Conference Session

Communication Across the Divisions II: Communication and Transdisciplinary Pedagogies

Collection

2015 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Jeffrey J. Evans, Purdue University, West Lafayette; Amy S. Van Epps, Purdue University, West Lafayette; Michael Thomas Smith; Sorin Adam Matei, Purdue University Polytechnic Institute; Esteban Garcia

Tagged Topics

Diversity

Tagged Divisions

Civil Engineering, Liberal Education/Engineering & Society, Mechanical Engineering, Technological and Engineering Literacy/Philosophy of Engineering

A Transdisciplinary Approach for Developing Effective Communication Skills in a First Year STEM SeminarAbstractMany STEM graduates leave school academically prepared in their fields however business leaders havebeen stating that they often lack the more intangible qualities such as teamwork, critical thinking,communication skills, and the ability to manage interpersonal relations. These are often referred to as”soft skills”, yet they are tightly coupled with professional performance. Furthermore, they are allconnected to basic communication skills, commonly referred to as oral and written communication, andtheir close counterparts, listening and reading. Such skills are not only add-ons to a STEM job, they canmake the

Conference Session

The Philosophy of Engineering and Technological Literacy

Collection

2017 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Katherine Goodman, University of Colorado, Denver; Jean Hertzberg, University of Colorado, Boulder

Tagged Topics

Diversity

Tagged Divisions

Technological and Engineering Literacy/Philosophy of Engineering

opportunity to develop and measure a number of professional skills,including communication and teamwork25,26. These abilities are often called “soft skills”although some engineering educators would rather they be called “the missing basics”, becausethey are essential for students to become successful engineers27.One team has developed measures for how well students can demonstrate contextualcompetence28, defined as “an engineer’s ability to anticipate and understand the constraints andimpacts of social, cultural, environmental, political, and other contexts on engineeringsolutions”29. This work goes beyond simple notions about transferring learning from one contextto the next, and defines the broader arena in which engineers work. The focus on

Conference Session

Exploration of Broad Issues and Promotion of Engineering and Technological Literacy

Collection

2020 ASEE Virtual Annual Conference Content Access

Authors

Dan G. Dimitriu, San Antonio College

Tagged Topics

Diversity

Tagged Divisions

Technological and Engineering Literacy/Philosophy of Engineering

once for engineering as well.Challenges in Helping Students Improve Their Technical LiteracyAt community colleges, faculty do not receive reduced teaching load for participating in researchor extracurricular activities so their participation is on a voluntary base. Community collegefaculty also does not have graduate students and post docs to assist with supervisingundergraduate projects. Community college faculty are focused on teaching and are notencouraged to be involved in the kind of activities that MESA Center is offering. Some of thestudents’ limitations include weaknesses in soft skills such as time management, teamwork, andcommunications, make balancing of school requirements, MESA activities, family, and outsidejobs, a very difficult

Conference Session

Aspects of Engineering Literacy and Community and Industry Engagement

Collection

2017 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Mike Thomas Pitcher, University of Texas, El Paso; Pedro Arturo Espinoza, University of Texas, El Paso; Oscar Antonio Perez, University of Texas at El Paso; Hugo Gomez, University of Texas, El Paso; Randy Hazael Anaya, University of Texas, El Paso; Hector Erick Lugo Nevarez, University of Texas at El Paso; Peter Golding P.E., University of Texas at El Paso; Erik Lopez; Deena Mustin, UTEP Academic Technologies ; Robin Munoz, Academic Technologies; Jackeline Munoz; Sarah Huizar, UTEP Academic Technologies Learning Environments; Crystal Fernandez-Pena, Carnegie Mellon University; Celena Arreola; Tetyana Zhyvotovska, University of Texas at El Paso

Tagged Topics

Diversity

Tagged Divisions

Technological and Engineering Literacy/Philosophy of Engineering

methodology towards assessing this project has been adapted over the course of sevenyears. The original methodology was based on the learning outcome of whether students couldcomplete the soldering of a circuit board. Upon reflection, the first year’s methodology whileadequate limited the focus and didn’t capture the full range of skills development of the students.The original methodology was focused around the deliverable itself to assess the success of theproject and learning objectives. In the second and subsequent years, additional assessments havebeen added to try to capture the full magnitude of the process. These assessments focus on specificskills obtained, level of collaboration and transfer of skills between majors, soft skills learned