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The Emergence of Engineering Education Research as an Internationally Connected Field of Inquiry
Author(s) -
Borrego Maura,
Bernhard Jonte
Publication year - 2011
Publication title -
journal of engineering education
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 3.896
H-Index - 108
eISSN - 2168-9830
pISSN - 1069-4730
DOI - 10.1002/j.2168-9830.2011.tb00003.x
Subject(s) - discipline , salient , internationalization , legitimacy , sociology , engineering ethics , pedagogy , field (mathematics) , diversity (politics) , engineering education , political science , sustainability , public relations , engineering , social science , law , ecology , mathematics , politics , pure mathematics , economics , biology , microeconomics
B ackground In recent years, engineering education research (EER) has emerged as an internationally connected field of inquiry through the establishment of EER conferences, interest groups within engineering education societies, Ph.D. programs, and departments and centers at universities. Improving the preparation and training of engineers through EER is critical to solving major engineering challenges in sustainability, climate change, civil infrastructure, energy, and public health. P urpose The purpose of this article is twofold: (1) to introduce EER as a field of inquiry, and (2) to describe the U.S. and Northern and Central European approaches to EER as two examples of the diversity of approaches. S cope /M ethod The article is organized around a framework from the European didaktik tradition, which focuses on answering the w‐questions of education. The major sections describe what, why, to what end, where, who, and how EER is conducted. C onclusion Northern and Central European educational approaches focus on authentic, complex problems, while U.S. approaches emphasize empirical evidence. Additionally, disciplinary boundaries and legitimacy are more salient issues in the U.S., while the Northern and Central European Bildung philosophy integrates across disciplines toward development of the whole person. Understanding and valuing complementary perspectives is critical to growth and internationalization of EER.