Service learning experiences: a way forward in teaching engineering students?

Engineering education in the UK has slowly begun to understand the benefits of service learning, in which students take part in a community project as part of their course. The Department of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Sheffield has explored service learning for the past three years.This paper looks at the use of service learning in an engineering environment in terms of embedding social awareness into the curriculum and looks at the issues surrounding the engagement of engineering students. It discusses problems which cause barriers to successful implementation as well as how service learning can inspire the next generation of engineers and change the perception of engineering in the community.