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Board 47: Research Initiation: Effectively Integrating Sustainability within an Engineering Program: Project Accomplishments

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Conference

2018 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Location

Salt Lake City, Utah

Publication Date

June 23, 2018

Start Date

June 23, 2018

End Date

July 27, 2018

Conference Session

NSF Grantees Poster Session

Tagged Topic

NSF Grantees Poster Session

Page Count

4

DOI

10.18260/1-2--30041

Permanent URL

https://peer.asee.org/30041

Download Count

388

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Paper Authors

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Paul Gannon Montana Engineering Education Research Center

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Associate Professor, Chemical Engineering
Associate Director, Montana Engineering Education Research Center

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Carolyn Plumb Montana State University

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Carolyn Plumb is the recently retired Director of Educational Innovation and Strategic Projects in the College of Engineering at Montana State University (MSU). Plumb has been involved in engineering education and program evaluation for over 25 years, and she continues to work on externally funded projects relating to engineering education.

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biography

Ryan Anderson Montana Engineering Education Research Center

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Dr. Anderson received a BS in Chemical Engineering and a BA in History from Bucknell University in 2007. He obtained a PhD in Chemical and Biological Engineering at the University of British Columbia in 2012 before postdoctoral studies at City College of New York. He is currently an assistant professor at Montana State University.

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Abstract

The overall research aim of this NSF PFE RIEF project was to improve the professional formation of engineers by integrating sustainability within engineering education programs. The objectives included initiating research into: the attitudes of engineering faculty and students toward sustainability; the effectiveness of integration approaches within undergraduate engineering courses; and engineering-identity formation processes in 4th grade students. A previously-reported faculty survey indicated general support for integrating sustainability into engineering education, and a desire for associated professional development opportunities. Survey results helped motivate the creation of an engineering education research center, and a workshop series on education research methods facilitated in-part by internationally-recognized experts. The Engineering Professional Responsibility Assessment was administered to two consecutive cohorts of engineering seniors and results indicated students are significantly motivated by the perception that the engineering profession helps society, and they identified specific courses and experiences within and outside of the engineering program which influenced this motivation. The PIs also developed, implemented and reported on an engaging engineering course module to integrate sustainability, which students described as enjoyable, challenging and effective in their learning on a contemporary and contentious engineering application: "fracking". Finally, the Draw an Engineer Test was administered to local 4th grade students, and results inspired the exploration of the Identity-Based Motivation framework to inform future educational interventions aimed at diversifying engineering-identity formation processes.

Gannon, P., & Plumb, C., & Anderson, R. (2018, June), Board 47: Research Initiation: Effectively Integrating Sustainability within an Engineering Program: Project Accomplishments Paper presented at 2018 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition , Salt Lake City, Utah. 10.18260/1-2--30041

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