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Service Learning in Engineering
William OakesCo-Director EPICS Program
Associate Professor,
Engineering Education
Purdue University
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Outline
What is service-learning Why engineering?How is S-L being done
Local and NationalCo-curricular, courses and programs
Opportunities
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Service-Learning Definition
We define service learning as a type of experiential education in which students participate in service in the community and reflect on their involvement in such a way as to gain further understanding of course content and of the discipline and its relationship to social needs and an enhanced sense of civic responsibility.
- Hatcher and Bringle, 1997
Service-Learning has been widely adopted but engineering has lagged
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Other Contexts
Service Learning shares aspects with other active learning pedagogies and experiencesExperiential LearningProblem Based LearningInquiry Guided LearningInterns and co-ops
In general these are separate from service and/or community contexts
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Why Engineering?
Multi-Level Learning Critical Thinking Professional Skills
ABET 2000 Learning Style Differences Underrepresnted populations
Women Minorities
Retention Institutional integration
Real Context for Design Real customers Design for x-ability
Compelling contexts When would I ever use this?
Educating Future Citizens
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Engineering students need more than technical knowledge to succeed: teamwork, communication, leadership, project management, professionalism, ethics, customer-awareness, …
Community-service andeducation organizations needaccess to technical expertise thatis normally prohibitively expensive: improved, enhanced, and new services
Partnerships: Meeting Needs
Communities need long-term partnerships
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Who is doing Service Learning?
MIT Illinois ColoradoPurdue Michigan Cal BerkeleyPenn State Wisconsin-Madison Ga TechTexas-Austin LSU AlabamaPR- Mayaguez Case Western Illinois Inst.of Tech Rose Hulman Utah U Mass LowellNorthwesternSan Diego ClemsonColorado State Kansas State Arizona Stanford UTEP and more…Notre Dame Dayton
Most of the top rated engineering programs have active service-learning programs
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Where do we do projects?
International ProjectsExposes students to global issues
Local ProjectsIntegrates them into the local community, Easily accessible
State, regional or national projectsExample: EPICS and Habitat for Humanity
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International
Individual Faculty John Duffy - U. Mass.-Lowell (Peru) Steve Silliman – Notre Dame (Haiti)
OrganizationsEngineers without Borders
www.ewb-usaEngineers without Borders
CanadaEngineers for a Sustainable World
www.esustainableworld.org
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How: Co-Curricular
Programs incorporate co-curricular activities with engineering-based projects in the communityProCEED – U. of Michigan
ME Honorary Society + Senior design course
Universite’ de SherbrookeContest to design toys for autistic childrenFollow-on to freshman ECE design course
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How: Integrated into Courses
ME Kinematics – analyze playground safety Measurements Laboratory
data acquired in community (e.g. environmental data)
CE – Hydrology – hydrological analysis of local wet lands or lakes
First-Year projects University of Colorado
Optional Freshman Projects Course Melinda Piket-May
University of San Diego Intro. to Engineering – Susan Lord
LSU Intro. to Biological Engineering – Marybeth Lima
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How: Separate Courses
Capstone Design CoursesNebraska – Assistive TechnologyIowa State – Toys for Children with Disabilities
First-Year Design or Intro Engineering Improves retentionU. of South Alabama
Mechanical Engineering –Edmund Tsang
Case Western Reserve Univ.College - wide
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How: Service Learning Programs
Engineering Projects in Community Service (EPICS) ProgramFounded at Purdue University
Engineers in Technical, Humanitarian Opportunities of Service-Learning (ETHOS)Founded at University of Dayton
Engineers without BordersFounded at University of Colorado
Support for national expansion from NSF, Corporation for National & Community Service, Microsoft, HP;
15 EPICS universities, 1 High School
Purdue undergraduates are learning real-world skills by defining, designing, building, testing, deploying, and supporting engineering solutions in a unique academic program that assists local community service and education organizations.
EPICS successes: 1995-2004: 1700 Purdue students to date Over 150 projects deployed S04: 280+ students from 20 Purdue departments on 25 teams A growing Purdue-community-industry partnership: 11 industry advisors $13+M total from grants, industry, Purdue, and alumni
EPICSEngineering Projects in Community Service
EPICS develops long-term partnerships in the local community
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Example National-Scale Project
Habitat for Humanity - EPICS – Microsoft PartnershipPurdue, Wisconsin,
and Notre Dame teams Two projects
Multimedia volunteer tutorials
Data collection of homeowner assessment
Community Partner is the HFHI staff in Americus, GA
Students coordinate work betweencampuses and with partners inGeorgia
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Four Categories of EPICS Teams
Human Services Homelessness Prevention Network Lafayette Crisis Center Tippecanoe County Probation Dept. Habitat for Humanity Lafayette Adult Resource Academy Greater Lafayette Volunteer Bureau
Access and Abilities Wabash Center Childrens’ Clinic Wabash Center Greenbush
Industries Purdue Office of the Dean of
Students Adaptive Programs Purdue Speech & Audiology Clinics
Education and Outreach Happy Hollow School Klondike School Lafayette School Corp. Purdue School of Education Discovering Engineering Careers Columbian Park Zoo Tippecanoe County Historical Assn. Imagination Station Art Museum of Greater Lafayette Institute for Women and Technology Purdue Cooperative Extension
Information System
Environment Purdue Dept. of Forestry & Natural
Resources Indiana Assn. of Soil & Water
Conservation Districts
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Student Quotes “(S-L) completely changed my opinion of engineering.” “Working on this project has helped me guide the rest of
my course work and ideas for a future profession.” “Other engineering courses only directly benefit me.
(S-L) benefits everyone involved.” “I have learned that engineering includes more than
theory, it includes teamwork, communication, organization and leadership.”
“It made me understand how every aspect of engineering (design, implementation, team work, documentation) come together.”
“No longer is engineering just a bunch of equations,now I see it as a means to help mankind.”
“Opened my heart.”
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Funding and Support Opportunities NSF
DLR – Department Level Reform (in EEC)Separate service-learning trackMicrosoft, HP, National Instruments are partners
CCLI – A&I - Adaptation and Implementation (in EHR)Adapting successful models to your curriculum
Learn and Serve Americawww.learnandserve.org (www.cns.gov)Next RFP in 2006
Corporations Foundations Campus Compact (www.compact.org)
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Engineering Service-Learning Growing national momentum
Numbers of programs Visibility (NSF Department Level Reform)
Many benefits Learning model Student persistence Engineering practice New context for engineering ABET
Successful models Local and International
Partnerships are key for success University, Community, Foundation, Corporate