Diseño e implementación de una estrategia didáctica con enfoque STEM, para el fortalecimiento de las competencias esenciales del ingeniero industrial, en el curso de control estadístico de procesos

Abstract

Statistical Process Control (SPC) is one of the most important disciplines that Industrial Engineers must master, as it comprises a series of tools and techniques that ensure it fulfills its primary objective: guaranteeing products and services that satisfy stakeholders. To achieve this, it ensures compliance with established requirements by identifying, controlling, and monitoring the variability of production processes. Therefore, in university training, future Industrial Engineers must combine the technical tools of SPC with social skills, technological skills, and finally, the skills that allow these professionals to generate sustainable solutions that positively impact their community and region, without compromising available natural resources, and providing the competitive advantage that will enable them to generate quality products and services. Committed to the comprehensive training of the Industrial Engineers needed by the world today and in the future, the Industrial Engineering program at the Fundación Universitaria de Popayán (FUP), Álvaro Ulcué Chocué campus, in the municipality of Santander de Quilichao, Cauca, Colombia, promoted a project to strengthen comprehensive competencies in the Statistical Process Control (SPC) course through a didactic strategy based on the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) approach. Its general objective was to design and implement a STEM-based didactic strategy for the Statistical Process Control (SPC) course in the FUP Industrial Engineering program. This project was framed within a mixed-methods approach to educational action research, structured in four phases: initial competency assessment, design and implementation of the didactic proposal, impact evaluation, and results analysis. The initial assessment identified strengths in soft skills and limitations in technical competencies, problem identification, understanding of local realities, and proficiency in the use of specialized statistical tools. Based on these findings, the implemented strategy was a case study of a production process with variability issues. Working in teams, the students applied STEM tools (control charts, Pareto charts, Ishikawa diagrams) with the support of specialized software (MINITAB and Excel), culminating in a pitch of recommendations to the management of the fictitious organization. The results demonstrated a positive and significant impact, showing a percentage increase in the average scores of the assessment instrument and a decrease in variability. This reflected the homogenization and the increase in the level of technical, interpersonal, strategic, and sustainability competencies. The methodology used proved effective in strengthening essential competencies in the STEM course, projecting the STEM-based teaching strategy as a viable option for other subjects with similar training needs.