Big Picture Thinking Engineering Education May 23, 2014

Transcription

1 Big Picture Thinking Engineering Educatin May 23, 2014 BIG PICTURE THINKING. The Bard s Big Picture Thinking at each meeting helps t build Engineers Canada s envisined future. Bard members will: cntribute new ideas, ffer a fresh perspective t the prcess f envisining the future, benefit frm the insights f ther Bard members, understand the trials and tribulatins invlved, gain knwledge f ptential grwth paths fr Engineers Canada, and increase their ability t fresee and avid the pitfalls. The essential functin f Big Picture Thinking is the ability t synthesize data. This means: identifying the verarching patterns and themes in the wrld utside Engineers Canada, discerning strategic insights by cnnecting all the dts, and develping apprpriate respnses t trends and emerging issues t describe a future f what will be different because f the wrk f Engineers Canada. ENGINEERING EDUCATION The Engineers Canada Bard f Directrs engaged in a 70 minute pen dialgue n Engineering Educatin: A Fundatin fr Engineers t Prtect and Serve the Public during the Bard meeting f Friday, May 23 rd, The cncept f engineering educatin was explred in pen dialgue and by examining the fllwing questins: 1. What trends and challenges are likely t shape engineering educatin fr the next 20 years? 2. Hw best can we address the cmplementary skills that emplyers say engineering graduate s lack? What prtin f acquiring engineering knwledge is the respnsibility f undergraduate and graduate degree prgrams? Hw much is learned n the jb, bth befre and after licensure? If it is a requirement t demnstrate mastery f the bdy f knwledge t becme licensed as a prfessinal engineer; shuld all engineers in respnsible charge f engineering activities be required t maintain the same standard? Hw much is learned thrugh cntinuing prfessinal develpment and cntinuing prfessinal cmpetency?

2 Whse rle is it t make available and mnitr lifelng learning and prfessinal develpment? 3. What is the rle f the regulatr in shaping engineering educatin? What are the regulatry implicatins f the changes in engineering educatin we will facing in the years ahead? THE DISCUSSION The members f the bard brught frth the fllwing pints: Intrductry Pints Three principles assciated with engineering educatin: The develpment f engineering educatin is an nging prcess, ne that is cnstantly evlving. Only the engineering prfessin itself can determine the bdies f knwledge that are required t practice and therefre t set standards fr the prfessin. N ne rganizatin can satisfy all the needs f engineering educatin. Universities, regulatrs, prfessinal scieties and thers all have a rle in educating engineers. Engineering educatin is a cntinuum that begins with engineering students, cntinues with engineers-in-training and des nt stp at the mment f licensure but cntinues indefinitely ver every engineer s career. The Natinal Sciety f Prfessinal Engineers experience Rbert Green f NSPE ffered the fllwing cmments n the Engineering Bdy f Knwledge : The bdy f knwledge was develped by the Natinal Sciety f Prfessinal Engineers licensure and qualificatins t practice cmmittee. Based n the 2004 Engineer 2020 reprt that lked at the cre cmpetencies required f engineers and particularly at thse cmpetencies required fr the prfessinal practice f engineering. The Bdy f Knwledge was put ut t several engineering scieties fr cmment. The Japan Sciety f Prfessinal Engineers prvided the cmment; We need t include the requirement t educate engineers n hw t deal with high risk, lw prbability events. (i.e. tsunamis and nuclear reactrs). This first editin is available n the Natinal Sciety f Prfessinal Engineers website. A secnd editin is being planned. The intentin is t prvide cpies f the bdy f knwledge t the deans f clleges f engineering t be used as a mdel fr educating engineers. General thughts n creating the right bdy f knwledge fr educatin engineers We need t think mre than 10 years int the future when thinking abut the needs fr engineering educatin. 2 P age

