Engineering Abroad

Reflection Guidebook

 

Introduction

Welcome to your personal reflection guidebook!

The purpose of this guidebook is to help direct your thoughts, comments, and observations when you are on-site for your EWB experience abroad.  You are in the midst of a life changing adventure, so it is important that you actively reflect on what you are experiencing and learning!

Using this guidebook regularly will not only benefit your own personal growth but will help bring clarity and new insights to the project as a whole.

Good luck on your project and happy reflecting!

 

Table of Contents

• Overview of Reflecting
• Introduction to our Research
• Notes on Personal Development  

Overview of Reflecting

 What is an appropriate reflection format?

Individual

Journal

Audio recorder

Photographs

Video clips

Group

Audio-recorded discussion

Discussion with scribe

 

How much time should I spend reflecting?

At least one scheduled group reflection each day or after major project events is recommended.

Written comments or audio recording of significant events is best reflected upon when done so immediately after it occurs.

Individual reflection can happen throughout the day.  It may be best to carry a small notebook with you and jot down any notes, thoughts, questions, ideas, and quotes!

What topics should I reflect on and record? 

• Documentation of Meetings

Document meeting proceedings by answering the following questions:

• What was the format of the meeting?
• What are the objectives of the meeting?
• Where these objectives met?  How?
• What cultural differences were evident in how the meeting was run?
• What project changes emerged from the meeting?
• How was the meeting what you anticipated?  How was it different?
• What skills did you have to use during the meeting?
• What skills could you improve upon to better participate in future meetings?
• What are other observations you had?

• Technical Challenges

Record technical obstacles you encounter and what solutions were explored.

• How was a decision reached?
• Was the problem sufficiently solved?
• What tools were helpful to have?
• What tools would have been helpful?
• What assumptions had to be made?  How did you have to be flexible?
• How did your group resolve problems?
• How did you group respond to necessary project change?

• Communication
  • Where did you encounter challenges in communicating?
  • Why did these obstacles arise and how were they navigated?
  • What resources did you have to aid in communication?

• Information Collection

Take notes on how information is being collected for your project.

• What type of information is not accessible?
• What is the accuracy and trustworthiness of the information you do have?
• Is information being kept track of effectively?  How?
• Think about how information moves through the community.
• How does information get spread throughout the community?
• What are the primary sources of outside information into the community?
• What knowledge sources do they have?

• Cultural Differences

Note behaviors that differ noticeably from those of people in the US.

• How do they interact socially, cook, learn, etc.?
• Why do these differences exist?

• Gender Relations
  • Assess gender relations in the community with a particular focus on women. What are their responsibilities and how might they change as a result of your involvement in the community.

• Community roles

Choose a single person or category of people (i.e. kids age 8-12, pastor).

• Who is this person or group of people?
• What are the different roles of people in the community?
• How do they spend their time?
• What unique responsibilities do they have?
• What skills do they have that distinguish them?
• What is their project involvement?
• How is the project impacting them?
• What can others learn from this person?
• Each team member should write at least one during the trip.

• Personal Thoughts

Write thoughts about the project, your personal growth, and international development as a whole. Use these questions as guidance.

• Try to imagine how you are perceived by the community.  While in your community, you represent the United States.  Does this make you want to adjust your behavior?  How?

• In your eyes when will the project be complete? What intermediary steps need to happen to reach that point?
• How has your perception of the community and their lifestyle changed since becoming more involved in the project?
• How has your worldview changed?
• Does the US look different while sitting in Africa?
• Etc.

Introduction to our research:

As a member of Engineers Without Borders, you are likely to acknowledge that the work you have done has led to significant personal growth while simultaneously improving the lives of those living in your partner community.  But just what types of skills and knowledge are you acquiring?  Our research team has been looking for answers to this question over the course of the last three years.  This is a brief overview of what we have found.

Students involved in EWB, specifically those who have had the opportunity to travel are likely to experience growth in these six categories:

• Technical Development
• Communication
• Personal Growth
• Project Management
• Community-Based Development
• Intercultural Awareness

Following you will find a more detailed description of these categories and their subcomponents.  We would love to hear your thoughts on the accuracy of these findings so please jot down or discuss any thoughts you have.

I.  Technical Development

Deepening technical knowledge and skills in real world environments is vital to the development of engineering students who are both confident and realistic in their engineering ability.  Technical development includes fundamental engineering, science, and math principles as well as gaining the ability to problem solve and work efficiently.  You will gain valuable technical skills and an increased confidence in your engineering ability.  Technical development includes an increased confidence in engineering ability, a stronger sense of  engineering identity, and the application of classroom learning to a real world problem.  You will inevitably encounter obstacles and decisions that require creative problem solving.  Further, being on this project will require you to accept ambiguous information, work with limited resources, and make decisions based on limited information. 

