Bringing engineering education to life: an empirical approach

Robin Clark, Jane Andrews

Research output: Chapter in Book/Published conference outputConference publication

Abstract

This paper focuses upon the argument that the role played by the engineering profession within today's society has changed markedly over the past several years from providing the foundations for contemporary life to leading societal change and becoming one of the key driver's of future social development. Coining the term 'Engineering-Sociology' this paper contributes to engineering education and engineering education research by proposing a new paradigm upon which future engineering education programmes and engineering education research might build. Developed out of an approach to learning and teaching practice, Engineering-Sociology encapsulates both traditional and applied approaches to engineering education and engineering education research. It suggests that in order to meet future challenges there is a need to bring together what are generally perceived to be two diametrically opposed paradigms, namely engineering and sociology. Building on contemporary theoretical and pedagogical arguments in engineering education research, the paper concludes that by encouraging engineering educators to 'think differently', Engineering-Sociology can provide an approach to learning and teaching that both enhances the student experience and meets the changing needs of society.

Original languageEnglish
Title of host publicationResearch in Engineering Education Symposium 2011
PublisherResearch in Engineering Education Network
Pages900-906
Number of pages7
ISBN (Print)978-1-62748-184-7
Publication statusPublished - 1 Dec 2011
Event2011 Research in Engineering Education Symposium - Madrid, Spain
Duration: 4 Oct 20117 Oct 2011

Symposium

Symposium2011 Research in Engineering Education Symposium
Abbreviated titleREES 2011
Country/TerritorySpain
CityMadrid
Period4/10/117/10/11

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