Page 150 - Educating the Engineer of 2020: Adapting Engineering Education to the New Century

Educating the Engineer of 2020: Adapting Engineering Education to the New Century
http://www.nap.edu/catalog/11338.html

PREPARATION FOR THE PROFESSIONS PROGRAM 133

roles, and responsibilities of the profession, through which
the integrated practice of all dimensions of the profession
and the fundamental purposes of the profession are intro-
duced. This apprenticeship may be integrated into laboratory
or design settings, taught in stand-alone classes, or not taught
explicitly at all.

These aspects of professional apprenticeship reflect different em-
phases in all professional education and are deeply rooted in the history
and organization of professional schools. By examining these appren-
ticeships, we can characterize common issues across fields, as well as
distinct issues in each field. The metaphor of a three-fold apprentice-
ship also forms a basis for a normative analysis, a lens through which to
evaluate the adequacy of preparation for professional work. Based on
this framework, the study team was able to describe the tensions and
shortfalls, as well as the strengths, of professional education in each
field.
Assessment of student learning has emerged as a salient area in each
field we investigated so far and is closely linked to the pedagogical theme
of basic practices of teaching and learning. Assessment that helps stu-
dents both master subject matter and become more aware of their ca-
pacities can be a key contributor in professional education to the forma-
tion of competent practitioners. Assessment includes ongoing informal
feedback on performance, as well as formal assessments. Despite its im-
portance, however, assessment is a troublesome issue in all three of the
fields in Phase I and is emerging as a central concern for the professions
in the Phase II studies. Coaching and continuous, informative feedback
are critical to an effective apprenticeship, so assessment practices give
specific content to aspects of the apprenticeship framework and provide
a basis for making comparisons across fields.

THE STUDY OF ENGINEERING EDUCATION
In the first stage of the engineering study (2000–2001), we took a
“big picture” approach to answering questions about teaching and learn-
ing practices in engineering education in the United States. We reviewed
data from a national survey and ABET self-studies from 40 engineering
schools (100 programs) to select seven schools to look at in greater de-
tail through site visits. The selected schools are located in all regions of

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