Study Guide

Learning outcomes

Overarching learning goal is being able to mitigate and solve sustainability problems. It comprises of five key competencies to be developed and assessed during the course:

1. Systems thinking competence:
- Having completed the course, the student is able to understand structure and dynamics of complex systems related to solving sustainability challenges in a real-life project.
-He/she can describe given sustainability challenges from multiple perspectives.

2. Anticipatory competence:
-After the course, the student is able to anticipate possible and/or sustainable futures related to solving practical sustainability challenges.
- He/she can apply his/her knowledge in order to predict possible outcomes of sustainability projects and compare those with alternative scenarios.
- He/she is able to manage expectations and anticipated results of projects.

3. Normative competence:
- Having completed the course the student is able to differentiate, justify, and apply values and goals for sustainability.
- He/she can approach sustainability challenges from a normative perspective and recognize the different values guiding the project at hand.

4. Strategic competence:
- Having completed the course, the student is able to create transition and intervention strategies to enact change.
- He/she understands the basic principles of project management and can plan and lead a project from beginning to end.
- He/she feels comfortable using different project management tools and understands the basics of working with companies and other stakeholders.
- He/she is able to reflect on, and deal with, possible risks.

5. Interpersonal competence:
- After the course, the student has developed his/her communicative and collaborative skills.
- He/she is able to organize and manage working in a multi-disciplinary team of individuals.
- He/she understands the basics of projects’ internal and external communications.
- He/she can apply collaborative working methods in his/her work.

Implementation and methods of teaching

The course is a PILOT project with Turku UAS, Metropolia UAS and University of Helsinki; that is why the amount of students from the LAB is very limited.

Problem- and project-based learning method - Explicitly introducing students into the philosophy and process of PPBL

Learning material and recommended literature

All materials available in the electronic course platform.

Alternative completion methods

None

Working life cooperation

The sustainability challenges, which students will solve in teams, are given from the working life organisations.

Exam retakes

No exam.
The deliverables from a student are:
- Learning diary and log of hours (individual)
- Project plan and report (group)
- Blog article about project (group)

Learning environment

University of Helsinki, virtual course platform.

Student time use and work load

5 credits = 5 x 27 hr = 135 hr
Virtual lessons 3 x 2h = 6h
Teamwork 85h
Individual work 35h

Contents

Overarching learning goal is being able to mitigate and solve sustainability problems. It comprises of five key competencies to be developed and assessed during the course For the pilot course, project challenges are collected from companies.

Additional information for students: previous knowledge etc.

no prerequisities

REGISTRATION ENDS EXCEPTIONALLY 11.1.2019 BECAUSE OF THE SCHEDULE OF THE TURKU UAS (RESPONSIBLE FOR TEACHING OF THE COURSE)

Assessment criteria

Self- and peer-assessment 50%
Assessment of deliverables 25%
Client’s evaluation of project 25%

Assessment scale

1-5