Website (CV and contact information; external Link)
Svante Gunnarsson
Division of Automatic Control Department of Electrical Engineering, Linköping University, Sweden
Svante Gunnarsson is currently Professor at the Division of Automatic Control, Department of Electrical Engineering, Linköping University. He got his first award as “Best teacher of the quarter” in 1986 that was followed by the rector’s prize for excellent teaching in 1993 as well as several nominations for “Gyllene Skiftnyckeln” for excellent teaching by students from Mechanical engineering. In 2020 he was awarded with the annual prize for excellent teaching within the Institute of Technology at Linköping University, that will be the basis for his contribution.
„Innovation in education? Yes, of course! But first …“
The presentation from me will have two parts.
In the first part I will talk about the keywords Preparation, Respect, Enthusiasm, and Subject (PRES), which are cornerstones for me as university teacher. They are key components for being able to provide high quality teaching and education, and it is important to have considered these components first, before initiating innovation projects.
In the second part of the presentation, I will talk about some innovation projects within teaching and education that I have been involved in. The examples will be selected from:
- Introducing computer supported exercise sessions and examination (early nineties).
- Arranging laboratory exercises that last over several weeks.
- Introducing reflection documents as a mandatory final step in Master’s and Bachelor’s theses.
- Connecting sustainability to courses in automatic control via the SDGs (UN’s Goals for sustainable development).
- Adapting and applying the CDIO Syllabus Survey in biomedicine.
- Developing a toolbox of methods for stakeholder interaction in development and management of education programs.
- Contributing to the dissemination of CDIO to Brazil.
For all examples I will the discuss the drivers behind these changes and innovations. Why did we spend time and energy on these changes? In which ways did these innovations improve the quality and relevance of the education, and how were the learning outcomes affected?
In addition, I will discuss the sustainability in these changes, i.e. if these innovative steps led to permanent change, or if they were short-time initiatives that didn’t “fly” in the long run?