Dan_Hastings_EngineeringEducation_2010_Final.pdfVIP

The Evolution of Engineering Education in the United States Daniel Hastings Dean for Undergraduate Education June 2010 The Evolution of Engineering Education in the United States and at MIT ? National Picture ? Innovative Approaches – Purdue – RPI Georgia Tech – Arizona State University – Olin College ? MIT Perspective 2 NAE Great Engineering Achievements of the 20th Century 1. Electrification 2. Automobile 3. Airplane 4. Water Supply Distribution 5. Electronics 6. Radio and Television 7. Agricultural Mechanization 8. Computers 9. Telephone 10. Air Conditioning Refrigeration 11. Highways 12. Spacecraft 13. Internet 14. Imaging 15. Household Appliances 16. Health Technologies 17. Petroleum Petrochemical Technologies 18. Laser and Fiber Optics 19. Nuclear Technologies 20. High-performance Materials 3 US View: Call for Educational Reform The Urgency of Engineering Education Reform and A Makeover for Engineering Education William Wulf Ex-President, NAE ? Change needed: ? Curriculum and pedagogy ? Diversity ? Baccalaureate as first professional degree ? Faculty reward system ? Formalized lifelong learning ? Preparation for K-12 ? Technical literacy in the general population ? Two fundamental and related problems: ? Fewer students going into engineering ? Engineering schools increasingly out of touch with engineering practice ? Students not being prepared to practice engineering for the 21st century 4 Attitudes Skills Knowledge Pre WW II Today? Tomorrow? Evolution of Engineering Education Did Engineering Science Go Too Far? 5 ? “We see globalization…as an overarching “mega-trend,” a force so ubiquitous that it will substantially shape all other major trends in the world of 2020…” ? “Competitive pressures will force companies based in the advanced economies to ‘outsource’ many blue- and white-color jobs.” ? “With the gradual integration of China, India, and other developing countries…World patterns of production, trade, employment, and wages will be