Abstract:

Food processing modifies the characteristics of raw materials from agriculture to extend their shelf life, enhance sensory attributes, or preserve their nutritional value. Flow charts schematically describe food processes, representing the unit operations involved and the mass flows connecting them. The conventional approach to teaching this subject involves sessions where students do not actively participate. Consequently, it is quite common for them to become demotivated and have problems with concentration. Therefore, a new approach is required to empower students to be active participants in their learning process, with the teacher guiding rather than lecturing. This study aimed to introduce active learning in Fundamentals of Food Engineering, a subject for 1st-year students of the Food Science and Technology degree (Universitat Politècnica de València). To this aim, students were divided into groups of four and provided with information on the main unit operations of the food processes. Then, they were assigned a food product to work on. In particular, students had to decide from a set of unit operations, which were those seven that better defined the flow chart of each product, firstly individually, and later, they had to agree on their results with their group partners. Finally, they had to present their flow chart and support their option to the rest of the class. The students actively participated throughout the session, questioning what unit operations could be necessary to process each food product while the teacher guided the whole process. An anonymous survey was conducted to determine the degree of satisfaction of the students with this activity. The survey revealed that the students were satisfied with the activity and felt engaged in the class and consolidated the concepts of the session. These findings not only underscore the improved knowledge acquisition but also a heightened motivation among the students, fostering a deeper understanding of food processing principles. Additionally, the students were encouraged to pose questions about all the product flowcharts, making the learning process more interactive and engaging.

Keywords:

Food processing, unit operations, flow chart.