Philosophy and undergraduate teaching and learning: Thoughts and perspectives for engineering education

Heywood, J. (2012) Philosophy and undergraduate teaching and learning: Thoughts and perspectives for engineering education. [Conference Proceedings]

Abstract

During the last six years there has been growing interest in the development of a philosophy of engineering and a philosophy of engineering education as distinct from a philosophy of science education. There have been several international workshops and a number of papers on these topics that have been presented at the ASEE and Frontiers in Education (FIE) conferences. Those concerned with the philosophy of education have focussed primarily on the contribution that philosophy can make to the design of the curriculum and the use of the philosophical method in the study of engineering. Most of these discussions have been engineering-centric and taken place in the absence of any discussion of the more general aims of higher education. The purpose of this paper is to consider the role that philosophy might play in the achievement of the goals of higher education as expressed by such authorities as John Henry Newman. It is argued that a link between engineering education and these more general goals is to be found in the views of the Scottish philosopher John Macmurray on the relationships between theory, practice and action as expressed in his Gifford Lectures on The Self as Agent and Persons in Relations. It is argued that as much attention needs to be given to the affective domain as it does to the cognitive. Recent research shows the importance of the peer group, together with interaction with faculty to be the most important factors in student achievement and development. Faculty have a major role to play in helping engineering students overcome negative attitudes toward liberalism, as does mixing with students who have other interests. Enlargement of mind is helped by an acquaintance with the perennial problems of philosophy since the answers a person gives to them influence her/his thinking and behaviour. In the discussion that ends the paper, attention is drawn to recent research on the experience of students of their undergraduate education that supports some of the contentions made in this paper. © 2012 American Society for Engineering Education.

Information
URI:
https://eprints.teachingandlearning.ie/id/eprint/2500
Title:
Philosophy and undergraduate teaching and learning: Thoughts and perspectives for engineering education
Authors:
Heywood, J.
Official URL:
http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?eid=2-s2.0...
Date:
2012
Additional Information:
Conference code: 91898; Export Date: 23 February 2015; Correspondence Address: Heywood, J.; Trinity College DublinIreland; References: Koen, B.V., (2003) Discussion of the Method. Conducting the Engineering Approach to Problem Solving, , Oxford University Press, New York; Bucciarelli, L.L., (2003) Engineering Philosophy, , DUP Satellite, Delft, Netherlands; Goldman, S.L., Why we need a philosophy of engineering. A work in progress (2004) Interdisciplinary Science Reviews, 29 (2), pp. 163-176; Van De Poel, I., Goldberg, D.E., (2010) Philosophy and Engineering. An Emerging Agenda, , Springer, Dordrecht, Netherlands; Smith, K.A., Educational philosophy (2003) Journal of Engineering Education, pp. 203-205. , (Academic Bookshelf) July; Heywood, J., Smith, K.A., McGrann, R., Can philosophy of engineering education improve the practice of engineering education (2007) Proceedings Frontiers in Education Conference, pp. T1f1-T1f2; Heywood, J., A historical overview of recent developments in the search for a philosophy of education (2011) Proceedings Frontiers in Education Conference, p. 24; Heywood, J., Carberry, A., Grimson, W., A select and annotated bibliography of philosophy in engineering education (2011) Proceedings Frontiers in Education Conference, p. 35; Grimson, W., The philosophical nature of engineering. A characterization of engineering using the language and activities of philosophy (2007) Proceedings of the American Society for Engineering Education Annual Conference, , AC 2007-1611, 14 pgs; Korte, R., Smith, R.K., Developing engineering student's philosophical inquiry skills (2009) Proceedings Frontiers in Education Conference, M4A, pp. 1-6; Rescher, N., (2001) Philosophical Reasoning. A Study in the Methodology of Philosophizing, , Blackwell, Maiden, MA; Heywood, J., The academic v practical debate. A case study in screening (1981) Institution of Electrical Engineers Proceedings Part A, 128 (7), pp. 511-519; McGrann, R., Philosophy of technology in engineering education (2008) Proceedings Frontiers in Education Conference, S4H, pp. 29-34; Whitehead, A.N., (1932) The Aims of Education and Other Essays, , (2 nd Edition, 1950 with a foreword by Lord Lindsay of Birker). Ernest Benn, London; Noddings, N., The aims of education (2009) The Curriculum Studies Reader, p. 425. , D. J. Flinders and S. J. Thornton, 3 rd edition. Routledge, New York; Schubert, W.H., (1997) Curriculum. Perspective, Paradigm and Possibility, , Prentice Hall, Upper Saddle River, NJ; Hamilton, S.W., On a reform of the English universities with special reference to Oxford : and limited to the faculty of arts (1852) Discussions on Philosophy and Literature, Education and University Reform, , cited by; McGrath, F., (1962) The Consecration of Learning. Lectures on Newman's Idea of A University, pp. 39-45. , Gill, Dublin; Bruner, J., (1966) Toward A Theory of Instruction, , Norton, New York; Newman, J.H., (1873) The Idea of A University. Defined and Illustrated, pp. 157-158. , 1947 edition, Edited with an introduction By C. H. Harrold. Longmans, Green & Co. New York; Heywood, J., (2005) Engineering Education. Research and Development in Curriculum and Instruction, , IEEE/ Wiley, Hoboken, NJ. pp 41 ff; Walgrave, J.-H., (1960) Newman the Theologian, , Geoffrey Chapman, London; Newman, J.H., (1845) An Essay on the Development of Christian Doctrine, , J. Toovey London and Longman, Green, London; Costello, J.E., (2002) John Macmurray. A Biography, , Floris Books, Edinburgh; MacMurray, J., (1957) The Self As Agent, , Faber and Faber, London; MacMurray, J., (1961) Persons in Relations, , Faber and Faber, London; Copleston, F., A history of philosophy (1960) Modern Philosophy, 6, pp. 130-137. , Image Edition 1994, Doubleday, New York; Heywood, J., (2005) Engineering Education. Research and Development in Curriculum and Instruction, pp. 165-170. , IEEE/ Wiley, Hoboken, NJ; Heywood, J., "Think...about how others think". Liberal education and engineering (2007) Proceedings 37 th Frontiers in Education Conference, pp. T3C20-T3C24; (2006) IEEE Spectrum, p. 6. , December; Astin, A.W., (1997) What Matters Most in College. Four Critical Years Revisited, , Jossey Bass, San Fransisco; Astin, A.H., (1993) What Matters in College. Four Critical Years, p. 398. , Jossey-Bass, San Fransisco; Pascarella, E.T., Terenzini, P.T., (2005) How College Affects Students. Vo 2. A Third Decade of Research, p. 614. , Jossey-Bass, San Fransisco; Heywood, J., (1969) An Evaluation of Certain Post-War Developments in Higher Technological Education, , Thesis. University of Lancaster., Lancaster, UK. Astin gave a few examples in his study
Uncontrolled Keywords:
Affective domain; Higher education; International workshops; Peer groups; Perennial problems; Philosophy of science; Student achievement; Undergraduate education; Undergraduate teaching; Curricula; Exhibitions; Ontology; Philosophical aspects; Students; Engineering education
Library
Item Type:
Conference Proceedings
Depositing User:
National Forum
Date Deposited:
08 Dec 2015 21:25
Revision:
2
Last Modified:
08 Dec 2015 21:25
View Item
Tools
Lists
The National Forum Teaching and Learning Scholarship Database is powered by EPrints 3.4 which is developed by the School of Electronics and Computer Science at the University of Southampton. About EPrints | Accessibility