Digital Commons Network^™

Taking Curriculum Reform To The Next Level: The Need For Decolonising Work In Engineering Education, Gabrielle Orbaek White

Research Papers

As humanity is faced with unparalleled challenges, from the climate emergency to rising inequality, there is a renewed emphasis on the role of engineering professionals to contribute solutions to global problems. However, there is increasing recognition that the way that engineers are trained through higher education is inadequate to prepare them to address these grand challenges. This paper aims to deepen theoretical perspectives on why the engineering education status quo is falling short. Taking a British perspective, I outline how the epistemology and cultural ideologies, or the “episteme,” of engineering continues to shape our discourses within modern day engineering education, …

Sources Fostering Academic Well-Being: Students' Perspectives In A Pbl Context, Juebei Chen, Shaoping Bai, Youmen Chaaban, Xiangyun Du

Research Papers

In a post-pandemic learning era, student academic well-being emerges to the attention of educational researchers. Referring to students’ thoughts and behaviors that contribute to doing well in an educational context and their academic life satisfaction, student academic well-being has a significant influence on their recruitment and retention, learning experience, academic achievement, and competence development. However, while academic well-being has been regarded as an important indicator of student persistence in their current study and learning outcomes, limited studies have explored engineering students’ academic well-being and other supportive factors in engineering education. While several studies have examined how well-being is constituted and …

Exploring The Development Of Engineering Design Creativity And The Role Of Spatial Skills In This Process, Clodagh Reid, Sheryl Sorby

Research Papers

This study aims to investigate the development of creativity in engineering education and how spatial skills relate to creativity of design solutions.

Undergraduate students in the first (n=86) and fourth/fifth year (n=48) of their engineering programme were invited to participate. Students completed four spatial tests to precisely measure visualisation skills. In a separate session, students were invited back to solve two engineering design tasks: a ping pong problem where they designed a ping pong ball launcher game to meet specified criteria and a rain catcher problem where they were tasked with developing as many ideas for capturing rainwater as a …

Changes In First-Year Engineering Students' Performance In Mathematics And Engineering Subjects At Different Stages Of Distance Learning, Szabolcs Berezvai, Ákos Köpeczi-Bócz, Bence Sipos, Brigitta Szilágyi

Research Papers

Covid pandemic was unprecedented in modern education but is not expected to be unique, therefore increased attention should be paid to accurately analyse its effects on education. Calculus is an important undergraduate mathematics course in engineering programmes, which gives the foundation for engineering subjects like mechanics or electronics. Unfortunately, recent experiences show that the performance of students admitting after the pandemic has deteriorated dramatically in recent years. This research aims to analyse the changes in performance and attitudes of first-year students in the aftermath of the pandemic. In our research, we investigated the performance and learning habits of three groups …

Comparing Xr And Digital Flipped Methods To Meet Learning Objectives, Krys Bangert, Edward Browncross, Matteo Di Benedetti, Harry Day, Andrew Garrard

Research Papers

Digital learning has become increasingly important over the last decade as students and educators adopt new types of technology to keep up with emerging trends. The advent of the Covid-19 pandemic accelerated this rate of change in the higher education sector, leading to remote laboratory experiences and video conferencing becoming increasingly normal. In the wake of this transition, the priority is to understand how these technologies can be blended into existing teaching methodologies, in a complementary way, that enhances the student’s pedagogical experience. The upcoming study will compare three digital-based learning simulations to see which has the most beneficial effect …

Podcasts As A Learning Method In Engineering Education, Jeanette Engzell, Charlotte Norrman

Research Papers

Multimedia has been integrated in education the last 40 years but podcasts have more recently become popular. Since 2006 podcasts have become increasingly popular in Sweden and nowadays podcasts are used in all types of contexts but are yet to find a place in engineering education. Students do not acquire knowledge or solve problems in the same way. Using a mix of methods in teaching is therefore important if one has the ambition to democratize the learning processes and give students the same opportunity to learn. Traditionally, much of the university education has been based on lectures in classrooms and …

Rethinking Evolution Of Active Learning In The Hybrid/Online Engineering Education In The Post-Covid-19 Era: A Quantitative Keyword Co-Occurrence Analysis, Yiwen Xu, Thitiwat Piyatamrong, Abel Nyamapfene

Research Papers

In response to COVID-19, education witnessed a rapid shift to online and virtual platforms. Our previous research has raised questions about the efficacy of these methods for hands-on practice and active learning experiences - crucial elements of engineering education. Emergent solutions like online laboratories and virtual field trips have led to the rise of a hybrid learning era in the post-pandemic context. This change necessitates a reassessment of active learning in hybrid/online engineering education. In this study, we examine recent literature on online and virtual education during and post-COVID-19 to redefine and reevaluate strategies for engaging students actively. We propose …

