Showing papers on "Engineering education published in 1991"

Teaching engineering practices

Abstract: Many-in-depth studies of engineering education have been performed over the past 35 years. It is noted that, surprisingly, the results of these studies possess a consistent thread; in general the engineering education programs in this country fail to prepare the students to practice engineering. The author reviews candidate practices course topics. He discusses their implementation as curriculum content, investigates the attendant problems and solutions, and describes a 'capstone' design course, taught at the University of Texas at Arlington (UTA) since 1986, which has addressed these concerns with a good degree of success. >

Teaching Statistics to Engineers

Abstract: Engineers perform experiments and analyze data as an integral part of their job regardless of whether they have learned statistics. But those that have are likely to be more effective engineers. The fact that many engineers have only recently “discovered” statistics suggests that we need to reconsider our approach to teaching this important science. I report on our experience teaching engineers using an approach that integrates statistics into engineering practice. Examples of course structure and curricula for both university and professional industrial courses are discussed. Special teaching methods are presented that help engineers understand that statistics can help them solve their problems.

The Development of the Construction Engineer: Past Progress and Future Problems

Abstract: A retrospective view briefly traces graduate-level educational efforts that have resulted in the emergency of the construction engineer as a recognized member of the civil engineering profession. Then, a prospective view identifies four problem areas that relate to construction activities and should be of concern to civil engineers. These include the need for more effective implementation of new techniques, a reduction of disputes and litigation, improved contractual relationships, and professional teamwork that provides better results for the client. An example based on project scheduling and resource leveling is presented to relate and illustrate these problem areas. The example indicates that after 30 years of application of a “new” technique, a widespread lack of full understanding still leads to improper implementation, that this can lead to extended litigation, that contractual relationships create adversarial relationships in which many civil engineers are losing control to protect their clients, and that due to lack of teamwork by civil engineers in different specialities, prevention or mitigation of damages for the benefit of the client and the public is not being achieved.

Closure of "Dilemmas Facing Construction Education and Research in 1990s"

Abstract: Construction, seen as a discipline calling for higher education and research, is a relatively new phenomenon that has come into being largely since World War II. As such, it is having growing pains and, with them, differences in practices and opinions on the paths to be followed. Until 40 years ago, the managers directing the actual on‐site construction were predominantly ambitious, hard‐driving craftsmen who had come up through the trades. Their knowledge was gained by “doing.” There was little university or industry interest in college‐level education for construction managers, nor technical literature nor research to support it. Since that time, some 150 college‐level educational programs for construction have evolved. Currently, these follow four tracks: two programs are undergraduate and one is graduate‐level, based in civil engineering; the fourth track, primarily undergraduate, rests in numerous other university departments. Research is primarily found in schools following the graduate track. Each ...

Engineering education, design and senior projects

Abstract: The role of senior year projects in engineering education is addressed. The author examines the meaning of design in relation to the senior project experience and offers the distinction between, in the author's terminology, discrete design and continuous design. The ability to do continuous design comes from a sound theoretical background, and expertise in discrete design comes more from experience. On this basis, it is argued that the education of an engineer is a partnership between university and industry, with the university providing the theory and industry giving experientially accumulated instinct. In providing in-house senior design programs, universities have imposed the fiction that they provide true industrial experience and have encroached into what industry can do better. Senior projects should, therefore, be dispensed with and universities should concentrate on teaching the theory, leaving the completion of the engineer's education to industry.

Engineers as Information Processors: A Survey of US Aerospace Engineering Faculty and Students.

Abstract: SUMMARY US aerospace engineering faculty and students were surveyed as part of the NASA/DoD Aerospace Knowledge Research Project. Faculty and students were viewed as information processors within a conceptual framework of information-seeking behavior. Questionnaires were received from 275 faculty members and 640 students which were used to determine (1) use and importance of information sources, (2) use of specific print sources and electronic data bases, (3) use of information technology and (4) the influence of instruction on the use of information sources and products by faculty and students. As information processors, US aerospace faculty and students are ‘information naive’, seek out information alone or with the help of co-workers, tend not to make use of the information products and services oriented to them, make limited use of librarians, and make considerable use of computer and information technology. Little evidence was found to support the belief that instruction in library or engineering inf...

Methodologies for Problem Solving: An Engineering Approach.

Abstract: Learning how to approach and solve problems which relate to real world situations is an integral part of the education of many higher and further education students and is particularly relevant to ...

