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A CASE STUDY OF A PARTICIPATORY STUDENT RESEARCH-LED PROJECT
Abstract
The present research paper presents the benefits of team working in higher education using as a case study a participatory student research-led project - Up-Tim project Retrofix for Solar Decathlon 2014 - from this perspective. Solar Decathlon (SD) is an international competition that challenges university students to design, build and operate solar houses. But it is more than that: it is about generating and sharing knowledge, linking university research with industry, the real market and society, raising social awareness about sustainable lifestyles, environmental issues and responsible consumption. It offers a unique learning experience for students, by moving from theory to practice and working in an interdisciplinary team. In the 2014 competition in Versailles, there were 20 competing teams and other 7 exhibiting teams. Up-Tim was among the latter seven teams. The article presents the context, the participants, the instruments and the procedures used by the team in order to achieve its goals, the barriers to overcome, the strengths and weaknesses of a student research-led project and the outcomes regarding an interesting interdisciplinary approach in an academic environment where this is the first step to link so many different disciplines: architecture, civil engineering, systems and power engineering, interior design, graphic design, marketing, communication, etc. A possible question that arises is to what extend did this participation change the university curriculum or the way the various departments and faculties interact. The study shows that it depends on many factors and, since it is only the first step towards integrative approaches, the outcomes are still to become significant. Even if the final result may not always be the one expected, the participation in this competition that lasts more than 18 months has huge benefits for students and their future. All the actions performed will change their perspective on design, building and society. Meeting the beneficiaries, organizing actions for the children, meeting the representatives of the industry and potential partners from the market, all these are not an usual part from the academic curriculum and will help them interact freely in the future with real life situation. As a conclusion, further projects of this kind should be encouraged by universities in order to link theoretical with practical knowledge of the students, to become better in their professions and more engaged in the society.
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References12
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