Competences in sustainability in engineering education

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Competences in Sustainability in

Engineering Education

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1 Introduction

Definition: Competences represent a dynamic combination of cognitive and meta-cognitive knowledge and understanding, interpersonal, intellectual and practical skills, and ethical values. Fostering competences is the object of educational programmes. Competences will be formed in various course units and assessed at different stages. (Tunning, 2007)

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Taxonomies:

Capacities: 1. Knowledge and understanding (To know)

2. Skills and abilities (To do)

3. Attitudes (To be)

4. Ethics and Values

Focus: 1. Generic

2. Specific

1 Introduction

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What competences in Sustainability do you think engineers may have when graduating?

2 Sustainability competences in Engineering

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Are those competences introduced in you current engineering curriculums?


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How can/should those competences introduced in your curriculum?


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Analysis:

1.National level: • UK Standards for engineering (UK)

• ABET (USA)

• Criteria for Academic and Master’s Curricula (The Netherlands)

2.International level: • Barcelona Declaration (2n EESD Conference)

• CDIO (Conceive-Design-Implement-Operate)


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Results:

Critical thinking is regularly mentioned explicitly (…is able to critically reflect...; .. “why” and “what if” reasoning…) and implicitly (…understand how their work interacts with society and the environment…) in sets of competences. The idea of mental processes of discernment, analysis and evaluation in an open-minded point of view is often highlighted.


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Results:

Systemic thinking is expressed as the idea that everything interacts with the things around it and that the world therefore consists of complex relationships. The need for having the competence to move beyond the tradition of breaking reality down into disconnected parts.


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Results:

Inter-trans-disciplinarity is also stated as important for SD taking into account both, the participation of different professionals to solve problems and stakeholder participation in technological processes.


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Results:

Values and ethics are at the core of the meta-cognitive sets of competences, they are shown as the main force to change attitudes to act personally and professionally for SD.


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Barcelona Declaration in EESD 2004:

today's engineers must be able to:

Understand how their work interacts with society and the

environment, locally and globally, in order to identify potential

challenges, risks and impacts.

Understand the contribution of their work in different cultural, social

and political contexts and take those differences into account.

Work in multidisciplinary teams, in order to adapt current technology

to the demands imposed by sustainable lifestyles, resource efficiency, pollution prevention and waste management.


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Barcelona Declaration in EESD 2004:

today's engineers must be able to:

Apply a holistic and systemic approach to solving problems and the

ability to move beyond the tradition of breaking reality down into

disconnected parts.

Participate actively in the discussion and definition of economic,

social and technological policies, to help redirect society towards

more sustainable development.

Apply professional knowledge according to deontological principles

and universal values and ethics.

Listen closely to the demands of citizens and other stakeholders and

let them have a say in the development of new technologies and infrastructures.


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• Study of SD generic

competences of Bachelor

engineering graduates

• Cognitive domain

– Knowledge and

understanding

– Skills and abilities

– Attitudes

• Level of learning

– Blooms’ taxonomy -

Cognitive learning

– Kratwhohl’s taxonomy -

Metacognitve learning

• 3 Case studies: Official ESD competences

documents

3 Example at DUT – Chalmers UT and UPC

http://www.tudelft.nl/

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Knowledge and understanding

0

1

2

World current

situation

Causes of

unsustainability

Sustainability

fundamentals

Science,

Technology and

Society

Instruments for

sustainable

technologies

Blo

om's

Tax

onom

y

DUT

UPC

CUT

knowledge

comprehension


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Skills and abilities

0

1

2

3

4

5

6

Sel f-learning Cooperation and

transdiscipl inari ty

SD Problem

solving

Systemic thinking Cri tica l thinking Socia l

participation

Blo

om's

Tax

onom

y

DUT

UPC

CUT

knowledge

comprehension

application

analysis

synthesis

evaluation


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Attitudes

0

1

2

3

4

5

Responsibility -

Commitment - SD

challenge

acknowledgement

Respect - Ethics - Peace

culture

Concern - Risk

awareness

Krat

hwoh

l's T

axon

omy

DUT

UPC

CUT

receiving

responding

valuing

value organization

value complex


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• Findings:

– Inter-trans-

disciplinarity

– Systemic Thinking

– Critical thinking

– Values and ethics

Cognitive

domain Key word Level of achievement

Knowledge

and

understanding

World current situation Comprehension

Causes of unsustainability Comprehension

Sustainability fundamentals Comprehension

Science, technology and society Comprehension

Instruments for sustainable technologies Knowledge

Skills and

abilities

Self-learning Application

Cooperation and transdisciplinarity Evaluation

SD Problem solving Synthesis

Systemic thinking Evaluation

Critical thinking Evaluation

Social participation Evaluation

Attitudes

Responsibility

Commitment

SD challenge acknowledgement

Valuing

Respect

Ethical sense

Peace culture

Organization

Concern

Risk awareness Value complex


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4 UPC Sustainability Competence

UPC Generic competences:

Entrepreneurship and Innovation

Sustainability and social commitment

third language

Effective oral and written communication

Teamwork

Use of information resources

autonomous learning

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Definition

To know and understand the complexity of economic and social phenomena

typical of the welfare society,

ability to relate welfare with globalization and sustainability,

ability to use in a balanced and compatible approach techniques, technology,

economy and sustainability.


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Levels of competence Level 1: Systemically and critically analyze the overall situation, taking into

account the sustainability and sustainable human development in an

interdisciplinary approach, and recognizing the social and environmental

implications of the professional field.

Level 2: Apply sustainability criteria and codes of professional ethics in the

design and evaluation of technological solutions.

Level 3: Take into account the social, economic and environmental solutions

when applying and implementing projects consistent with human development

and sustainability.


S1 S2 S3 S4 S5 S6 S7 S8

Level 1 Level 1

Level 2 Level 2

Level 3 Level 3