The role of public administrations as reference centers in digital literacy

Educational legislation reforms in Spain over the past 50 years have led to the adoption of new training models. These models integrate education in formal institutions with training in workplaces to enhance essential practical skills and competencies that cannot be acquired solely within the academic environment (González, 2021; Martínez et al., 2019; Pérez, 2018). Historically, public administrations have not positioned themselves as complementary training centers, meaning they have not sufficiently facilitated the integration of students into their structures to improve and consolidate practical knowledge acquired through formal education. This integration would allow students to better understand time management, task execution, and decision-making in a real professional setting (López & Fernández, 2020; Ruiz, 2017). With the implementation of the Organic Law Modifying the Organic Law of Education (LOMLOE) in 2020 and the subsequent modification of curriculum decrees for vocational training, baccalaureate, and university studies (Royal Decree 822/2021), the conduct of internships, both curricular and extracurricular, in workplaces has been strengthened (Government of Spain, 2020). However, despite these reforms, workplaces have shown reluctance to host students for internships. This resistance is partly due to regulations requiring workplaces to insure students under Social Security (Royal Decree 1493/2011), which covers both common and professional contingencies (Rodríguez, 2022; Sánchez, 2019). Additionally, workplaces must bear the cost of a specific accident and liability insurance to protect students during their internship period (Martínez et al., 2019). Moreover, workplace staff face two main barriers to acting as student mentors: a lack of specific training in both the students’ academic fields and the competencies required to be guide-mentors, and a shortage of staff, leading to a workload and role overload that often results in a reluctance to take on student mentorship (García & Pérez, 2021; López & Fernández, 2020). In light of this context, an analysis has been conducted on the impact of hosting student interns in public administration. This study is based on the historical experience of internships in a workplace in the municipality of Cambados, in the province of Pontevedra, Spain, which has a population of 13.000 inhabitants (Ramírez, 2016; Pérez, 2018).