P-02 Challenges Facing Engineering Educators Globally

Abstract

This presentation outlines the challenges that are common to engineering educators in Japan, the United States, and across the globe. One of these challenges is working with students who have missed out on a significant part of their preparation for college due to the COVID-19 pandemic and how we can help those students to fill the gaps in their education in order to be succeed in college.
The presentation will also discuss the transition from a “Weeding Out” culture to a “Weaving In” culture, as promoted by the American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE). In a weed-out culture, many students are admitted into an engineering program, with the expectation that a large number of them will fail out of the program, most likely in calculus and physics courses. This is disproportionately damaging to students from weaker backgrounds, who have had weaker pre-college educational opportunities than their classmates. Rather, we seek to build a weave-in culture in which every student who is admitted into the program has the opportunity to succeed, and we provide every student with the support necessary to develop the skills needed for a successful college experience.
Students also need to be prepared to be creative and innovative, to consider the societal impact of their work, and to have an entrepreneurial mindset, whether they start their own business or work for a large company. They must be prepared to enter a complex work environment in which they will be expected not only to be technically skilled but also strong communicators and excellent team members. These skills can be developed by either integrating real-world problems into the classroom, or by providing the students with a high-quality mentoring experience, or both.
We must also prepare our students to use the full set of tools that are available to them, including Artificial Intelligence. Rather than banning it in the classroom, we must modify our assignments so that students are operating at a higher level and are using AI tools to help solve the problems, just as they currently use CAD, circuit simulators, and even calculators.
By working together as a global community of engineering educators, we can overcome these challenges and build a more promising future for everyone.