Part-time vocational engineering curricula aim to transform experienced higher technicians into engineering managers. This is done by making use of previous experience in working positions and adding training in new situations. Job training is combined with academic training through courses and activities at an academic institution. Describes ways…

Presents a case study of an experienced professor's comments on a design report in a first-year engineering class. Compares these comments with the commenting styles of technical-writing teachers. Finds the comments are highly directive and at odds with the preference for facilitative comments prevailing in composition studies. Notes that…

Explored whether or not the C-test serves as a valid operationalization of the reduced redundancy principle. Investigated the frequency and type of micro- and macro-level cues that English-as-a-foreign-language learners employ to restore the mutilations in the C-test. A C-test comprising five texts was administered concurrently with the Test of…

A computer simulation program for use in the study of fluid mechanics is described. The package is an interactive tool to explore the fluid flow characteristics of a pipe system by manipulating the physical construction of the system. The motivation, software design requirements, and specific details on how its objectives were met are presented.…

Presents results of a survey designed to test the level of development and application of cases in non-business courses such as sciences, mathematics, engineering, health, and technology. Findings support the growing popularity of the case method of teaching and learning outside the business domain. Suggests a framework for establishing win-win…

Describes students' perceptions of a unique learning environment at a large Midwestern high school. Most students reported a positive experience and described the classroom as fun and exciting with real world relevance. However, findings also indicate that several students did not share these views and many students were not successful. (Contains…

Examines the historical mission of the University of Maryland Baltimore County and the success of programs designed to enhance the academic achievement of African-American students, particularly in the sciences and engineering. Concludes that making minority achievement and diversity part of the core values of the institution has been crucial in…

Krishna Subramanyam arranged scientific and technical literature in a circular model in the 1970s. As a pedagogical construct, the circle conceptualizes the processes of producing and consuming information. This article presents the model, the revision, and its application to the information literacy curriculum for undergraduate engineering and…

Santa Clara University's Robotic Systems Laboratory conducts an aggressive robotic development and operations program in which interdisciplinary teams of undergraduate students build and deploy a wide range of robotic systems, ranging from underwater vehicles to spacecraft. These year-long projects expose students to the breadth of and…

The phenomenal growth achieved by the Indian IT industry in the last decade has become a global success story. Fuelled by the thousands of engineering graduate and postgraduate students emerging from the higher technical education system, it is on the verge of significant change. This paper examines the issues facing the Indian IT industry and…

This paper reviews the historical and current response of the United States to threats to its world leadership in scientific endeavors, with particular attention to the National Defense Education Act of 1958. The current status of the United States in mathematics, science, and engineering education is reviewed with respect to K-12 student…

Women and underrepresented minorities are receiving the doctorate in record numbers these days. For example, women got 45 percent and minorities 19 percent of the 39,955 doctoral degrees awarded in 2000, and both figures were all-time highs. So it comes as something of a surprise to learn that senior academic women in science and engineering are…

The countries that signed the Bologna Declaration need also to modify their engineering programmes accordingly. In Hungary some modifications are necessary independently of the Bologna Declaration. The number of students has increased by a factor of three during the past decade without an increase in the number of staff. The consequence is…

The evolution of Chilean assessment of higher education institutions is described and analysed. Focus is put on a systemic description of assessment subjects, so that different evaluation approaches can be compared. This paper stresses the relevance of the quality assurance approach, which has been taken as a model for the now oncoming…

Rapidly changing engineering designs and business scenarios make it essential for engineers and technical personnel to be trained to be effective team players and project managers. This paper reports the experiences gained in developing and implementing a workshop to train engineers at a steel manufacturing plant. The objective of the workshop was…