Teaching practices for incorporating sustainability into industrial engineering curriculum: a systemic and strategic approach

Purpose Higher education institutions (HEIs) play a significant role in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). To incorporate sustainability into engineering education, many HEIs promote the development of pedagogical strategies and the application of teaching practices. This study aims to identify teaching practices applied in the engineering curriculum and propose a prioritisation model for industrial engineering (IE) courses based on the degree of importance and the causal relationships. Design/methodology/approach Based on the literature, the primary teaching practices adopted to insert sustainability into the engineering curriculum were identified. A field survey was conducted with coordinators of IE courses. Data collection was conducted through the use of a questionnaire and interviews. Fuzzy Decision-Making Trial and Evaluation Laboratory and content analysis of the interviews were used to analyse the data, obtaining the experts’ perceptions of the level of incorporation of the practices and the causal relationships between them. Findings The results indicate that the most prominent and causal practices are those with a transversal nature and are more closely linked to methodological aspects. The most prominent practices in the model are “Encouraging the development of sustainability competencies”, “Transdisciplinary sustainable actions” and “Promotion of practical initiatives”. A strategic map was drawn to guide IE courses in incorporating sustainability into their pedagogical initiatives. Practical implications The findings provide pathways for integrating sustainability into the curriculum, intending to advance the alignment of IE courses with sustainability issues. The research results support teachers who wish to incorporate the SDGs into their teaching practices, coordinators seeking to propose improvements to courses, researchers and students interested in the topic. Additionally, they can support managers in developing public policies to achieve the SDGs. Originality/value This study proposes a model for prioritising teaching practices, providing a guiding framework for incorporating sustainability into teaching and aligning IE courses with the demands of sustainability and the SDGs. Adopting these teaching practices in the curriculum and systematically applying them is essential for training future professionals in knowledge about the SDGs.