Introducing the problem/project based learning as a learning strategy in University Social Responsibility Program - A study of local revitalization of Coastal Area, Yong-An District of Kaohsiung City

Abstract

In recent years, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has implemented a local revitalization policy, and this has attracted the attention of the Taiwan government. The core idea of this policy is finding local and tailored solutions, developing economic autonomy, encouraging population inflow and infusing dynamics into rural areas. In 2017, Taiwan’s Ministry of Education (MOE) began to promote the University Social Responsibility (USR) Program, hoping that universities would devote their knowledge and talent to local development. However, local development issues are complex and the success of the USR program depends on raising university students’ cross disciplinary competency and awareness of social responsibility. This small- scale study, conducted in a framework of revitalization in the Yong-An District in Kaohsiung city, explored the use of problem-based learning (PBL) in a USR course. The results showed that a PBL pedagogy produced significant improvements in learning outcomes, in terms of learners’ perception of university social responsibility, their capacity to deal with complex and ambiguous structure issues, their ability to put professional knowledge into practice, team-building, and communication skills. The initiative had a positive impact on university students, enabling them to gain greater insight into their social responsibility.