Project-Centered Engineering Practical Curriculum:A Study Of Engineering Projects In Community Service In Purdue University

The engineering practical curriculum is a key part to enhance the practical ability of engineering talents,and the project-centered engineering practical curriculum is more beneficial to cultivate engineering talents with the ability to solve complex engineering problems.Engineering Projects in Community Service(EPICS)of Purdue University in the United States is an engineering practical curriculum taught in the form of projects,in which undergraduates design,construct and implement projects,which not only solves engineering-based problems for local community service and educational organizations,but also effectively improves students’ engineering practical skills through It not only solves engineering-based problems for local community service and educational organizations,but also effectively enhances students’ engineering practice through participation in real-life projects.It has been widely recognized by the National Academy of Engineering in terms of curriculum innovation and awarded the Gordon Award,the highest award in higher engineering education in the United States,which is worthy of learning from China.This paper adopts the methods like literature reference,comparative research and case study to elaborate the EPICS in Purdue University.First,the EPICS at Purdue University is described in terms of both its establishment background and current development.Second,the training objectives,team composition,course structure,and course evaluation of EPICS at Purdue University are described in detail.Again,the seven phases of EPICS implementation are sorted out: project identification phase,specification development phase,conceptual design phase,detailed design phase,project delivery phase,project maintenance phase,and closure or redesign phase,and its guarantee conditions are analyzed: strict management measures,sufficient financial guarantee,and advanced hardware facilities.Finally,we analyze the effectiveness of Purdue University EPICS in community service,school communication,and student development,and summarize its characteristics,namely,emphasizing the authenticity of project content,allowing students to learn and explore freely;promoting the verticality of team composition,allowing students to broaden their horizons in interdisciplinarity;supporting the periodicity of project implementation,helping students to grow continuously;focusing on the diversity of student evaluation,promoting students to reflecting in practice.On this basis,combining the problems of China’s engineering practice courses and drawing on the successful experience of EPICS at Purdue University,four suggestions are proposed for the development of engineering practice courses in China’s universities: project-based,with the content of engineering practice courses based on realistic situations;interdisciplinary-oriented,with the formation of vertical multidisciplinary project practice teams;phase-based,with long-term continuous engineering practice projects;with Focus on reflection and build a multi-process evaluation system.