SEED Case Study Initiative
The SEED Case Study Initiative develops original case studies for engineering courses that highlight the impact of engineering work on engineers and society using real-world microhistories closely connected to any engineering subject.
Interested in integrating engineering case studies into your course? Reach out to Sara Hoffman, Assistant Director of Educational Content and Research Integration, saralhof@umich.edu
What is this project?
We partner with CoE faculty and instructors to conceptualize and implement SEED case studies in undergraduate engineering courses. Case topics are drawn from modern engineering practice and the history of technology and society. While case-based learning itself is not new, our approach is unique in identifying case topics specific to each faculty partner’s disciplinary focus and translating those examples into carefully scaffolded modules and workshops that explicitly explore sociotechnical dimensions of engineering.
Why use case studies?
Our approach is designed to avoid “othering” socially engaged topics in engineering spaces and to help students recognize that social contexts are integral to excellence in their academic and professional work as engineers. Cases explore engineering processes and provide opportunities to analyze the impacts of solutions on people and the environment.
What current cases exist?
Each case provides an in-depth exploration of a specific solution, project, event, or biography related to engineering. These analyses serve as windows into broader issues within engineering disciplines and society. There are currently over 20 completed case studies in our growing collection.
How are SEED case studies integrated into engineering course?
Past faculty partners have used SEED cases in contexts ranging from first-year engineering sections to senior design courses. Cases can take the form of short reading/reflection assignments, full-length Canvas modules, or interactive workshops. For example:.
- FIRST-YEARS IN A INDUSTRIAL OPERATIONS-THEMED INTRODUCTION TO ENGINEERING section explored the design of new smart shelf technology and analyzed potential impacts of cashless payment systems for key stakeholders.
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SOPHOMORES AND JUNIORS IN MECHANICAL ENGINEERING explored the development of Volvo’s innovative Whiplash Protection System (WHIPS) as a potential solution for the problem of whiplash, proposed potential strategies for testing the efficacy of this system, and discussed how engineers might account for variability among users.
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JUNIORS AND SENIORS IN A CORE BIOMEDICAL ENGINEERING COURSE used a Failure Modes and Effects Analysis (FMEA) framework to explore limitations of pulse oximetry technology, why potential failures might occur, and what impacts such failures could have on patients.