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Picking Low Hanging Fruits – Integrating Interdisciplinary Learning in Traditional Engineering Curricula by Interdisciplinary Project Courses

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Part of the book series: Advances in Intelligent Systems and Computing ((AISC,volume 627))

Abstract

Setting up integrated interdisciplinary study programs is complex and expensive. This case study presents specific interdisciplinary project courses of the Technische Universität Darmstadt as an alternative practice for integrating interdisciplinary learning in traditional engineering curricula. Relying on the experience from 22 project courses for first year students and 22 advanced design projects for master students, the authors exemplify that a sequence of interdisciplinary projects in the bachelor’s and master’s program leads to a systematical development of interdisciplinary competences: competence in interdisciplinary team work and problem solving in the bachelor’s projects and actual interface expertise for interdisciplinary design tasks in the master’s projects.

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Acknowledgement

The introduction of interdisciplinary study projects to all departments of Technische Universität Darmstadt is co-funded by the joint programme “Quality Pact for Teaching” of the German Federal Government and the Länder in the context of the KIVA project (Competence development through interdisciplinary cooperation from the very outset; project funding reference number 01PL16048).

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Correspondence to Andrea Dirsch-Weigand .

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Dirsch-Weigand, A., Pinkelman, R., Wehner, F.D., Vogt, J., Hampe, M. (2018). Picking Low Hanging Fruits – Integrating Interdisciplinary Learning in Traditional Engineering Curricula by Interdisciplinary Project Courses. In: Auer, M., Kim, KS. (eds) Engineering Education for a Smart Society. GEDC WEEF 2016 2016. Advances in Intelligent Systems and Computing, vol 627. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-60937-9_8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-60937-9_8

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-60936-2

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-60937-9

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