Reflective Practice In Stem Degrees To Support Adaptability And Lifelong Learning, Gareth Thomson, Klara Kovesi

Workshops

The benefits and importance of reflective learning is widely recognized for the development of STEM students. However, the implementation of reflective practices in the curriculum remains a significant challenge for educators. The main purpose of this paper is to help educators overcome this challenge: to better support students to develop their approaches to reflective learning, to better develop ownership of their own learning processes and to foster skills to support lifelong learning. First, we describe the results of a recent survey among engineering academics to look at the issue of reflective learning and the extent to which it is deployed …

Questioning Implicit Assumptions – Proactively Fostering Inclusion In Engineering Activity Design, Ashlee Pearson, Jessica Deters

Workshops

Within discussions of inclusion work in engineering education, calls have been made to shift to a shared responsibility model where all are responsible for proactively fostering inclusive environments. In an academic setting, it is through pro-active design of learning activities that academics can pre-emptively meet the needs of diverse students such that they may feel included. This design work often relies on academics being educated or aware of what is inclusive or exclusive for different groups that have traditionally underrepresented identities and lived experiences. However, academics do not always possess this information. This workshop proposes an approach that asks academics …

Engineering Education Research: Writing For Publication, Rebecca Broadbent, Scott Daniel, Kristina Edström, Jonte Bernhard, Shannon Chance, John Mitchell, Maartje Van Den Bogaard, Fiona Saunders, Una Beagon, Joyce Main, David Knight

Workshops

In this interactive workshop, facilitated by a team of editors from the European Journal of Engineering Education (EJEE), the Journal of Engineering Education (JEE), and IEEE Transactions on Education, participants had the opportunity to network with other scholars in the field, and learn about the journal publication process and how best to navigate it.

It served as an informal opportunity for scholars at all stages of their publication journey to share their experiences, both positive and negative, directly with each other and journal editors. Participants co-created a document of shared insights about writing for publication, the key outcomes of which …

Promoting Awareness Of, And Sharing Good Practices On, Supporting Engineering Students With Disabilities, Natalie Wint, Gillian Saunders-Smits, Roger Penlington

Workshops

No abstract provided.

Practical Toolkit For Embedding Ethics In The Engineering Curriculum, Sarah Jayne Hitt, Stella Fowler, Sarah Junaid, Johnny Rich

Workshops

The need to embed ethics into the engineering curriculum is a collective imperative if we are to successfully navigate complexity, uncertainty and challenging ethical issues to build a sustainable society that works for everyone. To maximise positive impact, behaviours such as inclusivity and sustainability must become instinctive – golden threads running through everything that engineers think and do. Proactively, bringing engineering ethics to the fore in engineering programmes is one way UK higher education equips future engineers with the skills and mindset they need to succeed.

This workshop brings together best practice from expert practitioners across the UK, introducing a …

Supporting Students From Different Universities And Backgrounds To Improve Their Academic And Social Outcomes: Euniwell Masoee Project Workshop, Neil Cooke, Jörgen Forss, Enrica Caporali, Pascal Chargé, Kamel Hawwash, Jesper Andersson, Gianni Bartoli, Sarah Chung, Daniel Cottle

Workshops

There is a notable discrepancy between the relative prosperity of Europeans and the global security and sustainability challenge. The mission of the ERASMUS+ 2020 European University for Well-Being (EUniWell) alliance is to address this. Our project, “Maximizing Academic and Social Outcomes in Engineering Education” (MASOEE) interprets this contradiction for engineering educators, exploring how to ensure graduates make the utmost contribution to societal wellbeing by narrowing attainment gaps. We are combining the expertise of British, French, Italian, and Swedish faculties to identify, share, and ultimately transfer best practices for professional, business, and sustainability skill teaching that is aligned to the EU …

Techniques In Teaching Engineering Ethics And Professional Responsibility, Nael Barakat, Tom Børsen, Cecile Hardebolle, Helena Kovacs, Diana Martin, Heli Väätäjä

Workshops

No abstract provided.

