# Post-Digital Learning for Rural Development: A Case Study of _Open Biotec_ MOOCs in Colombia
## 3 Results and Discussion
### Relationship between the MOOCs and the Development Strategy of Biotechnology in the Region  
Colombia, and the rest of the South American region, have declared a strong interest in increasing educational coverage, especially in STEM areas, after the ranking obtained in the 2018 PISA tests. According to recent results, the country has demonstrated the need for a profound change in the educational model that meets the challenges of a knowledge-based economy. That is why this generation requires to adopt the concepts of biotechnology in the teaching processes and prepare to develop development models based on the bioeconomy [85].  
Colombia seeks to become a world leader in biotechnology by 2025 and offer solutions to local, regional, and global issues [86]. In contrast, a biotechnological literacy, like that proposed in the MOOCs of the _Open Biotec_ platform, will imply that elementary, secondary, and high education populations are updated with easily accessible sources and have the tools to understand these fundamentals in the proper context.  
For its part, in the Colombian educational system, there are curricular guidelines for Natural Sciences and Environmental Education [87], Basic Competency Standards [88], and Basic Learning Rights [89] that contemplate the development of scientific capacities. In students from elementary to secondary school, a set of structuring learning that students must learn in each of the grades of school education while allowing teachers to develop curricular proposals according to the existing needs in the current context [90].  
This fact explains how the contents of the _Open Biotec_ MOOCs in biotechnology were defined in coherence with the learning declared by the Ministry of National Education [89]. According to this, a student must argue based on evidence about the effects that some human activities have on the country's biodiversity and explain the uses of biotechnology and its effects in different contexts. Also, it is necessary to understand the importance of obtaining clean energy from several organic wastes, analyze current environmental issuesfrom a systemic perspective, and propose the application of biotechnological techniques as a bio-entrepreneurship strategy.  
For this reason, it is necessary to train teachers and adapt natural science curricula and instructional practices following the socioeconomic changes introduced by recent scientific and technological advances [91]. Thus, biotechnology can be used as a pedagogical strategy for teachers and students in the teaching-learning process of natural sciences. The strategy can be developed through methodologies based on research models and mini-projects for the education system in rural communities [92].  
However, to achieve this, the use of ICT is decisive. A virtual training route in biotechnology is offered as an alternative to overcome the limitations that cause desertion in this type of community. Nowadays, software technologies developed by academic institutions around the world are revolutionizing the educational system and continually offering new tools and platforms for the learning experience for students [27; 82]. The main findings of a pilot test for this training route are presented below.