Böcker av John Heywood

All educators bring to their work preconceived ideas of what the curriculum should be and how students learn. Seldom are they thought through. Since without an adequate philosophical base it is difficult to bring about desirable changes in policy and practice, it is necessary that educators have defensible philosophies of engineering education. This point is illustrated by recent debates on educational outcomes which can be analysed in terms of competing curriculum ideologies. While these ideologies inform the development of a philosophy of engineering education they do so in light of a philosophy of engineering for such a philosophy focuses on what engineering is, and in particular how it differs from science. This is addressed in this study through consideration of the differences in the modes of abstraction required for the pursuit of science on the one hand, and the pursuit of engineering design, on the other hand. It is shown that a philosophy of engineering is not a philosophy of science or a philosophy of engineering education, but it is from a philosophy of engineering that a philosophy of engineering education is drawn. Uncertainty is shown to be a key characteristic of engineering practice. A way of formulating a philosophy of engineering is to consider it through the classical prism that splits the subject into five divisions, namely epistemology, metaphysics, logic, ethics aesthetics. Additionally, "e;behaviour"e; also characterizes the practice of engineering.

The intention of this book is to demonstrate that curriculum design is a profoundly philosophical exercise that stems from perceptions of the mission of higher education. Since the curriculum is the formal mechanism through which intended aims are achieved, philosophy has a profound role to play in the determination of aims. It is argued that the curriculum is far more than a list of subjects and syllabi, or that it is the addition, and subtraction, of items from a syllabus, or whether this subject should be added and that subject taken away. This book explores how curricular aims and objectives are developed by re-examining the curriculum of higher education and how it is structured in the light of its increasing costs, rapidly changing technology, and the utilitarian philosophy that currently governs the direction of higher education. It is concluded that higher education should be a preparation for and continuing support for life and work, a consequence of which is that it has to equip graduates with skill in independent learning (and its planning), and reflective practice. A transdisciplinary curriculum with technology at its core is deduced that serves the four realities of the person, the job, technology, and society.

Each one of us has views about education, how discipline should function, how individuals learn, how they should be motivated, what intelligence is, and the structures (content and subjects) of the curriculum. Perhaps the most important beliefs that (beginning) teachers bring with them are their notions about what constitutes "e;good teaching"e;. The scholarship of teaching requires that (beginning) teachers should examine (evaluate) these views in the light of knowledge currently available about the curriculum and instruction, and decide their future actions on the basis of that analysis. Such evaluations are best undertaken when classrooms are treated as laboratories of inquiry (research) where teachers establish what works best for them.Two instructor centred and two learner centred philosophies of knowledge, curriculum and instruction are used to discern the fundamental (basic) questions that engineering educators should answer in respect of their own beliefs and practice. They point to a series of classroom activities that will enable them to challenge their own beliefs, and at the same time affirm, develop, or change their philosophies of knowledge, curriculum and instruction.

While in many university courses attention is given to the human side, as opposed to the technical side of engineering, it is by and large an afterthought. Engineering is, however, a technical, social, and personal activity. Several studies show that engineering is a community activity of professionals in which communication is central to the engineering task. Increasingly, technology impacts everyone in society. Acting as a professional community, engineers have an awesome power to influence society but they can only act for the common good if they understand the nature of our society. To achieve such understanding they have to understand themselves. This book is about understanding ourselves in order to understand others, and understanding others in order to understand ourselves in the context of engineering and the society it serves. To achieve this understanding this book takes the reader on 12 intellectual journeys that frame the big questions confronting the engineering professions.

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