This paper presents an exciting and novel educational initiative in which key aspects of the CDIO framework are infused into community service projects to provide students with a holistic education, as well as facilitating a global perspective.
The innovation is the work of Diploma in Chemical Engineering (DCHE) of School of Chemical & Life Sciences (CLS) at Singapore Polytechnic (SP). The CDIO framework was implemented in DCHE in 2007 and has subsequently resulted in a major curriculum reframing to meet selected CDIO Standards (e.g., syllabus outcomes, integrated curriculum, integrated learning experiences and active learning).
In this paper, we will firstly document the approach and supporting pedagogy of CDIO infused community service projects (CDIOCS). CDIOCS infuses both the technical engineering content with specific CDIO skills (e.g., personal and professional skills and attributes, interpersonal skills) through conceiving, designing, implementing and operating engineering systems in real world situations. Furthermore, through CDIOCS, participating students are exposed to a range of experiences that encourage broadening their global perspectives on political, social and economic issues faced by overseas communities. It provides the experiential context for locating engineering practices not just in the technical and academic domain, but also in the environmental, social and human conduct context.