This paper introduces the Heritage-based Education 5.0 model as a transformative approach to decolonize higher education in Zimbabwe and other postcolonial contexts. Departing from the traditional Education 3.0 banking model, which imposes Western-centric knowledge on passive students, this model recognizes and values students' cultural heritage…

The COVID-19 pandemic has been a major disruption in higher education, challenging universities to engage with community partners in unprecedented ways. Among them was an accelerated challenge to ways of engaging with surrounding communities and the resulting importance this holds for social change. A common approach has been for the university to…

In recent years, grand challenge initiatives have emerged nationally with the goal of addressing large, multidisciplinary public problems. The advent of university-led grand challenge initiatives offers an important opportunity to reflect on how institutions of higher education design, implement, and orient externally relevant activities at a time…

This article was adapted from "The LEAP Challenge: Education for a World of Unscripted Problems," a folio distributed at the opening plenary session of the 2015 annual meeting of the Association of American Colleges and Universities at which the LEAP Challenge was formally launched. Liberal Education and America's Promise (LEAP) prepares…

With contributions from leading experts across disciplinary fields, this book explores best practices from the field's most notable researchers, as well as important historically based and politically focused challenges to a field whose impact has reached an important crossroads. The comprehensive and powerfully critical analysis considers the…

Community-based research (CBR) is an increasingly familiar approach to addressing social challenges. Nonetheless, the role it plays in attaining community impact is unclear and largely unstudied. Here the authors discuss an emerging framework aimed toward fostering community impact through university and community civic engagement. They describe…

It is widely acknowledged that sustainable development is a long-term goal, which both individuals and institutions (and countries!) need to pursue. This important theme is characterized by an intrinsic complexity, since it encompasses ecological or environmental considerations on the one hand, and economic matters, social influences and political…

The progress of a three-year college program in environmental education is cited in this article. Successes of the program, as reported, include the ability to integrate the areas of study and to develop a problem-solving approach. The major failure of the program is the lack of community support. (MA)

A yearlong senior experience course requires teams of business students to solve real problems for organizations in the community. Students enhanced responsibility, confidence, and organizational skills. Problems centered on differentiating the course from internships and improving staffing. Students had problems with group dynamics, team…

This paper describes the process by which a group of minority community representatives became involved in decision-making roles throughout five years of a multidisciplinary research project. Suggestions are made for the consideration of social scientists who anticipate conducting community-related research in the future. (Author)

Gaming, an approach to problem solving that engages a real life situation, is a technique particularly appealing for design students because it permits learning about the process of change in a dynamic environment requiring periodic decisions. Two games about consensus decisions are discussed: KEEPS and Senior Center Game. (MLW)

This paper discusses the need for a quality written constitution for student government. The thought process involved in implementing democracy in the university setting is outlined in 10 steps. Members of the student government need to realize the tremendous potential of using the democratic process to resolve disagreements. Each of the 10…

A new medical curriculum at the University of Newcastle, New South Wales, is described. Student knowledge, understanding, and skills are developed through the study of a sequence of clinical problems integrated with appropriate practical and clinical activities. Such an innovative curriculum implies different roles for academic staff. (Author/MLW)

Because of the complexity of large-scale projects, teams of experts have become the new designers of the built environment, with clients, decision makers, and buildings' users demanding inclusion in these teams. The Grand Frame Game is described as a technique for including people in decision making. (MLW)

A collaborative software development project designed to maximize the skill sets and interests of school children and teachers, educational software technologist and researchers, and college undergraduates is presented. The work brings together elementary school children with college seniors and technology consultants to implement a…