"Making" a Bridge: Critical Making as Synthesized Engineering/Humanistic Inquiry

Dean Nieusma; James W. Malazita

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Conference: 2016 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition
Location: New Orleans, Louisiana
Publication Date: June 26, 2016
Start Date: June 26, 2016
End Date: June 29, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-692-68565-5
ISSN: 2153-5965
Conference Session: Pedagogies of Making and Design
Tagged Division: Liberal Education/Engineering & Society
Tagged Topic: Diversity
Page Count: 12
DOI: 10.18260/p.26234
Permanent URL: https://strategy.asee.org/26234
Download Count: 666

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Paper Authors

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Dean Nieusma Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute orcid.org/0000-0003-2711-3315

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Dean Nieusma is Associate Professor in Science and Technology Studies and Director of the Programs in Design and Innovation at Rensselaer.

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biography

James W. Malazita Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute

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James Malazita is a Lecturer in Science and Technology Studies at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute whose work draws from Science and Technology Studies, Media Studies, Philosophy, and Literary Theory. Originally trained as a game designer, animator, and web developer, Dr. Malazita applies design thinking to the social sciences, using both cultural studies and artistic methodologies to explore the relationships among humans, animals, machines, the environment, and cultural objects and ideas.

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Abstract

Over the past decade, considerable attention has been devoted to “making” practices: celebrating the potential of making to reinvigorate the US manufacturing base and economy; highlighting the “democratization” of technology development as ordinary people directly create the products they will use; anticipating the possibility of a whole new generation of students primed for STEM education and careers. Making practices, facilities, and integrated “makerspaces” have been enthusiastically embraced within engineering education programs at high school and university levels, and are proliferating rapidly within diverse educational settings. Perhaps surprising to many within engineering and other STEM fields, making practices are also being embraced and adapted within the humanities, particularly a branch of humanistic inquiry labeled “digital humanities.” As humanists organize research practices and supporting theoretical frameworks around making, new possibilities arise for using making practices to integrate technical and liberal educational goals within the context of engineering education.

This paper provides an overview of contemporary work in digital humanities involving making activities and the potential of this work to inform engineering education making activities in a way that bridges technical and humanistic concerns. It highlights how making practices themselves can be understood as a form of inquiry, with modalities drawing on—but distinct from—traditional engineering and humanities epistemologies. The paper draws on a larger research-and-teaching initiative at [Our Institution] titled, “Making as Critical Inquiry,” which is currently being integrated into our interdisciplinary undergraduate design program. This program has a well-established history of bridging content from engineering and liberal education, but the making activities that are currently practiced have not yet been theorized as one of the mechanisms through which technical-social integration is achieved. The paper provides specific examples of making practices and projects that exemplify the desired integration and then highlights how even engineering-centered design pedagogy can use making activities as a vehicle for building a bridge between engineering and critical social inquiry based in humanistic educational frameworks.

Citation
Format

Nieusma, D., & Malazita, J. W. (2016, June), "Making" a Bridge: Critical Making as Synthesized Engineering/Humanistic Inquiry Paper presented at 2016 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition, New Orleans, Louisiana. 10.18260/p.26234

TY  - CPAPER
AB  - Over the past decade, considerable attention has been devoted to “making” practices: celebrating the potential of making to reinvigorate the US manufacturing base and economy; highlighting the “democratization” of technology development as ordinary people directly create the products they will use; anticipating the possibility of a whole new generation of students primed for STEM education and careers. Making practices, facilities, and integrated “makerspaces” have been enthusiastically embraced within engineering education programs at high school and university levels, and are proliferating rapidly within diverse educational settings. Perhaps surprising to many within engineering and other STEM fields, making practices are also being embraced and adapted within the humanities, particularly a branch of humanistic inquiry labeled “digital humanities.” As humanists organize research practices and supporting theoretical frameworks around making, new possibilities arise for using making practices to integrate technical and liberal educational goals within the context of engineering education.

This paper provides an overview of contemporary work in digital humanities involving making activities and the potential of this work to inform engineering education making activities in a way that bridges technical and humanistic concerns. It highlights how making practices themselves can be understood as a form of inquiry, with modalities drawing on—but distinct from—traditional engineering and humanities epistemologies. The paper draws on a larger research-and-teaching initiative at [Our Institution] titled, “Making as Critical Inquiry,” which is currently being integrated into our interdisciplinary undergraduate design program. This program has a well-established history of bridging content from engineering and liberal education, but the making activities that are currently practiced have not yet been theorized as one of the mechanisms through which technical-social integration is achieved. The paper provides specific examples of making practices and projects that exemplify the desired integration and then highlights how even engineering-centered design pedagogy can use making activities as a vehicle for building a bridge between engineering and critical social inquiry based in humanistic educational frameworks.
AU  - Dean Nieusma
AU  - James W. Malazita
CY  - New Orleans, Louisiana
DA  - 2016/06/26
PB  - ASEE Conferences
TI  - "Making" a Bridge: Critical Making as Synthesized Engineering/Humanistic Inquiry
UR  - https://strategy.asee.org/26234
DO  - 10.18260/p.26234
ER  -