3 We need t think abut hw we can transfrm, inspire and cnnect capabilities such as leadership skills in additin t technical skills. When an engineer graduates frm cllege they d nt yet have the skills and attributes required f an engineer. Nt even clse. It was nted that when tday s students enter int engineering prgrams they: Lack the intuitive feel fr hw things get built and hw they wrk Have a very pr understanding f three dimensinal representatin Have rarely wrked with their hands in terms f taking smething apart and rebuilding it Learn t read and recite the cde f ethics but nt hw t live, respect and practice the cde f ethics The structure f engineering prgrams has swung s far twards prblem slving and the design aspects f engineering that we are nw putting urselves at risk f creating great prblem slvers wh cannt implement a strng technical slutin. We have nt yet figured ut what the right balance is between hard and sft skills nr hw t achieve that balance. We are prficient at teaching the technical skills but nt the sft skills required f a prfessinal engineer. These sft skills include: Readiness fr change Leadership Cllabratin Cmmunicatins (Verbal and written) Business management When training engineers, we als need t acquire a balance between preparing new engineers fr a type f engineering that des exist yet (i.e. emerging disciplines) while still emphasizing the fundamentals f engineering. Labur market studies pint ut that we have a grss shrtage f engineers, while emplyers are saying they d nt wish t invest in training new graduates. This indicates that the educatinal system is failing t prvide the practice skills necessary fr emplyment. T help with this it may be useful t emphasize that thse teaching engineering shuld als have prfessinal practice experience. Frm a regulatry perspective we must take a keen interest in the educatin f engineers if we are t be credible in ur claim that we are prtecting the public interest. Similarly, it is imprtant as regulatrs t care abut engineering educatin if we are t craft hw the attributes assciated with prfessinalism are acquired. Trends and Challenges Wrld ecnmies are changing. We are relying mre and mre n licensing engineers wh are nt trained in the Canadian system. As ecnmies develp in cuntries like India, etc. it will becme harder t attract engineers away frm their hmeland. Hw we can we assure that high standards are maintained? The develpment f jint prgrams with freign institutins will impact hw we assess that prtin f training that is cnducted in freign institutins. 3 P age

4 Distance educatin will be playing a larger rle in engineering educatin. This will impact hw the Canadian Engineering Accreditatin Bard and the cnstituent assciatins accredit and give credit fr this type f training. What peple learn in terms f the fundamentals f engineering science may be added t ver time but shuld nt change substantially. Hwever, what will change significantly is hw and when peple acquire this knwledge. Learning is nt ging t take place sitting in frnt f a prfessr, but rather at hme at times f their wn chice. The current trend twards prject based and team based learning will cntinue t grw. Therefre, as regulatrs, we are ging t have t adapt hw we evaluate learning. The need t instill the requirement fr cntinuus learning thrughut a prfessinal engineer s career has always been and will cntinue t be a challenge which we must address vigilantly. Acquiring the cmplimentary skills required by engineering graduates Engineering educatin is hlistic. It starts when yu enter university and it ends when yu retire r die. Yu never stp learning. The skills nt acquired in university must be learnt in the wrk place. Emplyers are becming mre insistent n hiring jb-ready engineers, and are less inclined t invest in training engineering graduates wh lack the necessary cmpetencies. We will need t address this gap if we truly wish t frm the best engineers pssible. A United States study n the rle f curriculum fund that: When a curriculum is heavily technically based it is a barrier t wmen and t minrities: A technically-fcused curriculum prevents students frm being prepared fr glbal trends A lt is lst t duplicatin within the typical engineering curriculum. This lst culd be re-fcused n imprving the balance between purely technical and ther imprtant subjects. Universities are labur market driven while als being at the financial mercy f their prvince. At a recent Canadian Engineering Qualificatins Bard wrkshp, University f Manitba representatives pinted ut that the bttlenecks in the educatinal system are well knwn. Given better resurces and funding, the universities are bth able and willing t enhance the practical experience and jb-readiness f their graduates. We need t create a hybrid mdel f frmal educatin that includes cnventinal classrm learning, distance educatin and ther ptins beynd the current view f a fixed 4 year blck at a single institutin There are 4 years f knwledge gathering, including sme practical experience in university, then 4 years f experience prir t licensure, but the real experience nly begins after licensure when yu are making decisins n yur wn and becme accuntable fr yur actins. We tend t cmpartmentalize these three phases. In the future we shuld lk at different ways f segmenting hw experience is gained at varius times thrughut the educatinal prcess. The BCIT and the Lakehead mdels 4 P age

