-test assessments, analysed through descriptive and inferential statistics, demonstrated significant improvements in research skills among the experimental group compared to the control group. Key findings include enhanced capabilities in project formulation, data analysis, and the creation of scientific articles. These results align with previous studies, highlighting ICT's potential to democratize knowledge and foster interdisciplinary collaboration. The study underscores the necessity of integrating ICT tools into educational frameworks to optimise students' research capacities and their ability to address complex issues in sustainability and energy transitions. These findings reinforce the critical role of higher education in equipping future professionals with innovative and sustainable problem-solving skills.