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Students’ Perceptions of the Importance of the Faculty Technical Currency in Their Learning/Success in a Technology-Based Baccalaureate Program

Ahmed S. Khan Department of EET DeVry University, Addison, IL 60101

Gene Gloeckner George Morgan School of Education, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523

Abstract

During the last two decades, the pace of technological change has transformed the global economy into a knowledge-based or innovation-based economy, in which organizations are no longer valued on the basis on their physical assets but rather on the knowledge base of their employees. In this day and age, a knowledge-based and innovation-based economy is playing a pivotal role in the development of nations around the globe. For nations to acquire or to maintain the technological edge, the technical competency of graduates has become of paramount importance. Rapid technological growth puts new demands on educators. The global marketplace seeks manpower with an up-to-date technical knowledge-base. The pace of technological change also imposes new challenges for faculty development and the technical currency of academic programs. Faculty professional development activities and technical currency play an important role in promoting student learning and success.

Especially for non-research (purely teaching) institutions that offer technology driven programs, one of the most important factors determining student success is the technical currency of faculty members. The Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET) and regional accreditation bodies place strong emphasis on the technical currency of faculty, and require institutions to provide opportunities for faculty to keep abreast of technological advances. ABET’s new criteria for accrediting engineering technology programs, Technology Criteria 2000 (TC2k), also emphasize the importance of faculty technical currency. Thus, the rapid pace of technological change, and accreditation agencies’ strong emphasis on faculty development, mandate that faculty remain current in their areas of specialization in order to help students acquire an up-to-date technological knowledge base.

This paper presents the findings of a student survey conducted at 13 campuses of a private university. The main area of inquiry dealt with exploring the students’ perceptions about the importance of faculty technical currency (expressed in terms of technical competency /up-to-date technological knowledge/skills in the subject matter, computer hardware and software skills, publications and technical presentations, and participation in technical seminars, workshops and conferences) for their self-reported learning/success. The paper also presents recommendations for enhancing student learning by enhancing faculty technical currency.

Proceedings of the 2005 American Society for Engineering Education Annual Conference & Exposition Copyright © 2005, American Society for Engineering Education

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Morgan, G., & Gloeckner, G., & Khan, A. (2005, June), Students' Perceptions Of The Importance Of The Faculty Technical Currency In Their Learning/Success In A Technology Based Baccalaureate Program Paper presented at 2005 Annual Conference, Portland, Oregon. 10.18260/1-2--14664