Engineering Ethics Education for a Capstone Design Project Course

Okechukwu C Ugweje; Kevin N. Bowlyn

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Conference: 2024 ASEE North East Section
Location: Fairfield, Connecticut
Publication Date: April 19, 2024
Start Date: April 19, 2024
End Date: April 20, 2024
Page Count: 7
DOI: 10.18260/1-2--45764
Permanent URL: https://peer.asee.org/45764
Download Count: 18

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Paper Authors

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Okechukwu C Ugweje Sacred Heart University

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Okechukwu (Okey) Ugweje, Ph.D., is a Computer Science and Engineering Professor at the Sacred Heart University (SHU), Fairfield, CT. He teaches courses in Microelectronics, Sensors and Robotics, Data Structures, Statistics and Probability, Computational Methods in Engineering, power systems, communication, controls of dynamic systems, and electromagnetic theory. He has over 26 years of teaching experience, starting at the University of Akron (UA), Akron, OH. After ten years of service to UA, he resigned to take a new position as Director of the Department of Research, Education, and Curriculum at the Digital Bridge Institute (DBI) and later the Vice President of Academic and Student Affairs. His research interests are wireless communications technologies, the Internet of Things (IoT), and Artificial Intelligence. Before joining SHU, he was an Electrical and Computer Engineering professor at the University of Mount Union, Alliance, OH. While at the UA, he supervised twelve (12) Master's degree Thesis and four (4) Ph.D. dissertations. Dr. Ugweje has published and presented over 100 articles in Journals and Conference proceedings worldwide and authored three book chapters. Dr. Ugweje is married with three children.

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Kevin N. Bowlyn Sacred Heart University

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Kevin N. Bowlyn received a dual B.S. from Eastern Illinois University and Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, in 2008 and has earned his M.S. and Ph.D. from Southern Illinois University in 2010 and 2017, respectively. His research interests are in d

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Abstract

Engineering disciplines are essential in shaping society's social, economic, and cultural heritage. To guide against the potential negative consequences of technology on society, the need to incorporate ethical education in engineering and promote ethical responsibility for technology creations is of immense importance. The technology developed by engineering has found strong acceptance and integration in the daily economic lives of individuals and organizations. Consequently, technology-boosted economic development has changed the habits of individuals, both in terms of their interrelationships, their relationship with themselves, or the environment in which they live. Therefore, the integration of ethics in engineering education should be encouraged, as mandated by the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET).

The paper describes our approach to teaching Engineering Ethics via the senior design project. Our recent visit by ABET reinforces the need for ethics education for engineering students. Our approach integrates ethical questions in specific engineering situations and allows students to learn possible scenarios of ethical issues in real-life situations. The aim was to address ABET student outcome #4 (SO4), which states that a student should have "an ability to recognize ethical and professional responsibilities in engineering situations and make informed judgments, which must consider the impact of engineering solutions in global, economic, environmental, and societal contexts." To do so, we devised four outcomes, as stated below. (a) Discerned an ethical dilemma from an engineering situation. (b) Analyzed an engineering situation involving multiple stakeholders with differing interests to determine an appropriate course of action using professional Codes of Ethics. (c) Analyzed engineering problems and solutions considering relevant historical events, contemporary issues, and moral reasoning from broader cultural sources. (d) Analyzed engineering solutions' global, economic, environmental, and societal impacts.

Each of these outcomes was analyzed using homework, quizzes, and exams. In addition, we examined several ethical dilemmas in conjunction with conflicts of interest that may occur in their professional lives.

First, we begin by teaching the students the concept of ethics in general. Ethics is a scientific discipline that studies the laws of moral behavior of individuals and society. Students were taught ethics as a discipline dealing with good and evil and with moral duty; as a system of moral principles dealing with the principles of right and wrong, justice and injustice, good and evil, vice and virtue, rights and responsibilities; and principles governing conduct or behavior of an individual or a group. Engineering ethics involves reviewing the Code of Ethics for Engineers using the fundamental canon of the National Society of Professional Engineers. The six fundamental cannons were examined and illustrated with examples. Also presented are the situations involving ethical dilemmas and conflicts of interest. A situation in which a person can derive personal benefit from actions or decisions made in their official capacity.

In conclusion, engineering ethics-based education benefits students' professional lives and practice. We are proud to share our experience of the first presentation of project-based engineering ethics in our school.

Citation
Format

Ugweje, O. C., & Bowlyn, K. N. (2024, April), Engineering Ethics Education for a Capstone Design Project Course Paper presented at 2024 ASEE North East Section, Fairfield, Connecticut. 10.18260/1-2--45764

TY - CPAPER
AB - Engineering disciplines are essential in shaping society&#39;s social, economic, and cultural heritage. To guide against the potential negative consequences of technology on society, the need to incorporate ethical education in engineering and promote ethical responsibility for technology creations is of immense importance. The technology developed by engineering has found strong acceptance and integration in the daily economic lives of individuals and organizations. Consequently, technology-boosted economic development has changed the habits of individuals, both in terms of their interrelationships, their relationship with themselves, or the environment in which they live. Therefore, the integration of ethics in engineering education should be encouraged, as mandated by the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET).

The paper describes our approach to teaching Engineering Ethics via the senior design project. Our recent visit by ABET reinforces the need for ethics education for engineering students. Our approach integrates ethical questions in specific engineering situations and allows students to learn possible scenarios of ethical issues in real-life situations. The aim was to address ABET student outcome #4 (SO4), which states that a student should have &quot;an ability to recognize ethical and professional responsibilities in engineering situations and make informed judgments, which must consider the impact of engineering solutions in global, economic, environmental, and societal contexts.&quot; To do so, we devised four outcomes, as stated below.
(a) Discerned an ethical dilemma from an engineering situation.
(b) Analyzed an engineering situation involving multiple stakeholders with differing interests to determine an appropriate course of action using professional Codes of Ethics.
(c) Analyzed engineering problems and solutions considering relevant historical events, contemporary issues, and moral reasoning from broader cultural sources.
(d) Analyzed engineering solutions&#39; global, economic, environmental, and societal impacts.

Each of these outcomes was analyzed using homework, quizzes, and exams. In addition, we examined several ethical dilemmas in conjunction with conflicts of interest that may occur in their professional lives.

First, we begin by teaching the students the concept of ethics in general. Ethics is a scientific discipline that studies the laws of moral behavior of individuals and society. Students were taught ethics as a discipline dealing with good and evil and with moral duty; as a system of moral principles dealing with the principles of right and wrong, justice and injustice, good and evil, vice and virtue, rights and responsibilities; and principles governing conduct or behavior of an individual or a group. Engineering ethics involves reviewing the Code of Ethics for Engineers using the fundamental canon of the National Society of Professional Engineers. The six fundamental cannons were examined and illustrated with examples. Also presented are the situations involving ethical dilemmas and conflicts of interest. A situation in which a person can derive personal benefit from actions or decisions made in their official capacity.

In conclusion, engineering ethics-based education benefits students&#39; professional lives and practice. We are proud to share our experience of the first presentation of project-based engineering ethics in our school.
AU - Okechukwu C Ugweje
AU - Kevin N. Bowlyn
CY - Fairfield, Connecticut
DA - 2024/04/19
PB - ASEE Conferences
TI - Engineering Ethics Education for a Capstone Design Project Course
UR - https://peer.asee.org/45764
DO - 10.18260/1-2--45764
ER -