Service Learning: Industrial Embedded Systems Course

Service learning is defined by the National Service-Learning Clearing House as “a teaching and learning strategy that integrates meaningful community service with instruction and reflection to enrich the learning experience, teach civic responsibility, and strengthen communities.” A service learning capstone project was incorporated into a senior/graduate level industrial control course. The course provides instruction on control system design commonly encountered in industry. The design of control systems incorporating programmable logic controllers and microcontrollers is covered along with accompanying laboratory work to reinforce course concepts. To integrate course concepts, practice team design skills and expose students to service learning; students were required to complete a capstone service learning project. The students worked in a large team effort to design, construct, test and deliver a Concrete Curing Box (CCB) for use in a high school STEM recruiting and enrichment program. This paper will discuss how the service learning program was constructed and integrated into the course, the objectives of the service learning component and the results of the project. The CCB will be used as a case study to illustrate service learning in action.