Using Service-learning to Improve the Engagement of Industrial Engineering Students

Cannon, B., Deb, S., Strawderman, L., & Heiselt, A. (2016). Using Service-learning to Improve the Engagement of Industrial Engineering Students. International Journal of Engineering Education. Tempus Publications. 32(4), 1732-1741.

Abstract

Students in an undergraduate ergonomics course within the Industrial Engineering Department participated in a service-learning project. While working with a local sweet potato farm, student teams evaluated packaging operations at the farm and developed both ergonomics and operations improvements. At the conclusion of the course, students (n = 45) completed a survey on their perceptions of the project and its influence on learning outcomes, community engagement, and student development. More than 90% of the students reported that the project helped them learn course topics better than a traditional course method. The transfer students (transferred from a junior college or university) especially found service-learning as an effective tool to better understand the course topics by having practical experience. Positive responses to the project were significantly higher in female students and students who had parents with an engineering background. Students with prior volunteer experience also had more favorable perceptions of the service-learning project than those who did not volunteer.