Search

Architectural education shares much in common with engineering, including the use of a culminating capstone experience in the final year. The form of this experience varies, with the research-based thesis and final-year project being most common. This paper explores the literature on traditions of enquiry and the meaning of research in various fields and the evolution of the 'thesis' and 'final year project' approaches over time. It then briefly summarises empirical research conducted on a case study institution struggling to bridge gaps in understandings of these distinct forms of learning and teaching. Throughout, the paper presents a comprehensive set of diagrams to explain various paradigms and positions on research and design education. These diagrams depict processes used in architecture, engineering, and natural sciences to conduct research and generate designs. A new model is proffered to help unify competing conceptions of the final year project and thesis, for the case study institution and beyond. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Study: The research discusses the need for a paradigm shift in engineering education current practices to accommodate the digital native students. The paper emphasizes the importance of integrating disruptive technologies, namely Virtual Reality (VR) through Head Mounted Displays VR (HMD VR) and Desktop Based VR (DB VR) and comparing it with the traditional teaching methods. The research focuses on second‐year undergraduate students enrolled in a concrete structures course. Objectives: The objective of the study is to analyse the impact of DB VR and HMD VR on students' motivation, performance and workload in comparison with traditional 2D drawings. The study also aims to investigate how simulation sickness and system usability could impact students' motivation and performance when interpreting concrete structures. Methods: The study divided second‐year civil engineering students into three groups, 2D, DB VR and HMD VR. The performance and motivation levels of students were assessed based on the number of mistakes identified and an intrinsic motivation survey. Furthermore, data on system usability and simulation sickness were collected. Spearman rank correlation was conducted to analyse the relationships between the variables tested. Results: The results have shown that students' motivation and performance were much higher when using VR in general and HMD VR specifically, students' efficiency and accuracy were also observed. On the other hand, usability was found to be moderately correlated with motivation, with students rating HMD VR as the most usable approach. A moderate inverse correlation was observed between simulation sickness and motivation, indicating that higher simulation sickness led to lower motivation levels. Conclusion: The study concludes that integrating VR in general, DB VR, or HMD VR into a concrete structures course for undergraduate students can significantly improve students' performance and motivation. Furthermore, enhancing usability of any of the methods used can also improve the performance and motivation. On the other hand, simulation sickness inversely affects motivation and performance, therefore, VR developers and educators should not neglect it. Lay Description: What is already known about the topic: Traditional teaching methods in engineering education require improvement.Integrating digital technologies into engineering education enhances performance.Digital technologies can potentially enhance motivation. What this paper adds: Compares traditional teaching methods for concrete structures interpretation with virtual reality.Establishes correlations between motivation, performance and usabilityIntroduces how desktop‐based VR and head‐mounted display VR can produce varying results. Implications for practice and/or policy: Decision‐makers can use the information to integrate updated pedagogy into engineering curricula.Allows for further exploration of different digital technologies that can be used for concrete structure interpretation.Allows instructors to introduce virtual reality in their courses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper aims to design a guide for engineering problem solving with a mathematical approach, based on the use of creative, heuristic and reasoning strategies. The research is divided in two phases: the literature review and the conception of a guide for engineering problems with an open or closed solution. This guide combines the engineering method with algorithmic and heuristic-creative components in three steps: a) understanding, approaching and characterising the problem; b) planning, tackling and deciding on the best alternative; and c) solving, reviewing and evaluating the problem. The authors conclude that this guide will allow future engineers to reach a solution to a problem considering the implications in the financial, technical, environmental and other domains. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents and evaluates a role-play simulation called 'Theatrical Technology Assessment', in which students learn about complex stakeholder dynamics around emerging technologies. This role-play combines insights from Constructive Technology Assessment, improvisational theatre and educational role-play designs. It was implemented in an online setting with bachelor students of an interdisciplinary engineering programme. Based on collected chat conversations and reflection reports in seven different simulations, we qualitatively analysed what students learned about stakeholder dynamics. The study shows that students gained novel and relevant insights regarding stakeholder perspectives on technologies, the effects of uncertainties on decision making, collective stakeholder dynamics, and strategies to steer technology development. Students considered the role-play simulations to be engaging learning experiences. The dual set-up of the role-play, with students as players and co-designers, and the integral use of improvisational theatre are novel elements of educational role-play designs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, the authors review extant natural language processing models in the context of undergraduate mechanical engineering education. These models have advanced to a stage where it has become increasingly more difficult to discern computer vs. human-produced material, and as a result, have understandably raised questions about their impact on academic integrity. As part of our review, we perform two sets of tests with OpenAI's natural language processing model (1) using GPT-3 to generate text for a mechanical engineering laboratory report and (2) using Codex to generate code for an automation and control systems laboratory. Our results show that natural language processing is a potentially powerful assistive technology for engineering students. However, it is a technology that must be used with care, given its potential to enable cheating and plagiarism behaviours given how the technology challenges traditional assessment practices and traditional notions of authorship. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we address the lack of a unified approach to understanding engineering practice by developing and presenting a taxonomy of common engineering activities. The taxonomy consists of 86 common engineering activities linked to 17 engineering competencies and the 11 International Engineering Alliance graduate attributes. The list of activities was developed using a six-step process, including multiple systematic literature searches and surveying engineers. The taxonomy provides a critical foundation for better understanding what engineers do, particularly in the Australian and New Zealand context. The taxonomy has potential utility in both engineering practice research and engineering education curriculum reform. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Online learning has recently surged due to the COVID‐19 global pandemic. Because of the pandemic, many universities were forced to move to online learning, and various online teaching and learning environments emerged, both asynchronous and synchronous. Objective: This study explores how a large university in the Southeastern United States of America converted an in‐person Lean Manufacturing professional course into synchronous online learning for industry participants. Method: The study analysed the performance of 212 in‐person and 43 online industry participants and examined the views of online participants about the training. Paired t‐tests, one‐way multivariate analysis of covariance (MANCOVA), and univariate analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) were utilized to evaluate the performance of the in‐person and online groups on the three competencies (Lean culture, problem‐solving and Lean systems). Results and Conclusion: Both online and in‐person programs performed equally well in two Lean Manufacturing competencies: Lean systems and problem solving. The online program outperformed the in‐person program in the third competency, Lean culture. Overall, the participants had a positive experience with the structure and organization of the online program, and their impression of the online learning environment for the program was positive. The study findings indicated that Lean Manufacturing could be trained effectively online and in person. Best practices are suggested for the conversion of in‐person to synchronous online engineering continuing education programs. Lay Description: What is already known about this topic: During the COVID‐19 pandemic, many in‐person lectures were converted to online lectures for undergraduate students, and some online lectures satisfied the students.Many researchers reported that the online participants yielded positive results, and the performance of online participants was comparable to that of in‐person participants.However, the participants mentioned that some of the challenges of online learning include poor concentration, internet losses and poor understanding of the use of technology. What this paper adds: A description of how in‐person training can be converted to online training for adult learners is a unique context since they bring experience to the learning process.A comparison of the performance of adult learners trained using in‐person performed compared to those trained in‐person. The implications of study findings for practitioners: The study's results indicated that both the online and the traditional in‐person programs yield almost similar results; thus, online education programs can be used when in‐person is impossible.Online education programs can be used when in‐person is impossible, and the best practice guidelines drawn from the study can benefit similar engineering continuing education programs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article aims to expand our knowledge on interdisciplinary design education by focusing on team development, which has remained a less explored aspect of interdisciplinary collaboration so far. An interdisciplinary design studio course, Collaborative Design, for food engineering and industrial design students in higher education provides the research context. The empirical basis of the paper comes from interviews with students on their experiences of interdisciplinary collaboration in the course, and the educator's observation notes. Drawing on these data, this article critically reflects on how and to what extent the teaching materials, methods and strategies incorporated into the course design guided and supported students' transition through the four stages of becoming a performing interdisciplinary team. The article concludes with four suggestions for design educators. First, encountering new ways of thinking, talking and doing that make sense for both disciplines engages students in interdisciplinary collaboration. Second, humour and positive social relations play an important role in team success in all stages of team development. Third, using the first weeks of the course to reveal the disciplinary differences and potential issues that would lead to conflicts through class discussions and warm-up activities facilitates a smooth transition from forming to norming. Fourth, adequate representation of each discipline should be ensured both in the design problem and solution, and among the tutors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Virtual laboratories have been demonstrated to contribute successfully to the theoretical understanding of many important systems theory and automatic control concepts in engineering education. This paper describes the pilot experience on the use of such laboratories as learning tools in introductory systems theory courses at the University of Extremadura during the academic year 2015/2016. The purpose of the present paper is to offer some objective academic evidence for the effectiveness of the use of virtual laboratories to improve learning in laboratory lessons in engineering. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper briefly outlines three initiatives that the University of Toronto (U of T) Faculty of Applied Science and Engineering (FASE) has implemented as initial steps as the institution strives to be anti-racist and address Black inclusivity. These initiatives were based within K-12 outreach, race-based data collection and creating opportunities for faculty-wide race-centric dialogue and learning. U of T FASE was compelled to develop and/or enhance such initiatives after an anti-Black racist incident between students was mishandled and criticized by Black student groups. Using critical race theory (CRT) and personal reflection, this paper highlighted several barriers to the implementation and/or success of these initiatives such as time, financial security, perception of institutional policy and/or provincial law, engineering culture and whiteness and/or colour evasiveness. While definitive solutions to these barriers may not be clear, having a designated champion for specific initiatives, addressing discomfort in differentiating race, consistent advocacy to senior administration and the self-empowerment to resource time and effort to such work were identified as key elements to drive initiatives within the context of U of T FASE. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Global competencies are crucial for societies to progress in a changing world. Beyond the specific language skills needed to be integrated into an international workforce, individuals should also develop the capacity to analyze and understand intercultural issues in their fields. In light of this, our paper firstly aims to pilot a problem‐based learning (PBL) proposal around a cultural critical incident for design engineers to develop intercultural and linguistic competences in an ESP engineering course. A secondary objective investigates how the project raises students' awareness about cultural factors in product design. The results point to PBL as a method which enables instructors to integrate intercultural and linguistic skills in engineering programs, where students' awareness of cultural factors can be increased through problem‐solving teamwork on critical incidents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Understanding the nature of engineering is important for shaping engineering education, especially precollege education. While much research has established the pedagogical benefits of teaching engineering in kindergarten through 12th grade (K–12), the philosophical foundations of engineering remain under‐examined. Purpose This conceptual paper introduces the honeycomb of engineering framework, which offers an epistemologically justified theoretical position and a pedagogical lens that can be used to examine ways engineering concepts and practices are taught in precollege education. Scope/Method: The honeycomb of engineering was developed as a descriptive framework by examining existing literature over a wide range of related disciplines such as the philosophy of engineering and technology, as well as design thinking and practice. The pedagogical translation of the framework was then developed to examine published precollege engineering curricula. Results: The framework categorizes the multiple goals of engineering using an ontological classification of engineering inquiries anchored in the central practice of negotiating risks and benefits (i.e., trade‐offs). This framework also illustrates the adaptability of design methodology in guiding six inquiries: (1) user‐centered design, (2) design‐build‐test, (3) engineering science, (4) optimization, (5) engineering analysis, and (6) reverse engineering. The published curricula represented these inquiries with varying degrees, with design‐build‐test lessons seeing the most representation followed by user‐centered design. Conclusions: The honeycomb of engineering framework delineates variations in engineering education based on an epistemological explanation. The pedagogical translations offer guidance to educators, researchers, and curriculum designers for differentiating curricular aims and learning outcomes resulting from participation in different engineering inquiries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

History has taught us that the Global North's attempts to 'civilise' the rest of the world's population, both now and in colonial times, have been fraught with difficulty. This paper argues that this difficulty is mainly owing to the political standpoint and positioning of our perceived engineering and technical superiority. A failure to recognise this viewpoint and to change the way in which we work together—in a global sense—to solve issues such as climate change, threatens our ability to survive as a species. Political standpoints on such issues still assume a superiority of governments in the Global North. This paper retraces colonial engineering projects, mainly directed from the UK, that failed to consider the development of other populations in the world, and their needs. It is also posited that our exploitation in the Global North, which assumes historical superiority as a basic premise, will fail in tackling major issues. Change is needed through a decolonisation of engineering projects, and western engineering curricula that are used to train future professionals. Evidence of the impact of decolonisation on the engineering discipline itself is scarce, but nevertheless, a response is needed to ensure that a more inclusive curriculum and narrative is developed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores students' perceived value of industry site visits during an engineering study abroad program. In this multi-method study, we collected data from students' (n = 54) reflective activities following each of two site visits and from the end of program evaluation administered by the Student Abroad Office (SAO). Using Kember et al.'s [2008. "A Four-Category Scheme for Coding and Assessing the Level of Reflection in Written Work." Assessment and Evaluation in Higher Education 33 (4): 369–379. doi:10.1080/02602930701293355] work as a theoretical framework, we analyzed student reflective activities for the level of reflection represented to determine the learning that resulted from the site visits. Findings indicated most students did not demonstrate the reflection level of thought on Kember et al.'s model, yet the SAO survey results showed that the industry site visits were a valuable academic experience of the study abroad program. We conclude with implications for research and practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Engineering and technology have a central role in shaping our reality that frequently goes unnoticed or not critically analyzed by engineers and engineering faculty and curricula. In so doing, the engineering that is taught, investigated (and improved), and practiced can unwittingly foster an ethical-political reality with which many engineers and engineering teachers may disagree. In this paper, drawing on literature from philosophy and sociology of technology and Latin-American liberating and decolonial traditions, the theoretical bases for a different engineering practice are set; an engineering committed to empowering people and constructing with them other possible socio-technical orders (and ethical-political realities). It can be called decolonial engineering. Then, grassroots (or popular) engineering, as it is practiced, taught, and improved (investigated) by some Brazilian university extension centres and groups, is presented and analyzed according to its decolonial foundations and outcomes. Finally, from grassroots engineering experience, some general traits of decolonial engineering education and research are derived. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper studies the impact of gender on the interest in engineering and technical subjects of the students in the first courses of secondary education. A statistical analysis was carried out, analyzing the use of a free virtual-reality application, developed by the 3M Foundation, which aims to bring these subjects to the students. Non-parametric statistical methods were used to analyze several variables, such as repetition of the experience, new learning and knowledge reinforcement as well as learning in different ways, which were collected through two questionnaires. These were Pre and Post the playing of the game and later, subsequently validated. This analysis demonstrated that gender has an impact on the interest of the students in engineering and technology but it does not have any influence on the rest of the studied variables. The results show that the interest of girls could be increased through group activities. Age has only influence on the desire to repeat the experience, with a varied level of influence, in the case of the technological contents. The motivational factors that have a greater influence on each variable, "innovation" and "usefulness", were also analyzed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: This study addresses gender differences in early career experiences in engineering by examining entry‐level jobs of Bachelor of Engineering (BEng) graduates in Canada. Purpose/Hypotheses: The study explored how gender shapes entry into this male‐dominated occupation in the context of the contemporary knowledge economy. I tested four hypotheses: (H1) There are no gender differences in job search duration and pay for BEng graduates in Canada; (H2) women experience longer job search durations than men and less pay than men; (H3) women's job searches are shorter with less pay than men; (H4) women's job searches are shorter and with the same pay as men's. Design/Method: The study uses data from Statistics Canada National Graduates Survey (2013), feminist theories, and the Cox proportional hazard (CPH) model. Results: I found that in the context of the knowledge economy, gender is a significant predictor of labor market outcomes during early career stages for Canadian BEng graduates. Hypotheses H1 and H2 were not supported. I identified partial support for Hypothesis H3 and complete support for H4. In particular, I found that women were hired sooner than men for their first engineering jobs and were paid the same salary as their male counterparts. Conclusions: Based on this study's results, I argue that early career experiences in engineering occupation continue to be defined by the gender of graduates. This paper offers several potential research areas in the field of engineering education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a design-based research project undertaken to test and implement an interest-based engineering challenges framework for pre-college students. This work is motivated by the need for innovative engineering education practices in pre-college settings, and making engineering more inclusive for people from diverse backgrounds. The design-based research methodology can be challenging to implement as it comprises of multiple, cyclical research activities that provide challenges in documenting and communicating the larger study's progress. This paper presents findings from this continuously evolving study, and also the design and implementation of this design-based research at roughly the halfway point for a four-year study. Each of the consequent versions scaffold to answer the broader research questions of the study pertaining to: engineering appealing to students' personal interests, empowering underrepresented groups to find meaningful connections to engineering, leading more authentic engagement in engineering and design practices, and improving students' attitudes and perception of engineering. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For decades, American researchers have brought intellectual, financial and labor resources to understanding minority underrepresentation in engineering, including through studies of persistent racial and gender discrimination in higher engineering education. This paper considers prevailing standards for legitimate and significant research in this area and the persistent stigma associated with the study of small populations. The preference among many engineering education research producers and consumers for the 'large-n' brings with it presumptions about human differences including ideas of race, gender, disability and other categories by which subjects are customarily sorted for analytic purposes. This paper asks how such epistemic preferences enact power, showing how taxonomic inclinations may prevent incisive understanding of demographic privilege in U.S. higher technical education. We offer an illustrative contrast to such studies, describing a qualitative research project on underrepresented minorities in U.S. engineering schools, called 'Learning from Small Numbers'. This project shows the analytic value of intersectional, Queer, and Disabilities Studies theories to interrogate inequity in engineering education. We argue that the reflexivity and indeterminacy supported by these theories illuminates the ruling relations of academic social sciences overall, while also reflecting on our own research preferences. There is no feature of an investigative project, including definitions of subject populations and choice of research methodology, that is not actively chosen by researchers, and it is the profound social consequences of these choices in equity-focused engineering education research that we want to consider. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Engineering is receiving unprecedented attention in early childhood and elementary classrooms. Teachers of young children may recognize the ways young children act as natural engineers as they design and create with materials from the classroom or playground. Everyday experiences such as choosing the type of bag: paper, plastic, or a reusable cloth bag at the grocery store can also be used to build explorations with engineering design and challenges. The meaningful integration of children's literature with engineering design challenges provides the further benefit of supporting the kinds of literacy instruction fundamental to primary classrooms. One method to consider is the use of Text Sets, a strategy from literacy that involves the selection and use of a variety of texts chosen intentionally along one or more dimensions where multiple kinds of texts might meet multiple needs or purposes. Lesson suggestions are provided for using text sets of books from different literary genres including biography, narrative, expository, and procedural books and activities to explore the properties of paper, plastic, and fabric with preschool through second grade students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Children begin foundational learning in early childhood that sets the stage for later learning and academic success. Research regarding engineering in early childhood is limited yet growing. Purpose: Because interest in engineering in early childhood is growing, this article reviews research regarding interactions, materials, and activities that promote prekindergarten children's engineering thinking, and in turn how this engineering thinking is related to developmental outcomes. Scope/Method: The initial search for papers with relevant keywords returned over 2,000 papers. Upon review, 27 papers pertained to children age five or under and to engineering. The following research questions were addressed: What (a) interactions and (b) materials and activities promote prekindergarten children's engineering thinking? What developmental outcomes are related to children's engineering thinking? Conclusions: The small body of research regarding engineering thinking in prekindergarten children only allows for a few limited conclusions. Specifically, results indicate that children display engineering thinking when actively engaged with materials, adults are better able to facilitate engineering thinking if they have received some guidance on both engineering principles and asking children questions, and children's engineering thinking can promote early math skills and possibly social and emotional development. However, a consistent limitation in the literature is that measures are underdeveloped and their psychometric properties are often unestablished. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates importance and development of expertise and personal competencies of newly graduated engineers according to academic staff members, industrial employers and the graduated engineers themselves. The aim was to discover how graduated engineers perceive the importance of competencies at the time of graduation, and how various competencies have developed during their studies. For such purposes, a national-wide graduate survey was adopted as a basis for research. The results show that engineering degree programmes highlight theoretical foundation rather than generic competencies, whereas industrial employers favor personal competencies and attitudinal factors. Furthermore, according to graduates’ ratings, some competencies have developed more than appears to be necessary at the beginning of their career. These competencies were the most valued in degree programmes. Similarly, some competencies that were least valued in degree programmes were part of the least developed competencies in studies, but also part of the most important competencies for graduates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In higher education, engineering students have to be prepared for their future jobs, with knowledge but also with several soft skills, among them creativity. In this paper, we present a study carried on with 128 engineering undergraduate students on their understanding of mathematical creativity. The students were in the first year of different engineering first degrees in a north-eastern Portuguese university and we analysed the content of their texts for the question 'What do you understand by mathematical creativity?'. Data collection was done in the first semester of the academic years 2014/2015 and 2016/2017 in a Linear Algebra course. The results showed that 'problem solving' category had the majority of the references in 2014/2015, but not in the academic year 2016/2017 were 'involving mathematics' category had the majority. This exploratory study pointed out for 'problem solving' and 'involving mathematics' categories and gave us hints for teaching mathematics courses in engineering degrees. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

