Student Assessment and Engineering Education

Speaker:
Gisele Ragusa, Ph.D.
Associate Professor,
University of Southern California,
Rossier School of EducationAbstract:Research in engineering education has received increased attention from the National Science Foundation and other governmental agencies in the past three years. Academic rigor, powerful pedagogy and attention to outcome-based student assessment have been on the forefront of agencies and scientific research funding sources connected to engineering education. Both the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the Accreditation Board of Engineering and Technology (ABET) agree that student assessment must be tied to outcome-based curriculum that includes career-based application. Accordingly, the NSF has established numerous engineering education competitions for universities including Engineering Education Programs (EEP), Nanotechnology Undergraduate in Engineering programs (NUE), Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU), Research Experience For Teachers, (RET) Course, Curriculum, and Laboratory Improvement programs (CCLI), and Engineering Education Centers (EEC). These funding initiatives provided opportunities for schools of engineering and schools of education to collaborate on building powerful educational programs with quantifiable outcomes in engineering education. This presentation provides a overview of relevant ways of planning and quantitatively assessing student learning in engineering education. Efforts will be made to connect educational psychology principles with engineering education in the presentation and to tie these principles to ABET accreditation. Assessment tools and planning mechanisms will be discussed. Opportunities for open dialogue about engineering education and associated NSF fundable research will be provided.

Location: Kaprielian Hall (KAP) - reilian Hall 209

Audiences: Everyone Is Invited

Contact: Evangeline Reyes