In the ‘Software and Society’ course at Alfaisal University, students learn to work with co-designers and stakeholders in the realm of assistive technology. The course is designed with project-based, team-oriented learning in mind, a learning model that Alfaisal students particularly enjoy and benefit from. Project-based learning (PBL) is a type of learning that takes a practical approach to understanding new concepts. The course contributes toward advancing a number of useful skills: project management, communication within and outside a team, delegation, design/fabrication, and team-building, to name a few. Projects are aligned with the CoCreate program for humanistic co-design of assistive technologies. Alumni of the software engineering program have reported many of these skills as being particularly valuable to them in their careers.
In contrast to traditional teaching and learning models that have students passively “receiving content” from the instructor, PBL in the CoCreate program offers a substantially different experience in which small teams of students work on a demanding problem over the course of a semester, an approach that has been shown to contribute towards higher learning retention rates. The proposed challenges are socially important, located in the real world, and within the student’s own community, and require mature application of STEM and software engineering knowledge. Alfaisal University has hosted the CoCreate program since 2020. In the 2024 edition of the program, the participants showcased their work-in-progress in the Spring 2024 exhibit that was held on Alfaisal University’s campus on May 5, 2024.
In each project, teams devise their own procedures for problem framing, formulation, and resolution. This allows students to develop 21st-century skills involving cooperation, conflict resolution, and collaboration, sometimes including reaching out to local professionals who work in the domain of the assigned problem. The team’s user-centered design, user research, and/or technology solutions are typically presented in a final written report and public oral presentation, often with local stakeholders and sponsors attending the exhibit.
The ‘Software and Society’ course’s instructors for SE 117 in Spring of 2024 are Ms. Safia Dawood and Dr. Areej Al-Wabil; and the CoCreate program’s coordinator is Eng. Mohamed Khaled Hassan. As the Director of the CoCreate program Dr. Areej Al-Wabil highlighted how student engagement is often elevated when their work is aligned with clients and stakeholders. “In today’s dynamic technological landscape, organizations seek technologists and leaders with a broad skill set needed to tackle emerging challenges and drive innovation,” Dr. Al-Wabil reflected on the project showcase in May 2024. She adds: “Over a period of 14 weeks, students work in groups to apply the knowledge gained through their coursework to solve real-world problems for a client or stakeholder. It provides hands-on experience in applying technical knowledge, offers mentorship from experts in the field, and facilitates teamwork on a project aligned with requirements of the stakeholders.”
The project showcase shed light on how students enrolled in the ‘Software and Society’ course gained skills in decomposing, structuring, and formulating solutions to unstructured problems, assessing what can be done, and delivering a product on time. The CoCreate program facilitated the connections with stakeholders and communities in the local context; it also emphasized interdisciplinary problem solving, from data collection, analysis, and synthesis to formulation and evaluation of policy recommendations. The program’s exhibit provide the space for students, co-designers, and stakeholders to connect and discuss challenges and opportunities for advancing their prototypes and further development.
