Slaton, A. E. (2012, June), The Tyranny of Outcomes: The Social Origins and Impacts of Educational Standards in American Engineering  Paper presented at 2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition, San Antonio, Texas. 10.18260/1-2--22105

\bibitem{asee_peer_22105}
  Slaton, A. E. (2012, June), \emph{The Tyranny of Outcomes: The Social Origins and Impacts of Educational Standards in American Engineering}
  Paper presented at 2012 ASEE Annual Conference \& Exposition, San Antonio, Texas.
  10.18260/1-2--22105

Amy E. Slaton.  "The Tyranny of Outcomes: The Social Origins and Impacts of Educational Standards in American Engineering".  2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition, San Antonio, Texas, 2012, June.  ASEE Conferences, 2012.  https://peer.asee.org/22105 Internet.  19 Jan, 2025

\bibitem{asee_peer_22105}
  Amy E. Slaton.
  "The Tyranny of Outcomes: The Social Origins and Impacts of Educational Standards in American Engineering".
  \emph{2012 ASEE Annual Conference \& Exposition, San Antonio, Texas, 2012, June}.
  ASEE Conferences, 2012.
  https://peer.asee.org/22105 Internet.  19 Jan, 2025

@INPROCEEDINGS{asee_peer_22105
author = "Amy E. Slaton"
title = "The Tyranny of Outcomes: The Social Origins and Impacts of Educational Standards in American Engineering"
booktitle = "2012 ASEE Annual Conference \& Exposition"
year = "2012"
month = "June"
address = "San Antonio, Texas"
publisher = "ASEE Conferences"
note = {https://peer.asee.org/22105}
number = {10.18260/1-2--22105}
}

TY  - CPAPER
AB  -              The Tyranny of Outcomes: This Social Origins and Impacts                 of Educational Standards in American EngineeringAs we leave behind “No Child Left Behind” for new educational policies in the United States,questions about the value of punitive applications of educational standards have gained attention.As a nation, we are actively questioning how best to use systematic assessments of individualstudents, programs, schools, and school systems; “carrots” today seem more inspiring than“sticks” to many concerned about our schools. But few if any observers have considered that bydefinition, all attempts to prescribe outcomes or establish performance standards may discouragecriticality to some degree, constraining inquiry into radically innovative practices or goals (asDaniel Monk has written of political debate). That is, such prescriptions set the terms of ourdebates about education and thus can discourage probing assessments of existing educationalexperiences and their social impacts. What is more, to ensure assessment and enforcement,outcomes-based systems must curtail debate about what needs to be assessed and enforced. Insuch moments, ideas about what counts as legitimate teaching or learning, and who as alegitimate teacher or learner, are profoundly constrained. The consequences for epistemologiesand inclusiveness are potentially severe.This paper considers the nature of outcomes-based credentialing practices in U.S. engineeringeducation to identify ways in which alternative pedagogies and applications of engineering mightbe foreclosed by these “best practices,” however well-intentioned. It focuses on ABETformulations regarding undergraduate engineering since 1980 as a set of epistemic and sociallyregulatory instruments. Analyzing both the purported function and the content of outcomesincluded in ABET documents over the last three decades, the paper shows how ABET hasprojected a formative role for outcomes in curricular development and institutional credibility.In particular, impacts of ABET outcomes-focused practices upon diversity, public participation,and the pursuit of social justice in engineering education (and thus in the profession ofengineering) will be examined. ABET has often stated its commitment to such socially desirableaims. Drawing on the sociology of knowledge and related methods of studying the institutionalconservatism of performance standards, we may recognize the challenges to change inherent inoutcomes-focused education and increase the likelihood of achieving those aims.
AU  - Amy E. Slaton
CY  - San Antonio, Texas
DA  - 2012/06/10
PB  - ASEE Conferences
TI  - The Tyranny of Outcomes: The Social Origins and Impacts of Educational Standards in American Engineering
UR  - https://peer.asee.org/22105
DO  - 10.18260/1-2--22105
ER  -