After a two-week journey to traditional craft villages in Quang Nam, lecturers and students from Singapore Polytechnic and DTU held a display of their experiences at the “Ideas of Learning Express” exhibition at the DTU library on April 16th.
Students of Singapore Polytechnic and DTU demonstrate a Learning Express model
At Duy Xuyen and Que Son in Quang Nam Province, the students and lecturers of SP and DTU learnt about weaving thread into cloth, weaving bamboo and broom-making. They tried to discover the difficulties the villagers were facing, working conditions, labor safety and others. They researched ways of helping the villagers improve their productivity.
Many ideas about smart devices and equipment to improve production were on display at the exhibition. Students had designed a special workbench for making brooms, containers, and a net to screen out dust, a waste bin and a special chair to help workers save time. They presented a model of a plastic storage shed for drying Thysanolaenna up at low cost, which was easy to construct and insect-proof, absorbing heat from the light from the sun or a lamp day and night. To improve the productivity of villagers who earn a living by weaving thread into cloth, students designed a safe, strong trolley. Students then offered some excellent ideas in on how these products could be marketed by a small company.
Students of SP and DTU
After spending two weeks in the craft villages, Wong Kok Ian, a student of Aero Engineering at Singapore Polytechnic, said: “The field trip into rural Vietnam with DTU was very interesting and meaningful to me. I learnt how to conduct a project, first by collecting data to finally demonstrating our product models. I honestly felt shy talking with strangers and this was the first time I had worked with foreign students. However, it was the enthusiasm and friendliness of the DTU students that made me confident to complete my assignment. They also spent time showing us around Danang, and we thoroughly enjoyed the delicious local food. I will never forget my journey with them.”
Mr. Soh Kim Five from Singapore Polytechnic said: “The students come together to use their local knowledge to solve some of the social issues in rural villages. Using the Design Thinking methodology, they visited the village, worked with the locals to uncover their needs and suggest ways of making the villagers’ lives more productive. Learning Express is an important program as it provides students a great opportunity to exchange ideas, improve their knowledge and skills and learn about the culture of various countries in Southeast Asia. It helped them broaden their horizons and work together to build a prosperous Southeast Asian community in the near future”.
(Media Center)