Introducing Professionalism and Ethics in Engineering Curriculum

Abstract: A number of educators have recently called for increased emphasis in the engineering curriculum on the relationship between technology and social, political, economic, ethical, and legal concerns. ...

An Ethics and Professionalism Seminar in the Civil Engineering Curriculum

Abstract: This paper describes the development of a seminar devoted to ethics and professionalism in engineering. The course is designed to provide an introduction to the role of the engineer in society in addition to an overview of the ethical and professional responsibilities of the engineer. Another important factor in offering the seminar is related to the recommendations of the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET), which states that, “an understanding of the ethical, social, economic, and safety considerations in engineering practice is essential for a successful engineering career.”Typical course discussion topics include: Ethical and human factors in construction and design safety; professionalism and ethics in highway construction; infrastructure, problems and possible solutions; the ethics and safety of nuclear power; the challenger disaster, a question of ethics; and quality in the constructed project manual, introduction and implementations. Evaluations indicate that the seminar is w...

Engineering education needs surgery

Abstract: It is pointed out that, while enrollments in engineering have been declining over the past several years, the percentage of first year students not staying on for the second year has also been on the rise. This increase in attrition is of particular concern considering the fact those students electing to study engineering are among the best and brightest high school graduates. A model curriculum for the year 2000 is proposed. It is suggested that the undergraduate engineering curriculum should be revised to reduce the shock of the transition from high school to college, give more attention to developing basic study and critical thinking skills with the freshmen, introduce first year students to concepts of design and develop teamwork among the students, utilize computer technology to improve and expand mathematics education, introduce engineering concepts in the physics courses to make them more relevant, strengthen the general liberal arts education, and provide students with opportunities to study aspects of engineering and project management. >

Why Four Years

Abstract: The traditional four‐year undergraduate program in civil engineering is constantly under pressure from the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET), industry, and educators themselves. The idea of a five‐year program is hardly a new one. There are many current factors that point to an increasing pressure to lengthen the current program. At the same time, student preparation and financial burdens have been factors in adding to the average time required to complete an undergraduate degree. This paper deals with the current climate and proposes an idea whose time has come again: a five‐year program leading directly to a master's degree. Those institutions that offered five‐year bach‐elor‐of‐science programs, as recently as the early 1960s, eventually found it difficult to compete for students. The professional program, leading directly to a master's degree, has also been attempted and usually was abandoned. The proposed program is a compromise that tries to address the concerns of everyone a...

Scientific Visualization: An Experimental Introductory Graphics Course for Science and Engineering Students.

Abstract: A new course, 'Scientific Visualization', has been offered by the Graphic Communications Program at North Carolina State University. The purpose of the course was to expose undergraduates to the use of computer based graphics as both a problem-solving and communicative tool in engineering, the sciences and other technical areas. Rather than focus on the more traditional areas of engineering graphics, this course explored a much broader role of graphics in science and technology. A single section of the course is offered to 14 students in a lab equipped with 7 Macintosh II computers and a broad range of graphics software packages. The course consisted of lecture, demonstrations, field trips and both in-class and out-of-class lab work on the computers. In addition, there were readings in current applications of graphics in various scientific and technical fields. Recommendations are given to the future direction of this course and its role in the engineering design graphics curriculum.

Developing Internships in Germany for International Engineering Students

Abstract: The globalization of the world's economy is forcing American educational institutions to reexamine standards and priorities and rethink the traditional curriculum.' Competition with Europe and the Far East demands higher standards in mathematics and science instruction, more rigorous recruitment of young people for high-level training in science and technology, and a stronger commitment to research and development. Along with this reaffirmation of the disciplines associated with technological innovation and competitive manufacturing, there is also a clear demand for well-rounded persons with strong intercultural communication skills, i.e., for professionals who speak and write convincingly and possess the skills and flexibility to deal with partners from the entire world. To provide these skills is not a simple matter, however; as a nation we are accustomed to regarding foreign language training as a frill and intercultural expertise as the responsibility of our foreign partners. In order to respond effectively to this aspect of the global challenge, educators who have traditionally been on opposite sides of the campus will have to reexamine their potential for collaboration. Engineers and scientists will have to look to their colleagues in foreign language departments for assistance: language faculty will have to recognize and accept the training of a new generation of international leaders as a major part of their professional mission. Although these new demands might seem overwhelming, the University of Rhode Island has found them to be an opportunity. which has led to a very rewarding cooperation between the German language program and the College of Engineering. With funding from the U.S. Department of Education (FIPSE),2 a five-year International Engineering Program (IEP) has been established which leads simultaneously to the BS degree in one of the engineering disciplines and the BA in German. The high points of this program are a specialized three-year sequence of German language classes for engineering students, a six-month internship with an engineering firm in Germany during the fourth year, and a fif h-year engineering course taught in German by bilingual engineering faculty. Currently there are over seventy-five students exercising this option, which seeks to prepare American-trained engineers for the international marketplace in which they are very likely to practice their profession.3