If it is understood that engineers are 'turning dreams to reality,' then educators share the responsibility for supporting engineers in developing the capacities to consider the future impacts of their decisions. Yet even the most competent engineer's decisions can contribute to macro-ethical failures that arise from narrow problem framing, unevenly distributed risks and benefits, or design solutions unfit for their intended social and cultural contexts. This paper describes how macro-ethical failures can arise at different points in engineering design processes, and considers how competences associated with responsible innovation might assuage those vulnerabilities. To build those competences among future professional engineers, examples of pedagogical approaches are presented at three scales: activities, courses and curricula. For scholars and educators interested in engineering ethics, this article challenges approaches that favor individualistic understandings of responsibility, instead seeking to support learners' awareness of, and ability to, ameliorate macro-ethical failures. For scholars and educators interested in operationalizing responsible innovation as a learning outcome that aligns with engineering practice, we offer an entry point for that conversation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

What is engineering? What do engineers do? How is engineering related to, but distinct from, science? These questions all relate to the nature of engineering (NOE), and as engineering is incorporated into K‐12 education across the United States, the NOE is becoming increasingly important for students and teachers. While many policy documents call for students to learn more about the structure of the engineering discipline, little has been done to define the NOE construct. This paper presents key dimensions of the NOE via a framework synthesized from studies of the engineering discipline from philosophical, historical, and sociological perspectives, as well as perspectives from within the engineering field. The framework identifies and elaborates nine features of engineering, each of which capture an important aspect of the NOE. For teachers, these features serve as points of entry for discussing NOE ideas with students. For researchers, the features provide a set of constructs to guide future inquiries into teachers' and students' NOE knowledge. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Student competitions can play an important role in education: they promote interest and engagement of the students, as well as of the teachers. In the case of engineering, one of the most challenging contests in Europe is the Motostudent event, joined by the University of Brescia (UniBS) in 2016 for the first time. It is a typical implementation of Kolb's theory of experiential learning, where engineering theory and application meet in an intensive, 'hands-on' team work experience, resulting in a very effective learning process that involves the so-called soft skills as well. The paper aims at briefly reviewing the scope of competitions like the Formula SAE and sharing the authors' experience in a similar event, the Motostudent contest. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Time on task has been recognized as an important variable in academic learning, but self‐report measures of study time are problematic. Therefore, this study employs an automated system for recording time spent reading a course textbook. College students in an introductory engineering course accessed their textbook online. The book contained pages of instructional text, worked examples, homework problems, and answers to homework problems. An instrumented document reader program called "STL Reader" recorded the time each student spent on each page, thus providing detailed measures of reading habits. Across the 10‐week course, students spent an average of 1.9 hr reading instructional text, 1.4 hr on worked examples, 22.1 hr on homework problems, and 0.9 hr on homework answers, indicating a preference for practicing to solve test problems (i.e., self‐testing) rather than being told (i.e., receiving direct instruction). Furthermore, course grade (based largely on solving problems on exams and quizzes) correlated significantly and positively with time viewing homework problems, but not with time viewing either instructional text or worked examples, indicating that achievement was related to time spent practicing for solving test problems but not to time spent being instructed. Results suggest a revision of the time‐on‐task hypothesis to include the value of spending time on tasks aligned to test requirements. Lay Description: What is currently known?: Time‐on‐task theory states that students' time engaged in relevant material is an important factor in learning and achievement.How students choose to process presented information is important for academic learning.Undergraduate STEM students often read very little of the assigned course textbook. What this paper adds: Technology‐enhanced data collection provides more accurate measure of students' engagement with e‐textbook.Time spent viewing homework problems is significantly and positively related to achievement in an undergraduate engineering course.Student grades were not positively correlated with time spent viewing instructional text or worked examples from the textbook. Implications: Suggests revision of time‐on‐task hypothesis to include the value of spending time on tasks aligned to test requirements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ongoing efforts across the U.S. to encourage K-12 students to consider engineering careers have been motivated by concerns that the workforce pipeline for this profession is shrinking. Enlightening K-12 teachers about engineering is one strategy to encourage student interest in the discipline. The Enrichment Experiences in Engineering (E³) for Teachers Summer Research Program at Texas A&M University engages high school math and science teachers in an engineering research experience. Since 2003, the E³ program has hosted over 190 teachers, most of whom teach in low socioeconomic status (SES) schools with a high percentage of minority students. The mission of the E³ program is to educate and excite teachers about the field of engineering so that they can introduce