Rethinking The Nature Of Experimental Learning: Moving Beyond Conventional Laboratory Experiences, David Lowe

Research Papers

Laboratory experimentation is an important educational tool across many disciplines, providing a mechanism for students to enhance their understanding of the relationships between theoretical models and physical reality. However, whilst laboratories are used extensively, the existing approaches to experimental learning have evolved little in the last 100 years, the intended learning outcomes are often poorly articulated and the connection between the learning outcomes and the student experiences is unclear. These limitations hasve meant that the development of laboratory experiences has tended to be driven by a combination of history, the capability of physical laboratory environments, and technological opportunity (e.g. the …

Descriptions Of Peer Mentors As Told By Undergraduate Engineering Student Mentees, Darcie Christensen, Idalis Villanueva Alarcón

Research Papers

Peer mentorship is a relationship between two people who are at a similar level. In this study, the setting is academic, namely peer mentorship amongst undergraduate engineering students. Within peer mentorship, participants aim to help one another through various activities, such as sharing information, helping motivate, providing advice, lending support, etc. The outcomes of peer mentorship are generally positive and mutually beneficial for mentors and mentees, but the focus of peer mentoring research in undergraduate engineering has primarily been focused on implementing and evaluating formalized peer mentoring efforts, not necessarily on the needs of students who may be in these …

Ai For Leadership: Implementation And Evaluation Of An Ai Education Program, Aikaterini Bagiati, Andrés F. Salazar-Gómez, Annalyn Bachmann, Kathleen D. Kennedy, Cynthia Breazeal

Research Papers

AI education is rapidly becoming the next frontier when it comes to solving the world's grand challenges; however, ways to introduce AI to large complex organisations are still vastly understudied. To address this gap in 2021, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) entered into a collaboration with the US Air Force (USAF). The goal of this relationship is to develop, study, and evaluate different learning modalities and online/in-person experiences to introduce AI to the diverse USAF workforce. The USAF is a very complex organisation and its employees vary in terms of educational and cultural backgrounds, as well as in their work-related …

Effects Of Gaze Distribution On Woodworking Knowledge And Skills, Takashi Usuzaka, Yujin Mochizuki, Hiroaki Shoji

Research Papers

This study investigates the gaze distribution of learners who watched a video about making a screw joint (a woodworking process) and explores its relationship with knowledge comprehension and skill acquisition levels. Twenty university students who had never taken a specialized class on screw joints participated in the study. They watched approximately a three-minute video on making a screw joint and completed knowledge comprehension and skill acquisition surveys based on the video content. Gaze measurements were conducted using Tobii T120, a screenbased eye-tracking device manufactured by Tobii Technology. In the line-of-sight distribution analysis, the objects appearing in the video were categorized …

From Group Work To Team Work: Comparative Analysis In Three European Institutions, Isabelle Lermigeaux-Sarrade, Jean-Luc Sarrade, Stephane Perrin, Sorana Cimpan

Research Papers

Addressing the complex challenges of sustainability demands for good teamwork abilities for future technicians and engineers. In our three institutions we adopted project-based learning to facilitate the development of these skills – but is this enough? Since group project-based learning involves dealing with complex technical tasks and at the same time learning to work as a team, we wondered how students handle this double challenge. By analysing their perceptions, we attempt to identify what teaching practices could be helpful to shift their experience from groupwork to effective teamwork.

Professionalising Science And Engineering Teachers In Guiding And Assessing Reflection, Elise Eshuis, Kariene Mittendorff, Heleen Daggenvoorde-Baarslag

Research Papers

The current knowledge society of the 21st century requires students, among other things, to have the ability to think reflectively. Various studies show however that educational programs and teachers, from engineering programs in particular, experience difficulties in integrating the development of students’ reflection skills in their curricula. This gave rise to a multi-year project on improving reflection in engineering educational programs. We worked with teacher teams of 6 programs to improve their curricula and teacher practices regarding reflection. Part of the project were training sessions for teachers focused on guiding and assessing reflection activities of their students.

This paper presents …

Planned, Taught, Learnt: Analysis Of Transversal Skills Through Curriculum Using Portfolio, Helena Kovacs, Tamara Milosevic, Alexandra Niculescu

Research Papers

There is an everlasting effort in education to successfully ensure that the intended learning objectives are clearly taught and effectively learnt at the end of the educational cycle. This has been especially difficult in teaching and learning complex sets of competencies, for example, transversal skills in domains such as engineering education. Yet, studies focusing on transversal skills often address student learning outcomes, but rarely how teachers teach them, and even less so how they are represented in the written curriculum. In order to create a more comprehensive understanding of how transversal skills are communicated, taught and learnt in engineering education, …

Developing Teamwork Skills Through Simultaneous Group Project Courses, Tuomo Eloranta

Research Papers

The popularity of project-based learning (PBL) has led to a situation where engineering students take several group project courses at the same time. From a student perspective, this can generate considerable issues. Previous research has indicated that already single PBL courses can be challenging, especially time and task management-wise and intuitively overlapping PBL courses compound this complexity. As existing literature on this topic is relatively sparse, the goal of the present study is to examine what kind of student challenges simultaneous PBL courses generate, how students navigate those and what kind of additional learning can it foster. The results should …

Develop An Interdisciplinary Course Using The Twente Interdisciplinarity Toolbox, Miles Macleod, Coralie Johnson, Klaasjan Visscher, Jan Van Der Veen