Relation Between Institutional Support and Student Chapter Achievement

Abstract: A survey of 230 ASCE Faculty Advisors was conducted to identify the level of institutional support available to Student Chapters; the degree of academic credit awarded to Faculty Advisors; and the environmental characteristics associated with successful Chapters. The survey reveals that Chapter Advisors are most concerned about the relatively low level of faculty colleague involvement in Student Chapter activities and the academic community's perception of Faculty Advisor service as a “committee‐type” rather than a “teaching” activity. A comparison of award‐winning and non‐award‐winning Student Chapters reveals that successful Chapters are characterized by a much higher degree of faculty involvement in Chapter activities, a perception that Faculty Advisor service is indeed a “teaching” activity, and a more satisfactory degree of academic recognition of the Faculty Advisor's efforts.

Interdisciplinary Postgraduate Education for Construction Managers

Abstract: This paper examines the role of the postgraduate master of science in construction management/project management as a means of promoting interdisciplinary education and training for professionals from the construction and development industries with emphasis on mature students. While any program that accepts students from such a diverse set of professional and academic backgrounds is likely to suffer from some problems, once these have been overcome, this type of postgraduate education has proved capable of overcoming the “tunnel vision” of many managers engendered by the narrow and highly specialized undergraduate professional education in the United Kingdom. Integrative collaborative project work is suggested as a means of facilitating the broadening processes and also to promote the pooling of knowledge and experience from within the student group. The paper also argues for the development of credit transfer and flexible modes of study—full‐time, part‐time, and distance learning—which are appropriate t...

Test engineering education is rational, feasible, and relevant

Abstract: The author discusses the lack of qualified test engineers and the inadequacy of coordinated test engineer education in institutes of higher learning. He offers a basic curriculum that any university can employ to correct the deficiency. Both undergraduate and graduate programs are outlined. >

Problem solving and report writing for second language engineering students

Abstract: This article describes a report writing unit with a three-year language/communication course for second language engineering students at the University of the Witwatersrand in South Africa. In this...

Issues in geotechnical engineering education

Abstract: This paper summarizes discussions held at the 1990 National Forum on Education and Continuing Development of Civil Engineering concerning geotechnical engineering education. We can attract better students by improving the public's perception and image of civil engineers. We believe more emphasis should be placed on classroom teaching. We also believe that if we put a premium on teaching, we will get excellence in teaching. However, priorities must be revised to help achieve this goal. In recognition of the ever‐changing need of our profession and the broad nature of the problems of the society we serve, we must provide a background for our civil engineers to work in a multidisciplinary world. This includes a broad‐based education with a well‐founded understanding of basic sciences, mathematics, and engineering sciences, and traditional disciplines of civil engineering. The current flexibility in the master's program must be retained. Today, the entry‐level degree to the profession of geotechnical engineer...

The Idea Factory: Learning to Think at MIT

Abstract: This is a personal story of the educational process at one of the world's great technological universities. Pepper White entered MIT in 1981 and received his master's degree in mechanical engineering in 1984. His account of his experiences, written in diary form, offers insight into graduate school life in general -- including the loneliness and even desperation that can result from the intense pressure to succeed -- and the purposes of engineering education in particular. The first professor White met at MIT told him that it did not really matter what he learned there, but that MIT would teach him how to think. This, then, is the story of how one student learned how to think. There have of course been changes at MIT since 1984, but its essence is still the same. White has added a new preface and concluding chapter to this edition to bring the story of his continuing education up to date.

A hypermedia-based problem-solving approach to engineering, learning, working, and playing

Abstract: It is pointed that there is a need in engineering education to prepare students for lifelong career planning, and that emerging computer technology may be able to play a role in addressing this need. To explore this possibility, the authors have been offering an experimental course in engineering career planning for beginning engineering students. Students use computers to do assignments and store personalized guidance data. In addition, the authors have developed a hypermedia program called the Engineering Career System to provide useful information during the planning process. Evaluations of the course have been very positive, and show that the computer materials have played a successful supporting role in the course. >