Achieving quality education is fundamental to enhancing individuals' lives and fostering sustainable development. By 2030, it is anticipated that the percentage of students attaining basic literacy levels by the end of primary school will rise from 51% in 2015 to 67%. In Mexico, 13.8% of young people face educational disadvantages, underscoring the urgent need for improvement. In this context, Industry 5.0 encompasses the collaboration between advanced technologies-such as Artificial Intelligence (AI)- and human expertise, including educators and students, to enhance the efficiency of teaching and learning. This paper aims to propose and validate a five-step methodology that integrates Design Thinking, Design of Experiments, and Artificial Intelligence to address a real-world challenge presented by a non-governmental organization (NGO). The challenge involves designing, constructing, and validating individual chairs and tables for 14 girls aged between 3 and 8 years, who are in vulnerable situations in Torreón. The research was conducted during the Design of Experiments for Engineering Innovation course at Tecnológico de Monterrey, involving 57 second-year engineering students. Students employed a 2k factorial design to optimize materials and structures, while AI tools enriched the processes of ideation, visualization, and prototype validation characteristic of Design Thinking. This methodological combination fosters innovation and sustainability in applied engineering. The findings demonstrate students' deep understanding of the significance of integrating these three approaches to tackle realworld problems with substantial social impact. First, significant differences were found in the level of understanding before and after the course regarding the Design Thinking (d=-1.875; p < 0.05), Design of Experiments (d=-2.232; p<0.05), Sustainability (d=-1.142; p <0.05), and Artificial Intelligence (d=-1.143; p < 0.05) approaches. Second, between 80% and 90% of students considered the integration of Design Thinking, Design of Experiments, sustainability, and AI to be quite or extremely useful across all dimensions. It was also observed that the learning dimensions most impacted by the proposed methodologies were innovation (96.4%), multidisciplinary work (96.4%), and the capacity to solve real-world problems (96.4%). Likewise, 87.5% of students believed that the integration of the methodologies had a significant or exceptional impact on the development of the challenge. Furthermore, this research contributes to the academic discourse by presenting a concrete case study of education in the context of Education 5.0 and Industry 5.0, highlighting novel pedagogical strategies, the adoption and integration of technology, as well as active, challenge-based, and personalized learning. It also emphasizes social and emotional development, sustainability, and collaborative partnerships. Collectively, this research offers a valuable and timely perspective on the application of Industry 5.0 in education, considering the technological evolution associated with this new industrial era. © 2025 IEEE.
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