engineering concepts to their students and encourage them to consider a career in engineering. During the summer program, teachers are involved in: (1) hands-on participation in current engineering research, (2) activities to broaden their awareness of engineering and career opportunities for their students, and (3) development of engineering-related lesson plans for implementation in their high school classroom. As part of their lesson plan implementation, teachers from the 2009-2013 cohorts were required to administer pre- and post-surveys to their students. The identical survey was administered to the students before and after classroom implementation of the E³ lesson/activity. The survey included five questions regarding engineering awareness and three questions regarding college plans. The survey was designed to determine if the students exhibited an increased awareness of engineering after implementation of the E³ lesson/activity and if there was any progress in forming college plans (specifically as it pertains to engineering.). This paper presents the student survey findings. Forty-six (46) teachers from Cohorts 2009-2013 administered the pre- and post-survey to their students (2,263 total). For the "engineering awareness" questions, there were large differences in the pre- vs. post-survey responses that indicated increased awareness of engineering. Depending on the question, the percentages ranged from 20% to 113%. Regarding increased interest in considering an engineering major in college, in the pre-survey, 32.4% of the students indicated interest in pursuing an engineering major ("agree" or "strongly agree" responses). In the post-survey, that percentage rose to 40.6%. These findings demonstrate the value in using teachers to expose high school students to engineering to create awareness for students who might not have considered this career path. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the last decade, a growing number of technical universities and engineering faculties have been promoting various initiatives aimed at integrating sustainable development in their activities. Despite the fact that the commitment of the academic staff has been widely recognised to have a key role in university change processes towards sustainable development, few studies have specifically analysed the characteristics of academics engaged in such processes. The present study provides an analysis and a profile of a group of academics, participating in a training programme on sustainable human development, granted by a European fund. The methods employed include a semi-structured survey, focusing on the academic activities and social outreach of the participants, complemented by a bibliometric analysis of their scientific production. The findings show: 1) an interdisciplinary profile of the academics, 2) an integration of sustainable development principles in all academic activities and 3) a promotion of those principles outside the university. It is emphasised that the commitment of this type of academics can facilitate a cultural change in engineering education, as well as more holistic transformations of universities towards sustainable development. The paper concludes by providing recommendations for leaders and policy makers of higher education institutions on the implementation of appropriate policies and mechanisms to facilitate faculty engagement in sustainable development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although engineering education has played important roles in China’s growing power and influence on the world stage, engineering education policy since the Reform and Opening-up in the late 1970s has not been well documented in current English-language scholarship. Informed by historical and sociological studies of education, engineering and engineering education, this paper attempts to address this scholarly gap by relating contemporary Chinese engineering education policy-making to its broader historical, cultural and ideological contexts. Based on analysis of policy documents and reports released by the Chinese government and engineering schools, and drawing on prior scholarship of Chinese (engineering) education policy, this paper employs the concept of ‘past/forward’ as an analytic lens to interpret and understand four major areas of engineering education policy change in contemporary China: institutional reform, disciplines and majors, training objectives, and curriculum reform. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Curriculum planning for the development of graphicacy capability has not been systematically included in general education to coincide with the graphicacy needs of human society. In higher education, graphicacy curricula have been developed to meet the needs of certain disciplines, for example medical and teacher training and engineering, among others. A framework for graphicacy curricula, anticipating the graphicacy needs in higher education, has yet to be strategically planned for general education. This is partly a result of lack of research effort in this area, but also a result of lack of systematic curriculum planning in general. This paper discusses these issues in the context of graphicacy curricula for engineering. The paper presents three broad individual case studies spanning Europe and the USA, brought together by the common denominator, graphicacy. The case studies are based on: an analysis of graphicacy within general education curricula, an analysis of graphicacy for engineering education in Europe and an analysis of graphicacy for engineering education in the USA. These three papers were originally presented in a plenary session at the American Society for Engineering Education, Engineering Design Graphics Division at the University of Limerick in November 2012. The case studies demonstrate the potential for strategic curriculum planning in regard to the development of graphicacy in general education and an overview of a methodology to achieve that. It also offers further evidence towards the importance of the systematic classification of graphics capabilities in Engineering and how the lack of a developed theoretical framework in this area undermines the case for the importance of graphics within engineering education. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]