Designing a Cyber-Physical-Systems and Human Factors Engineering Course for Industry 4.0

This research presents a novel methodology and instructional, curricular design for the Cyber- Physical Systems and Human Factors Engineering course for an Industrial Engineering program in Higher Education. The research proposal offers a Competency-Based Education Model, Challenge-based Learning, and Experiential Learning design to create a curricular adaptation to prepare the future workforce for Industry 4.0, driven by digital technologies and strengthening the structure of Education 4.0 in pandemic times. The curricular design was explored and implemented in a national Industrial Engineering virtual course in five different facilities of a Higher Education Institution. Five professors participated in the exploratory study with 265 students in four country regions. The quantitative analysis provided positive findings regarding knowledge delivery and student competency development, confirming the good practices and standards in the proposed curricular design methodology. The final student evaluation results for the course have been favorable. They emphasized the importance of developing skills and knowledge about the enablers and components of Industry 4.0, such as Cyber-Physical-Systems and machine learning. Moreover, they remarked on the importance of human factors to develop a more sustainable society. The research contributes new ideas and perspectives for professors and instructional designers to shape the future of Higher Education. Furthermore, these new research paradigms for competencies in educational innovation shape the emerging virtual and hybrid educational practices in the COVID-19 pandemic and post-pandemic era.