Engineering Education

A synthesis of nearly 2,000 articles to help make engineers better educators

While a significant body of knowledge has evolved in the field of engineering education over the years, much of the published information has been restricted to scholarly journals and has not found a broad audience. This publication rectifies that situation by reviewing the findings of nearly 2,000 scholarly articles to help engineers become better educators, devise more effective curricula, and be more effective leaders and advocates in curriculum and research development.

The author's first objective is to provide an illustrative review of research and development in engineering education since 1960. His second objective is, with the examples given, to encourage the practice of classroom assessment and research, and his third objective is to promote the idea of curriculum leadership.

The publication is divided into four main parts:

• Part I demonstrates how the underpinnings of education—history, philosophy, psychology, sociology—determine the aims and objectives of the curriculum and the curriculum's internal structure, which integrates assessment, content, teaching, and learning
• Part II focuses on the curriculum itself, considering such key issues as content organization, trends, and change. A chapter on interdisciplinary and integrated study and a chapter on project and problem-based models of curriculum are included
• Part III examines problem solving, creativity, and design
• Part IV delves into teaching, assessment, and evaluation, beginning with a chapter on the lecture, cooperative learning, and teamwork

The book ends with a brief, insightful forecast of the future of engineering education. Because this is a practical tool and reference for engineers, each chapter is self-contained and may be read independently of the others.

Unlike other works in engineering education, which are generally intended for educational researchers, this publication is written not only for researchers in the field of engineering education, but also for all engineers who teach. All readers acquire a host of practical skills and knowledge in the fields of learning, philosophy, sociology, and history as they specifically apply to the process of engineering curriculum improvement and evaluation.

Part I. Aims and Objectives (Outcomes) and Their Screening 1

Chapter 1. Curriculum Design, Implementation and Evaluation 3

Chapter 2. Aims and Objectives (Outcomes) 19

Chapter 3. Philosophy and Sociology and the Aims of the Engineering Curriculum 53

Chapters 4. Concepts and Principles (Rules) 91

Chapter 5. Learning Strategies and Learning Styles 119

Chapter 6. Human Development 153

Part II. The Curriculum and Its Paradigms in Practice 175

Chapter 7. Curriculum Change and Changing the Curriculum 177

Chapter 8. Interdisciplinary and Integrated Studies 199

Chapter 9. From Projects to Problem-Based Learning 221

Part III. Problem Solving, Creativity, and Design 241

Chapter 10. Problem Solving 243

Chapter 11. Creativity 261

Chapter 12. Design 283

Part IV. Introduction to Chapters 13 and 14. The Lecture 317

Chapter 13. Cooperative Learning and Teamwork 321

Chapter 14. Other Instructional Practices and the New Technologies 353

Chapter 15. Assessment and Evaluation 391

Chapter 16. The Formal Assessment of Student Learning: Alternative Assessment 417

Chapter 17. Attrition and Retention 443

Epilogue 459

Author Index 465

Subject Index 483

"…a convenient, well-organized compendium of what…literature has revealed, drawing on both American and English-language international journals…highly recommended." (CHOICE, April 2006) JOHN HEYWOOD, is a Professorial Fellow Emeritus of Trinity College Dublin. He has an MSc in Engineering Education, and a doctorate from the University of Dublin. He was founding editor of the International Journal of Technology and Design Education. He has published widely and won several awards for his writings in the areas of engineering, science, and technology. Since 1973 he has been a regular contributor to the ASEE/IEEE Frontiers in Education Conference. A synthesis of nearly 2,000 articles to help make engineers better educators

While a significant body of knowledge has evolved in the field of engineering education over the years, much of the published information has been restricted to scholarly journals and has not found a broad audience. This publication rectifies that situation by reviewing the findings of nearly 2,000 scholarly articles to help engineers become better educators, devise more effective curricula, and be more effective leaders and advocates in curriculum and research development.

The author's first objective is to provide an illustrative review of research and development in engineering education since 1960. His second objective is, with the examples given, to encourage the practice of classroom assessment and research, and his third objective is to promote the idea of curriculum leadership.

The publication is divided into four main parts:

• Part I demonstrates how the underpinnings of education——history, philosophy, psychology, sociology——determine the aims and objectives of the curriculum and the curriculum's internal structure, which integrates assessment, content, teaching, and learning
• Part II focuses on the curriculum itself, considering such key issues as content organization, trends, and change. A chapter on interdisciplinary and integrated study and a chapter on project and problem-based models of curriculum are included
• Part III examines problem solving, creativity, and design
• Part IV delves into teaching, assessment, and evaluation, beginning with a chapter on the lecture, cooperative learning, and teamwork

The book ends with a brief, insightful forecast of the future of engineering education. Because this is a practical tool and reference for engineers, each chapter is self-contained and may be read independently of the others.

Unlike other works in engineering education, which are generally intended for educational researchers, this publication is written not only for researchers in the field of engineering education, but also for all engineers who teach. All readers acquire a host of practical skills and knowledge in the fields of learning, philosophy, sociology, and history as they specifically apply to the process of engineering curriculum improvement and evaluation.