Prototyping the Engineer of 2020: A 360-degree Study of Effective Education

该项目对培养具有“2020年工程师”特质的毕业生的组织、课程、教学和文化因素进行了详细的研究。这项研究分为三个阶段，每个阶段都有自己独特的活动。在第一阶段，它正在分析40个机构的这些因素，使用最近完成的研究“工程变革：EC2000影响研究”的一部分开发的数据库。第一阶段的目标是确定六所在培养至少具有“2020年工程师”三个属性的毕业生方面表现最高的机构：设计和解决问题的能力，跨学科能力和上下文能力。六所院校中有四所入选，因为它们在教育女性和历史上代表性不足的少数族裔学生方面成效显著。在第二阶段，它正在对这六所大学进行详细的案例研究，分析组织、课程、教学和文化特征，这些特征似乎有助于或维持它们在培养具有高水平三种能力的毕业生方面的高绩效。在第三阶段，它将通过“从原型到生产”的配套研究对案例研究的结果进行定量验证，这是一项由36家机构参与的研究，旨在描绘美国工程教育的现状。智力优势：为了培养2020年的工程师，教师和管理人员必须了解如何在不同的学生群体中培养理想的属性和技能。这项综合研究正在确定课程、教学、文化和组织条件，以促进关键领域的强大学习和技能成果。正在使用的混合方法方法否定了对最佳实践案例研究的两个常见批评，即缺乏概括性和缺乏比较组。这项研究提供了系统的理解，而不是简单的解释。它在概念上比大多数其他工程教育研究更广泛，具体说明学生在课堂内外的经历如何影响他们的知识和技能的发展。更广泛的影响：通过关注那些在教育女性和有色人种学生方面特别有效的机构，本研究解决了工程教育中的一个关键问题，为如何提高不同学生的坚持和成功提供了细致入微的指导。这些案例研究旨在全面了解项目和教学特点，为培养在2020年竞争激烈的全球经济中脱颖而出的工程专业毕业生提供最有希望的帮助。本研究中开发的案例研究信息与同时在“原型到生产研究”中进行的定量调查相关联，正在加深对变革和转型的广度和深度的理解，这些变革和转型将需要——并且可以被设计——来培养2020年的工程师。该项目还通过聘请五位新的STEM研究人员学习定性和定量研究方法，为工程教育学者社区的发展做出了贡献。

This project is conducting a detailed examination of the organizational, curricular, pedagogical, and cultural factors that produce graduates with the attributes of "The Engineer of 2020." The study has three phases, each with its own distinctive set of activities. In Phase I it is analyzing those factors in 40 institutions, using a database developed as part of the recently completed study "Engineering Change: A Study of the Impact of EC2000." The goal of Phase I is identification of six institutions that have performed at the highest levels in producing graduates with at least three of the attributes of "The Engineer of 2020:" design and problem-solving skills, interdisciplinary competence, and contextual competence. Four of the six institutions are being selected because they have been strikingly effective in educating women and students from historically under-represented minority groups. In Phase II, it is producing detailed case studies of these six institutions, analyzing the organizational, curricular, pedagogical, and cultural features that seem to facilitate or sustain their high performance in producing graduates with high levels of the three competencies. In Phase 3 it is working to quantitatively validate the case studies' findings through the companion study, "Prototype to Production," a 36-institution study designed to develop a portrait of the current condition of engineering education in the United States. Intellectual Merit: To produce the engineers of 2020, faculty and administrators must understand how ideal attributes and skills can be developed in diverse student populations. This comprehensive study is identifying the curricular, pedagogical, cultural, and organizational conditions that promote strong learning and skills outcomes in key areas. The mixed methods approach being used negates two common critiques of case studies of best practices, namely their lack of generalizability and the absence of comparison groups. This study is providing systemic understanding, not simple explanations. It is conceptually broader than most other studies of engineering education, specifying how students' experiences inside and outside the classroom influence their development of knowledge and skills.Broader Impact: By focusing significant attention on institutions that are particularly effective in educating women and students of color, this study is addressing a critical concern in engineering education, providing nuanced guidance on how the persistence and success of diverse students can be enhanced. The case studies are being designed to enable a comprehensive understanding of program and pedagogical features with the most promise for producing engineering graduates who will excel in the competitive global economy of 2020. The case-study information being developed in this study, linked to the quantitative surveys being conducted at the same time in the "Prototype-to-Production Study," is deepening understanding of the breadth and depth of changes and transformations that will be needed - and can be engineered - to produce the engineer of 2020. The project is also contributing to the development of a community of engineering education scholars by engaging five new STEM researchers in learning qualitative and quantitative research methods.