Spatial thinking is important for success in engineering. However, little is known about "how" students learn and apply spatial skills, particularly in kindergarten to Grade 12 engineering learning. The present study investigated the role of spatial thinking in engineering learning at a middle school summer camp. Participants were 26…

The purpose of this research was to investigate the extent of the relationship between select technology and science preparation experiences of United States (US) technology and engineering (T&E) teachers and their teaching of science content and practices. Utilizing a fully integrated mixed methods design (Teddlie and Tashakkori in "Res…

The flipped-classroom approach has gained increasing popularity and interest in engineering education. The purpose of this study was to investigate (a) student perspectives on the flipped-classroom approach in a transportation-engineering course and (b) how students used the in-class time dedicated to collaborative problem solving. To this end,…

The use of problem-based learning (PBL) is gaining attention in the engineering classroom as a way to help students synthesize foundational knowledge and to better prepare students for practice. In this work, we study the discourse interactions between 27 student teams and two instructors in an engineering PBL environment to analyze how…

Engineering Graphics and Design (EGD) is a university course that teaches a medium of communication in the form of drawings. This study was undertaken to investigate factors associated with the difficulties experienced by student teachers in the sectional drawing component of the EGD course. Purposive sampling was used to select 40 students…

The Faculties of Engineering Sciences at Universidad Católica del Norte in Chile regard teacher training as a necessary tool for its academics' professional development and as a fundamental way to improve their teaching quality. The Teaching Unit for Innovation in Engineering (UIDIN) has developed a new curriculum and training programme which…

This study used a systemic perspective to examine a five-component experiential process of perceptual and developmental growth, and transfer-to-teaching. Nineteen secondary math and science teachers participated in a year-long, engineering immersion and support experience, with university faculty mentors. Teachers identified critical shifts in…

STEM, the integration of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics is increasingly being promoted in elementary education. However, elementary educators are largely untrained in the 21st century skills of computing (a subset of technology) and engineering. The purpose of this study was to better understand elementary teachers'…

STEM, the integration of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics is increasingly being promoted in elementary education. However, elementary educators are largely untrained in the 21st century skills of computing (a subset of technology) and engineering. The purpose of this study was to better understand elementary teachers'…

This paper begins with the argument that within modern-day society, engineering has shifted from being the scientific and technical mainstay of industrial, and more recently digital change to become the most vital driver of future advancement. In order to meet the inevitable challenges resulting from this role, the nature of engineering education…

This article presents the design and evaluation of an intensive presentations course for aeronautical engineering students based on cyclic video recordings. The target group of this course in English for specific purposes (ESP) were undergraduate final-year students who needed to improve their presentation and foreign language skills to prepare…

With the recent release of the "Next Generation Science Standards" (NGSS) (NGSS Lead States, 2014b) science educators were expected to teach engineering content and practices within their curricula. However, technology and engineering (T&E) educators have been expected to teach content and practices from engineering and other…

In the 2013-2014 school year, we implemented the "flipped classroom" as part of an initiative to drive active learning, student engagement and enhanced learning in our school. The flipped courses consisted of freshman through senior engineering classes in introductory programming, statics/mechanics, mechanical design, bio-thermodynamics,…

This article presents an innovative adaptation of the case method to teaching English for specific academic purposes. Widespread in its traditional form in various content disciplines, the case method bears the potential for truly student-centred language instruction. The current application transforms learners from case analysts to case authors…

Background: The motivation for this work is built upon the premise that there is a need for research-based materials for design-based science instruction. In this paper, a small portion of our work investigating the impact of a LEGO[TM] engineering unit on fourth grade students' preconceptions and understanding of animals is presented. Purpose:…