Rethinking Engineering Education: Service-Learning as a Tool for Social Innovation

This paper presents the findings of a qualitative study investigating a servicelearning experience in an interdisciplinary elective course that engaged engineering students from multiple disciplines—including civil, aerospace, industrial, and electronics—across academic levels. Conducted in partnership with a non-profit association supporting informal caregivers, the initiative aimed to bridge technical expertise with social responsibility by challenging students to co-create innovative solutions for real-world caregiving needs. The study investigated how participation in real-world caregiving challenges influences students' development of empathy, ethical sensitivity, interdisciplinary collaboration, and problem-solving skills. Data were collected from student's reflection reports, project deliverables, stakeholders' observations, ad Padlet documentation. Thematic analysis, informed by Tronto's care ethics framework, was conducted around three guiding research question. Results demonstrated that students co-created user-centred technological solutions, including smart assistive devices, ergonomic tools, health-tracking apps, and IoTbased communication systems, while simultaneously enhancing ethical awareness, civic responsibility, and professional identity. These findings reinforce the value of service-learning as an effective pedagogical approach to integrate engineering education with social innovation, ethical development, and global priorities defined by the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG3, SDG4, and SDG17).