New Pedagogical Approaches to Shaping the Next Generation of Portuguese Manufacturing Professionals

Abstract

With the exponential growth of digital technologies, the industrial sector is looking for people capable of solving ambiguous, open-ended, and ill-structured problems. The 4th Industrial Revolution marks a new mindset and the need to inspire and educate young students to become the manufacturing engineers of the future. With this in mind, the European project ShapiNG, is focused on raising the interest of high school students for activities in the field of manufacturing in Portugal, Spain, Greece and Slovakia. Students will interact and critically engage with challenges related to smart manufacturing from an early age, motivating them to consider a possible career in this area. In Portugal, activities such as the Digital Escape Room Game and the Teaching Factories for Kids, are helping the Faculty of Engineering of the University of Porto in attracting and engaging young students from different high schools and communities. These activities address topics related to Cyber-Physical Production Systems, Additive Manufacturing, Digitalization, Internet of Things and Robotics. This work describes the results achieved in Portugal activities, ultimately positing the idea of the importance and benefits of innovative pedagogical approaches regarding the learning experience of Smart Manufacturing related topics among high school students.