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Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to describe specific techniques of "inquiry-based learning" employed by three instructors in Engineering schools, one in Europe and two in the USA. Design/methodology/approach – Theorists such as Bransford et al. argue that twenty-first century educators need to teach students to do more than simply remember and repeat information. Engineering educators Prince and Felder critique traditional methods of teaching in which instructors focus on mathematics and theory, but fail to convey practical applications of that knowledge. They advocate moving students to a higher level of learning – past the stage of memorizing and reciting data – to more sophisticated methods of analysis, synthesis, and application of knowledge. To enact such transformations, Prince and Felder recommend "inductive teaching methods," including "inquiry-based learning," in which students learn through engaging with challenges and a series of questions. The paper provides examples of inquiry-based learning activities from each of the authors. The paper then discusses the cross-pollination of ideas and describes how the authors have shared inquiry-based teaching strategies and collaborated to develop new and relevant assignments and approaches to teaching. Findings – The willingness of learners to discuss a range of pedagogical topics, from specific practices to shared experiences and readings, led to an exchange of ideas, and also to deeper reflections on current practices. The cross-pollination of assignments and techniques resulted in well-structured, stimulating, and relevant research projects that engage engineering students from Texas to Portugal, and from communication to technical classes. Research limitations/implications – The use of inquiry-based learning activities and the sharing of resources across continents aimed at improving learning and teaching requires expanding upon and further development. Originality/value – The paper demonstrates the use of cross-pollination of ideas, development of assignments and improved approaches to teaching. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In 2001, a survey found that 87% of engineering professors in the United States spend the entire class time lecturing to a passive group of students material that is copied down and never looked at again. This paper presents the results of scientific inquiry and keen observations all leading to the same conclusion: engineering education has to reform itself. Presently, almost all engineering students learn best doing lots of homework (∼50%) and theoretical study (25%) are accommodated by lectures, homework, and rote-problem tests. Regrettably, an overwhelming number of the creative students do not learn this way and fail. Learning as a process needs to be put at the heart of education moving us away from the traditional educational enterprise. The presented data benefits researchers and practitioners in that they highlight the urgency of the issue and show how the proposed paradigm shift is underpinned by our understanding of how people learn. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The National Academy of Engineering report. Educating the Engineer of 2020, calls for systemwide efforts to align our nation's engineering curriculum and engineering profession with the needs of today's global, knowledge-driven economy for the purpose of increasing student interest in engineering careers. We developed an innovative global internship program for which students researched real-world problems in another country and then documented their research experiences by means of multi-media case studies. This paper describes the methodology, collaboration among US and Indian universities in order to conduct the internship programme, the project timeline and execution, an overview of the projects and an evaluation of the value of the experience to the participants. The evaluation shows that the students perceived that they are more informed about global issues, are better prepared to deal with the future, obtained real-world experiences, and improved their higher-order cognitive skills due to their participation in this project. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The academic literature on NSF's Engineering Research Center (ERC) program to date has been characterized with an emphasis that is somewhat disconnected from the stated goals of the program. The ERC program was established to accomplish two main goals: to improve engineering research and education so that engineers training in US universities can more readily contribute to engineering practice; and to train engineers in industry-relevant ways to improve industrial competitiveness. However, the bulk of academic writing on this program has focused on evaluating outcomes that are indirectly related to the core program mission, such as new products and processes acquired by firms, patents and licensing revenues, etc. To address this gap, this study assesses how ERCs affect student educational and training outcomes. Using survey data from a study of students affiliated with the Mid- America Earthquake Centre, this study assesses how center experiences affect the educational effects of ERCs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]