Components of Technical Development:

• Confidence in engineering ability
• Creative problem solving
• Applied classroom learning
• Accept ambiguous information
• Comfortable working with limited resources

II.  Communication

The ability to communicate effectively is one of ABET’s eleven criteria for engineering programs.  International engineering presents an opportunity for students to develop a wide range of communication skills.   While abroad, students communicated across language barriers, between different cultures, and with people of varying levels of technical knowledge.  These skills are developed in unfamiliar environments, with limited resources, and at times with less than ideal working conditions which led to increased confidence in their communication skills.  This growth is the product of observation and practice, and is enhanced by the ability to discuss social nuances with other project members and preparatory team meetings before certain encounters.  By being aware of communication barriers you may encounter as well as techniques to overcome these barriers is a life-long skill that will directly improve your professional careers.

Components of Communication:

●      Comfortable working across cultural barriers

●      Comfortable working across languages

●      Establishment of trust and respect with community members

●      Documentation of knowledge

●      Comfortable working across technical levels

●      Presentation skills

III.  Personal Growth

The experience of working on an international engineering project can lead to a great deal of personal growth.   Personal growth in this context encompasses flexibility, teamwork, leadership, self-confidence, sense of responsibility, and a furthered engineering identity.  Project teams need to learn to work cohesively in order to accomplish goals and further their ability to be flexible to accommodate unexpected circumstances.  You will gain leadership experience from the responsibility you have to your team.  Being abroad also will present personal challenges and opportunities for personal growth by leaving you with a better understanding of your role as an engineer and your engineering identity.

Components of Personal Growth:

●      Flexibility

●      Teamwork

●      Leadership

●      Self-confidence

●      Sense of responsibility

●      Furthered identity

IV.  Project Management

The various components of project management incorporated into EWB projects offer a great opportunity for you to develop interpersonal and project management skills.  Project management is defined to include: scheduling activities appropriately, effectively utilizing human resources, creating an information organization strategy, time management, and the understanding of the differences in having an insider or outsider perspective.   It is necessary to have a descriptive yet flexible schedule while working on-site given the unpredictable nature of the environment.  This experience will help you learn to manage time, money, resources, and people.  As part of a team you collectively must decide how to efficiently organize these resources and develop an information organization strategy.  You will also begin to recognize the difference between the insider and outsider perspective.  Gaining an insider perspective into the community is critical for a project’s success so that it can become sustainable now and after the project has ended.

Components of Project Management:

• Time management
• Information organization strategy
• Utilization of human resources
• Appropriate scheduling

• Insider versus outsider perspective

V.  Community-Based Development

Learning how to successfully root an engineering project in the community is vital for the long term success and sustainability of a project.  After extensive work on any project you begin to realize community ownership is essential for sustained success. This requires transferring knowledge about the project to the local community but for a variety of cultural and language reasons this can be difficult.  Establishing a relationship of mutual trust and respect between all involved parties can go a long way.   Students often arrive in the community with a working knowledge of the engineering elements of the project but without an intimate understanding or the social and environmental factors that will also play a large role in the success of the project.   Gaining this a community-based perspective is necessary to determine the most appropriate execution of the project, however this requires successfully engaging the community throughout every stage.  This bottom-up approach to development is the foundation of sustainable and community-owned projects.

Components of Community-Based Development:

●      Realistic expectations

●      Sustainability

●      Community ownership of project

●      Transfer of knowledge to community

●      Seeing community as project contributor

●      Insider/outsider perspective

VI.  Intercultural Awareness

Becoming aware of cultural differences is a major component of learning to your growth as a development worker.  Given globalization and the culturally diverse state of many engineering projects, intercultural awareness is a valuable skill for any engineering student.  Intercultural awareness is defined to be: the ability to work within cultural differences, an enhanced awareness of cultural differences; the realization of social, economic, and political climates; and the acquisition of community trust.  While on-site, you will be immersed within the local culture and have the opportunity to more accurately pursue a project by understanding the social, economic, and political elements of the community.

Components of Intercultural Awareness:

●      Acquisition of community trust

●      Realization of social, economic, and political climate

●      Enhanced awareness of cultural differences

●      Ability to work within cultural differences

 

Notes on Personal Development

The following charts list the specific skills, knowledge, and attitudes that have been found to be evident in students while on international engineering experiences.  Please use the these charts to:

Document specific examples of when you used each ability

Comment on the necessity of the skill on your EWB trip

Reflect on how you have used the specific skill on your EWB trip

Further reflection may be documented in a personal journal and in audio-recorded group discussions.

 

 

Technical Skills

Work across technical levels

Develop confidence in engineering ability

Use problem solving skills

Develop engineering identity

Apply classroom learning

Accept ambiguous information

 

 

 

Project Management

Work with limited resources

Utilize human resources effectively

Develop an organization strategy

Manage time appropriately

Understand insider versus outsider perspective

 

Community-Based Development

Transfer knowledge to community

Establish community ownership

See community as contributor

Use sustainable design practices

Have realistic expectations

 

Intercultural Awareness

Work with cultural differences

Consider cultural differences

Recognize local social, economic and political climate

Acquire community trust

Work across cultural barriers

 

Communication

Work across languages

Develop presentation skills

Establish trust and respect

Document knowledge

 

Personal Growth

Flexibility

Leadership

Teamwork

Sense of responsibility

Self identity

Self confidence