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Using Contests to Provide Business Students Project‐Based Learning in Humanitarian Logistics: PSAid Example
Author(s) -
Özpolat Koray,
Chen Yuwen,
Hales Doug,
Yu Degan,
Yalcin Mehmet G.
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
decision sciences journal of innovative education
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.52
H-Index - 19
eISSN - 1540-4609
pISSN - 1540-4595
DOI - 10.1111/dsji.12044
Subject(s) - contest , competition (biology) , service learning , service (business) , public relations , public service , class (philosophy) , compassion , business , marketing , sociology , political science , pedagogy , computer science , law , biology , ecology , artificial intelligence
Business students appreciate working on classroom projects that are both enjoyable and useful in preparing them for future careers. Promoting competition among project teams is also used as a method to motivate students. The Humanitarian Logistics Project (HLP) teaches undergraduate students the logistical implications of unsolicited material donations in disaster relief. To encourage competition, students are organized into teams of three and tasked with designing humanitarian public service announcements (PSAs) that improve their understanding of humanitarian issues in the general public. These announcements are then submitted to the national PSAid (Public Service Announcements for International Disasters) contest for American college students. The exercise is rigorous because it requires students to collect logistical data and use it to communicate the principle of smart compassion to the public in a creative fashion. Moreover, not only do students learn about topics related to humanitarian logistics by competing with other college students nation‐wide, but also do they make a socially responsible contribution to the public. Analysis of survey data shows that students’ learning outcomes from the HLP are significantly greater than those for other supply chain topics covered in class, and that student satisfaction with the HLP is high.