ACTIVE LEARNING COMMUNITY FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT: A CDIO STANDARD 10 IMPLEMENTATION MODEL

This study offers a qualitative investigation and implementation of Faculty Learning
Communities (FLC) as enabler to support the operationalization of Conceive, Design,
Implement and Operate (CDIO) Standard 10 which emphasizes the improvement of faculty
teaching competence at the School of Architecture and the Built Environment (ABE) and the
Singapore Maritime Academy (SMA) at the Singapore Polytechnic (SP). This implementation
of the FLC approach, facilitated by a group of Teaching and Learning Mentors and Specialists
(TLMS), takes the form of an Active Learning Community (ALC) aimed at fostering
collaboration and professional development among teaching staff with activities like
symposiums, monthly sharing sessions, book studies and curated hands-on workshops. The
monthly ALC sessions cumulate as a large-scale ‘Active Learning Symposium’ (ALS) for staff
from two schools. The 2024 ALS highlighted novel pedagogical strategies and assist
academics in contextualising them into their teaching practices, highlighting the
interdependent relationships of various Teaching and Learning (T&L) initiatives introduced
over the years. Participants’ reflections emerged as crucial themes related to pedagogy,
teaching practices, and feasibility of pedagogical adaptation facilitated by CDIO standards 8
and 10 during the 2024 ALS. Participants also expressed cautious optimism, appreciation,
commitment to development, and encouragement for data-driven initiatives, further reinforcing
the potential of organising future large-scale symposiums with a strong focus on
contextualising CDIO Framework in teaching strategies and curriculum development. The
findings of this study highlighted the importance of bridging educational gaps and enhancing
teaching effectiveness while ensuring congruence with the outcome-based education through
the operationalisation of CDIO frameworks. This paper introduces a holistic approach and
provides insights into implementing CDIO Standard 10 by practicing CDIO Standard 8 as a
teaching method. It emphasizes how this collaborative learning method, emphasizing its
potential to catalyse future transformative CDIO FLC in higher education teaching and
learning.