5 ffer interesting alternatives. We shuld nt let tday s university structures limit hw this culd be dne in the future. Cmpanies have traditinally lked at the 4 year wrk experience perid as a time t rient new hires t hw business is dne within that cmpany. This perid f practical learning/mentrship must be flexible t accmmdate the needs and the learning styles f engineers-in-training. We need t be assessing the full range f cmpetencies that must be acquired as an engineer-in-training. (e.g. The Engineers Canada wrk experience cmpetencies that include bth technical and ther critical cmpetencies.) It is imprtant t have a frmal prgram (i.e. CPD-like) where the prfessinal recgnizes that they need t g ut int the wrkplace and cntinually lk t imprve themselves. In each case it is their wn jb which must guide the type f learning that they pursue. We shuld be supprting the learning f sft skills during the engineer-in-training phase thrugh cllabrative learning, distance educatin r ther methds. We tend t think f CPD as a pst-licensure activity but perhaps we shuld be encuraging EITs t engage in this type f learning as well. Attitude is nt taught but there must be an attitude f cntinual learning thrughut the three primary phases f student, engineer-in-training and prfessinal engineer. It is interesting t nte that f the 9 attributes required f a prfessinal engineer in the Engineer 2020 reprt nly tw f these are acquired thrugh frmal educatin. We need t understand hw the ther 7 are picked up thrugh cntinuing learning. Shuld we be endeavring t attract entrants int engineering educatin wh have interests in additin t math and science. Fr example the medical prfessins have cncluded that success as a dctr has mre t d with the sft skills (e.g. bedside manner). They have started t lk fr these sft skills befre admitting candidates int the frmal educatin system. Shuld we be ding the same? Rle f the regulatr in shaping engineering educatin. We need t knw what the cnstituent assciatins want. Is there a need fr us t be interested in what is happening inside the universities beynd the accreditatin prcess? The graduate attributes give us tls t give better feedback t universities n hw well they are preparing engineers. There may be value in extending this cnversatin n engineering educatin t include the Deans and the cnstituent assciatins s that all the issues can be examined cllabratively. Cnstituent assciatins may wish t reinfrce the fcus n lifelng learning thrugh transfrming their mentring prgrams t embrace the whle life f an engineer. While it is imprtant t reinfrce supprt t engineers-in-training, the scpe f mentring prgrams can als be bradened t influence the entire career f a prfessinal engineer. This is particularly s at the end f a career when there is an pprtunity fr high-value knwledge transfer. We need t learn hw t d this better. 5 P age

6 Cntinuing prfessinal cmpetence and cntinuing prfessinal develpment are an imprtant part f sustaining the prfessin. In a changing wrld, the practice f engineering als changes and it is very imprtant t have this capacity t remain abreast f the demands f the prfessin. Cnstituent assciatins have a rle t play in wrking with the universities, stakehlders and ther partners. Assciatins have the day t day practical experience t prvide clarity n what specifically is required f members f the prfessin. Regulatrs can, and shuld demnstrate the psitive value f such things as cntinuing prfessinal develpment. Regulatrs need t mre cnsistent in this rle as well as set cnsistent standards fr prgrams like cntinuing prfessinal develpment. The Canadian Engineering Accreditatin Bard and the Canadian Engineering Qualificatins Bard als have a rle in making the requirements f the prfessinal mre frmal and mre meaningful ging frward. Cntinual imprvement is an add-n prcess t the graduate attributes. This requires cnsultatin with stakehlder grups t btain the feedback necessary fr imprvement. Currently the grups cnsulted tend t be within the academic cmmunity. We need t braden this cnsultatin t include regulatrs, the public and pssibly thers. This wuld prvide a mre fcused perspective n the needs f the prfessin, a better appreciatin f expectatins, and tlerance t risk. Because this is an existing mechanism it wuld be an easy way t create greater invlvement. We shuld lk at this issue thrugh the lens f prtecting the public. Given the great diversity f what engineers d, we cannt arrive at a ne-size fits all slutin. We can hwever be less cncerned where the risk is lw and mre cncerned in thse areas where there are public expectatins. We d nt a lt f scrutiny prir t licensure but nt much at all afterwards. SUMMARY The key pints f the discussin were: The wrld is changing and the engineering prfessin must cntinuus adapt t change. Engineer educatin is a lifelng prcess. It is a cntinuum that begins with the engineering student, cntinues as an engineer-in-training and des nt end until the prfessinal engineer retires r dies. Regulatrs have a rle t play thrughut all these phases. There is a cntinuus need t imprve awareness at all levels f the persnal respnsibility fr lifelng learning. There is a need fr a balance f skills. Sft skills (leadership, cmmunicatins, cllabratin, etc.), awareness f limitatins, and ability t respnd apprpriately t unexpected challenges must cmplement technical skills. We need t research and implement ways t achieve the right balance. Engineer educatin is a cllabrative effrt that includes academic institutins, emplyers, regulatrs and thers. N ne rganizatin can d it all. 6 P age

7 There is a need t infrm emplyers f the need fr and the value f n-the-jb prfessinal develpment fr engineers-in-training. We need t recruit emplyers int the prcess f engineering educatin. Cntinuing prfessinal develpment, cntinuing prfessinal cmpetence and ther pst licensure prgrams are imprtant. Regulatrs have a key rle t play in the meaningful scrutiny f pst-licensure learning. Given the diversity f the prfessin these prgrams cannt be entirely prescriptive but meaningful slutins need t be researched and put in place. There is a need fr cnsistency in hw such prgrams are defined and scrutinized. The hw and when f academic learning is changing and we must be ready t respnd in hw we accredit and give credit fr the next generatin f academic prgrams. Imprvements in the relevance and the quality f engineering educatin are wrthwhile and achievable ver the entire cntinuum f learning. Implementatin will require a cllabrative effrt by universities, regulatrs, engineering scieties, individual engineers and the public. Regulatrs may wish t assume a leadership rle in cnvening such a cllabratin. 7 P age