Workshops

The ability to engage in interdisciplinary research and problem-solving are essential skills for contemporary engineers, however designing and delivering effective learning opportunities to reach these ideals, is often not straightforward [1]. Educators are often faced with a plethora of challenges, and interdisciplinary courses often do not run as smoothly as disciplinary ones. In this workshop, the primary goal was to stimulate participants to consider a few common design scenarios modeled on real-life cases and to apply some of the main design concepts and questions employed by a new online platform the Twente Toolbox which aims to assist instructors with interdisciplinary …

Structuring Conversations Around Course Design, Jacques Lanarès, Marc Laperrouza, Emmanuel Sylvestre

Workshops

Constructive alignment helps both students and teachers to achieve intended learning outcomes. The workshop proposes to introduce participants to the elements and mechanics of the pedagogical coherence canvas (PCC), a tool developed to improve constructive alignment throughout course design. Participants will familiarise themselves with the process by applying it to the design of a course or training. This hands-on workshop will help participants to develop a practical understanding of how to use the PCC to design a course following constructive alignment principles.

How Diverse Are Global Perspectives On Diversity, Equity, And Inclusion In Engineering Education?, Jan Van Maele, Becky Bergman, Inês Direito, Homero Murzi

Workshops

The SEFI Special Interest Group on Gender & Diversity has recently been renamed as Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, broadening the definition from a focus on gender to embrace a wider range of diverse identities – such as language and cultural background, religion, physical ability, and socioeconomic status – and to promote and support equity and inclusive practices within SEFI and beyond. In the process of redefining the Special Interest Group’s mission, it has become clear that definitions of diversity, equity and inclusion may vary considerably between different contexts and institutions. Therefore, it is relevant for the engineering education community to …

Using A Spiral Approach To Facilitating Engineering Research And Education In Real Industry Settings, Marcus Vinicius Pereira Pessôa, Kostas Nizamis

Workshops

Engineering research and education is often done in collaboration with industrial partners through the Industry as Laboratory (IaL), and Challenge-Based Learning (CBL) paradigms. However, its findings are not always adopted, despite the use of well-established and rigorous research methodologies. Academia employs oftentimes extensive and time consuming analyses, while industry operates in smaller cycles with tangible intermediate results. This can lead to the industry losing interest in the research. The Spiral Approach for Systems Engineering Research (SASER) is an approach that aims to mitigate that risk. This can have a twofold benefit in the industry remaining interested, but also the researcher …

Planning Interdisciplinary Artificial Intelligence Courses For Engineering Students, Johannes Schleiss, Sebastian Stober

Workshops

As Artificial Intelligence (AI) becomes increasingly important in engineering, instructors need to incorporate AI concepts into their subject-specific courses. However, many teachers may lack the expertise to do so effectively or don’t know where to start. To address this challenge, we have developed the AI Course Design Planning Framework to help instructors structure their teaching of domain-specific AI skills. This workshop aimed to equip participants with an understanding of the framework and its application to their courses. The workshop was designed for instructors in engineering education who are interested in interdisciplinary teaching and teaching about AI in the context of …

Application-Based Learning Of Signal Analysis Methods With The Help Of A Graphical Open-Source Software, Tim Hetkämper, Kevin Koch, Manuel Webersen, Leander Claes

Workshops

In almost all engineering disciplines, engineers need to evaluate and extract information from time-dependent quantities, making signal processing and analysis a central topic in engineering education. The theoretical foundation is anchored in many courses, however, often only few application-based learning opportunities are offered. To provide these opportunities without the need for expensive hardware, a graphical open-source software is developed. This workshop offers a first opportunity to explore how a graphical software can be used to learn signal processing and analysis methods.

Teaching In Student-Centred Active Learning Spaces: How Relational, Pedagogical, Spatial, And Technological Aspects Intertwine And Affect The Learning Environment, Guri Sivertsen Korpås, Trine Højberg Andersen, Magnus Strøm Kahrs, Gabrielle Hansen, Kari Anne Flem Røren

Workshops

Higher educational institutions internationally have shown a growing interest in developing learning spaces that support student-centred learning approaches. For engineering education, this development aligns well with an increased emphasis on cross-disciplinarity and a system-thinking approach. However, research and our own experiences as teachers and evaluators of such learning spaces suggest that teachers who enter these learning spaces need support, as the complexity of the teaching situation becomes more apparent, compared to the traditional lecture hall. In this workshop, we will investigate this complexity together with the participants.

Participants can expect to leave the workshop with a better understanding of:

• a …

Supporting Undergraduate Engineering Student Mental Health, Sarah Wilson, Karin Jensen, Jo-Anne Tait

Workshops

No abstract provided.