IEEE-Based Implementation of Engineering Projects in Community Service

2011 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kapil R. Dandekar ◽  
Saurabh Sinha ◽  
Nana-Ampofo Ampofo-Anti
Keyword(s):  
Community Service ◽  
Engineering Projects

scholarly journals Engineering Projects in Community Service (EPICS) in High Schools: Subtle but Potentially Important Student Gains Detected from Human-Centered Curriculum Design

2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 35 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alissa Ruth ◽  
Joseph Hackman ◽  
Alexandra Brewis ◽  
Tameka Spence ◽  
Rachel Luchmun ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
High School Students ◽  
Service Learning ◽  
Community Service ◽  
Curriculum Design ◽  
Participant Observation ◽  
Observation Data ◽  
School Students ◽  
Post Test ◽  
Ethnographic Analysis ◽  
Engineering Projects

A major goal in Engineering training in the U.S. is to continue to both grow and diversify the field. Project- and service-based forms of experiential, problem-based learning are often implemented with this as a goal, and Engineering Projects in Community Service (EPICS) High is one of the more well-regarded and widely implemented. Yet, the evidence based on if and how participation in such programs shapes student intentions and commitment to STEM pathways is currently limited, most especially for pre-college programming. This study asks: How do high school students’ engineering mindsets and their views of engineering/engineers change as they participate in project–service learning (as implemented through an EPICS High curriculum)? This study employed a mixed method design, combining pre- and post-test survey data that were collected from 259 matched students (63% minority, 43% women) enrolling in EPICS High (total of 536 completed pre-tests, 375 completed post-tests) alongside systematic ethnographic analysis of participant observation data conducted in the same 13 socioeconomically diverse schools over a two-year period. Statistical analyses showed that participants score highly on engineering-related concepts and attitudes at both pre- and post-test. These did not change significantly as a result of participation. However, we detected nuanced but potentially important changes in student perspectives and meaning, such as shifting perceptions of engineering and gaining key transversal skills. The value of participation to participants was connected to changes in the meaning of commitments to pursue engineering/STEM.

scholarly journals Integrating ‘Engineering Projects in Community Service’ into engineering curricula to develop graduate attributes

2018 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 60 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mohamed Sameer Hoosain ◽  
Saurabh Sinha
Keyword(s):  
Service Learning ◽  
Built Environment ◽  
Community Service ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Social Innovation ◽  
Lessons Learned ◽  
Engineering Technology ◽  
Graduate Attributes ◽  
Creative Commons ◽  
Engineering Projects

There has been a shift towards the acceptance of community engagement and service-learning as a pedagogical tool in the fields of engineering, engineering technology and the built environment. The Engineering Projects in Community Service (EPICS) program in the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) was implemented at the University of Johannesburg (UJ) in the Faculty of Engineering and the Built Environment and this article shares the best practices and lessons learned as the program developed. As EPICS-in-IEEE requires, the partners included UJ students and faculty members, a non-governmental organization (NGO), Engineers without Borders-UJ, and secondary school learners (the pre-university component) from UJ Metropolitan Academy. The EPICS-in-IEEE technical design and development phase was constituted and used as a guideline. The results of this project demonstrated at least six positive implications: university final-year/capstone engineering design projects and exit-level outcomes were achieved; participants worked as a team on engineering-related projects for a local NGO and its community; the project prepared engineering graduates for the professional world; the initiative took the engineering, engineering technology and built environment disciplines to the community through the “social innovation” EPICS-in-IEEE concept; and the UJ value system was instilled while achieving technical/professional outcomes in preparing students for careers in the private, public and non-profit sectors. How to cite this article: HOOSAIN, Mohamed Sameer; SINHA, Saurabh. Integrating ‘Engineering Projects in Community Service’ into engineering curricula to develop graduate attributes. Scholarship of Teaching and Learning in the South, v. 2, n. 1, p. 60-75, Apr. 2018. Available at: http://sotl-south-journal.net/?journal=sotls&page=article&op=view&path%5B%5D=22   This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

scholarly journals EPICS: Meeting Outcomes with Multidisciplinary Student Teams

2015 ◽  
Author(s):  
William Oakes ◽  
Maeve Drummond ◽  
Carla Zoltowski
Keyword(s):  
Service Learning ◽  
Community Service ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Service Organizations ◽  
Learning Program ◽  
Student Teams ◽  
Community Service Organizations ◽  
Societal Context ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Engineering Projects

Engineering Projects in Community Service— EPICS — is a service-learning program that wasdeveloped nearly twenty years ago at Purdue University.Under this program, undergraduate students inmultidisciplinary teams earn academic credit for longtermprojects that solve technology-based problems forlocal or global community service organizations. TheEPICS model has been implemented at 23 universities inNorth American and on other continents. With itsemphasis on the start-to-finish design of significantprojects that will be deployed by the communitycustomers, EPICS addresses many of the programoutcomes mandated by ABET and the CEAB and, morebroadly, to meet the Washington Accord graduateattributes. This paper describes the curricular andassessment procedures and documentation that have beendeveloped to enhance and evaluate the students' abilitiesto meet outcomes including functioning onmultidisciplinary teams; communicate effectively; andunderstand the impact of engineering solutions in aglobal and societal context.

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