Relationships between students and external partners in work-integrated learning can vary and power dynamics, hierarchies and student agency have been under explored in research to date. Integrated research involving work-integrated learning, students as partners and transdisciplinarity presents an opportunity to enrich each of these fields. This…

In this study we explored the experiences of students who completed a project-based, interdisciplinary capstone course that was offered at a large university in Southern Ontario, Canada. To do so, we interviewed students after they completed the course, adopting a constructivist perspective and a phenomenological approach. Interview transcripts…

Background: Little is known about how students engage in ethical decision-making, especially when designing in messy, real-life contexts. To prepare ethically competent engineers, educators need a richer understanding of students' ethical decision-making throughout the course of the design process. Purpose/Hypothesis: This study examines students'…

The article profiles a project addressing a central issue in reform-driven STEM education--the need to align educational experiences with real-world STEM. The interdisciplinary program aimed for authenticity by purposefully designing an authentic PBL project and incorporating STEM professionals as volunteer facilitators. These volunteers enhanced…

Current visions for the education of young people propose learning in meaningful contexts, relevant for citizens of a modern society. Inquiry-based teaching is one such approach in science education, but its potential can best be realised through constructive collaboration between teachers and across subjects. This chapter presents a case of…

Background: Inclusive STEM high schools employ a variety of instructional strategies, including PBL (problem and/or project-based learning) experiences, with the goals of building students' 21st century skills, facilitating long-term academic success, and encouraging pursuit of STEM careers. PBL approaches are central to the goals of inclusive…

This paper discusses observations of an architecture and environmental engineering undergraduate design studio project assigned to 4th year students at a UK university. In the UK, most architecture courses are characterised by a high proportion of design studio teaching supported by varying amount of technical modules that include environmental…

Project-based learning (PjBL) is argued to foster a more democratic approach to education, particularly through increasing students' autonomy over their learning. This article presents the findings of research into students' views relating to autonomy over topic choice and group constitution during a series of trial interdisciplinary PjBL…

This descriptive and interpretive case study investigates how 12 undergraduate college students perceived participation in their high school Senior Capstone Project (SCP) impacted their college academic experience. Learning transfer was explored from the learner's perspective. Data was collected using qualitative methods in three sequential phases…