Research Initiation: Effectively Integrating Sustainability within an Engineering Program

工程课程通常只侧重于工程专业的技术方面。单单强调技术就可能成为学生进入工程领域的障碍。此外，只接受技术准备的学生处理涉及多个角度的复杂问题的能力较差，例如伦理学、经济学、社会正义等。可持续性从根本上来说是一个复杂的问题，它涵盖了许多其他方面。因此，可持续能源工程的主题，如水力压裂油井增产（fracking），不仅可以用来教授技术工程概念，还可以让学生接触到更广泛的问题。通过更全面地考虑这些复杂的工程问题，来自不同背景的学生（尤其是女性和印第安人）将更有可能进入并留在工程领域。这样，这些学生就能更好地应对社会面临的主要挑战。该项目正着手研究如何在整个课程中最好地整合这些可持续性主题，以最大限度地提高工程教育的效益。为了传播成功的元素，研究团队正在为工程学院和K-12 STEM教师举办由机构赞助的有效教学和可持续发展研讨会。更广泛地说，结果将提高对工程专业及其与可持续性问题的联系的认识。总体研究目标是通过将可持续性纳入工程教育计划，改善不同工程学生的专业形成（招聘、保留和准备）。本研究旨在研究整合方法在不同的本科工程必修课和选修课程，以及工程学院发展和推广活动中的有效性。与集成方法相关的两个基本问题正在得到解决：(1)它是否有效？(2)障碍是什么？提出的研究框架是描述学生学习风格的理论模型；认知、社会和专业发展；可持续性素养;以及对工程的本体论和态度。这些目标正在通过利用蒙大拿州立大学化学工程项目的现有资源来实现：最近获得终身教职的工程教员（PI）；两门独特的工程选修课，包括一门针对非stem专业学生的大型入门级“能源与可持续发展”大学核心科学课程，以及一门专注于“可持续能源”的小型高级工程选修课；担任工程学院终身教职前的合作者（Co-PI），指导一门大型必修工程课程（流体力学）；具有理论框架、评估、数据收集和分析经验的知名教育心理学家（Co-PI）；以及，正在进行的推广活动，包括工程学生在当地四年级教室的演讲，以及为密歇根州立大学工程学院和K-12教师在印第安人保留地举办的研讨会。pi正在系统地调查当代可持续性问题在三个本科工程课程和各种讲习班和外展活动中的整合。由学术界和工业界的专业人士组成的特别跨学科团队正在建立，以提高工程教育的研究能力，并帮助将未来的研究方向与行业需求结合起来。经过验证和/或改编的评估工具以及对坦率的研究参与者评论的分析将提供来自独特研究参与者群体的丰富的定量和定性数据集。正在对参与者群体和对照组进行定期评估，以确定遗留影响，结果将有助于为工程教育的未来研究和创新提供信息。

The engineering curriculum typically focuses exclusively on the technical aspects of the engineering profession. This technical emphasis alone can be a barrier for students to enter engineering. Furthermore, students receiving only technical preparation are less able to approach complex problems involving multiple perspectives, e.g. ethics, economics, social justice, etc. Sustainability is a fundamentally complex issue that covers many of these additional perspectives. Thus, topics in sustainable energy engineering, such as hydraulic fracture oil well stimulation (fracking), can be used to not only teach technical engineering concepts but also expose students to broader issues. By considering these complex engineering problems more holistically, students from a range of diverse backgrounds (particularly women and Native Americans) will more likely enter and remain in engineering. These students will then be better prepared to address the major challenges facing society. This project is initiating research into how best to integrate these sustainability topics throughout the curriculum to maximize these benefits in engineering education. To spread successful elements, the research team is facilitating institutionally-sponsored effective teaching and sustainability workshops for engineering faculty as well as K-12 STEM teachers. More broadly, the results will increase awareness of the engineering profession and its association with issues in sustainability.The overall research aim is to improve the professional formation (recruitment, retention, and preparation) of diverse engineering students by integrating sustainability within engineering education programs. This research is studying the effectiveness of integration approaches within different required and elective undergraduate engineering courses, as well as within engineering faculty development and outreach activities. Two basic questions are being addressed related to the integration methods: (1) does it work? and (2) what are the barriers? Framing the proposed research are theoretical models describing student learning styles; cognitive, social and professional development; sustainability literacy; as well as the ontology of and attitudes toward engineering. These aims are being accomplished by leveraging existing resources within the Chemical Engineering program at Montana State University: a recently-tenured engineering faculty member (PI); two unique engineering elective courses including a large, entry-level "energy and sustainability" university-core science course aimed at non-STEM majors, and a smaller upper-level engineering elective course focused on "sustainable energy"; a pre-tenure engineering faculty collaborator (Co-PI) who instructs a large required engineering course (fluid mechanics); an established educational psychologist (Co-PI) experienced with theoretical frameworks, assessment, and data collection and analysis; and, ongoing outreach activities including engineering student presentations to local 4th grade classrooms and workshops for both MSU engineering faculty and K-12 teachers on Native American reservations. The PIs are systematically investigating the integration of contemporary sustainability issues within the three undergraduate engineering courses and various workshop and outreach activities. Ad hoc interdisciplinary teams of professionals within academia and industry are being established to grow engineering education research capacity and help align future research directions with industry needs. Validated and/or adapted assessment instruments and analyses of candid research participant comments will provide rich quantitative and qualitative data sets from unique research participant cohorts. Periodic assessment of participant cohorts and control groups is being conducted to determine legacy impacts, and results will help inform future research and innovation in engineering education.