• Journal of Engineering Education Research
• /
• v.19 no.4
• /
• pp.3-13
• /
• 2016

The purpose of this study was to investigate engineering professors' perceptions on the key competencies for engineering students (i.e. creativity, problem solving, designing, field application, etc.) and their instructional efforts to promote the competencies. The guiding research questions included 1) to what extent engineering professors perceived the key competencies as the important qualification that engineering students should obtain in college, 2) to what extent the professors put in a great deal of effort to promote such competencies in their teaching, and 3) how their perceptions on the key competencies correlated with their instructional practice. Two hundred fifteen engineering professors affiliated to diverse fields voluntarily participated in the study and filled out 5 point-Likert scale survey items. In results, despite of some range of variation on their perceptions according to the fields, most of the engineering professors highly valued the four key competencies. However, compared to the perceptions, engineering professors in some engineering fields relatively less focused on promoting the competencies in their teaching practice.

• Journal of Engineering Education Research
• /
• v.19 no.3
• /
• pp.23-34
• /
• 2016

Teaching orientations represent teachers' general way of conceptualizing their teaching. The orientations are regarded as a very important factor in developing teachers' pedagogical content knowledge because they often guide their instructional decisions such as the selection of contents and teaching strategies, the use of curricula materials, and the evaluation of learning. Thus, understanding teachers' orientations can provide meaningful suggestions to understand their instructional approaches and furthermore to enhance the quality of engineering education in college. The research question for this present study was what kinds of teaching orientations engineering professors possessed in teaching engineering courses and how the orientations were represented in their teaching. Six engineering professors, particularly interested in instructional approaches, participated in the research. The data sources included in-depth interviews with individual professors, classroom observations with field notes, and related documents. In results, four teaching orientations toward engineering courses were identified: 1) expert knowledge in engineering, 2) engineering practice, 3) social practice, and 4) interdisciplinary design. Individual professors had between one to three different teaching orientations. Even though the professors had similar orientations but their instructional strategies somewhat varied based on the disciplines.

• Journal of Engineering Education Research
• /
• v.14 no.1
• /
• pp.46-54
• /
• 2011

The present study was carried out to investigate gender-related attitudes of professors in engineering as a socio-environmental factor for career barriers of female engineering students. For this purpose, 220 professors, 169 in engineering and 51 in non-engineering, completed questionnaires that evaluated gender-related knowledge, behavior, and career expectations. Our results showed that both engineering and non-engineering professors showed a low level of knowledge of gender differences. Both groups selected soft skills such as leadership, initiative and self efficacy as lacking in female students, rather than their academic skills. Professors in engineering showed higher expectations of female students pursuing a career in engineering but lower expectations for working on core projects and taking leadership at the workplace than the professors in non-engineering. The level of gender-sensitivity related to teaching was lower for professors in engineering than those in non-engineering, although professors in engineering evaluated their gender sensitivity higher than the evaluation of their female students. In addition, professors in engineering opted less for developing programs for female student career development in engineering than professors in non-engineering, and they showed a low interest level in participating in such programs. This study showed that the efforts to make engineering professors aware of the characteristics of female students should precede the development of education programs.

• Journal of Engineering Education Research
• /
• v.22 no.1
• /
• pp.3-15
• /
• 2019

In this study, we analyzed professors' performance of teaching in college of science and engineering from the perspective of the CHAT. Two professors volunteered to participate in this study. Their syllabi were collected before the lectures, and their lectures were observed and videotaped. Semi-structured interviews were conducted before and after their lectures. The CHAT components were classified into 'subjects', 'objects', 'rules', 'communities', 'division of labor', and 'tools'. We extracted the content of six CHAT components from the data and constructed the analysis framework based on the extracted contents. The analyses of the results revealed that both professors had difficulties due to the contradictions among the components of subject, object, rules, and community in the activity system. Both professors used various strategies to relieve the contradiction related to students' ability, such as inviting students to participate in their lecture. However the extent of providing opportunities to students to participate was different between two professors. Meanwhile, both professors preferred to continue their own strategies, because they observed positive changes in students' learning. In other words, the success experiences of two professors influenced their performances of teaching. We discussed some suggestions to improve the quality of the lecture in the college of science and engineering.

• Journal of Engineering Education Research
• /
• v.23 no.6
• /
• pp.60-67
• /
• 2020

This study was conducted to understand the experiences of engineering college professors teaching classes online due to COVID-19. Instructional strategies were proposed based on these results. This study qualitatively analyzed interviews of four engineering college professors who switched from teaching classes offline to teaching them online in the first semester of 2020. The results showed that the professors had difficulties in creating video content, interacting with students, and conducting online assessments. The results also showed that the professors had difficulties in switching to online teaching. This study was significant in that it produced empirical data about online teaching based on the experiences of engineering college professors teaching classes online.

• Journal of Engineering Education Research
• /
• v.24 no.2
• /
• pp.20-28
• /
• 2021

In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic has brought dramatic changes in the field of engineering education. Contrary to the traditional engineering education emphasis on content-oriented, design-based, hands-on, experimental, and field experience, most of engineering classes in 2020 had to be undertaken remotely online. However, it has not been explored how professors and students perceive about such a shift in engineering education. The aim of the current study was to investigate the perceptions of professors and students on online classes in engineering colleges during spring Semester 2020. Questionnaire data were collected from 100 professors and 4,152 students in the college of engineering. The results of this study were as following: Students were less satisfied with the online classes than professors. The online lecture method that students were most satisfied with was the recorded lecture. This is likely due to the fact that the recorded lectures can be repeated multiple times anytime, anywhere. Moreover, the experimental classes, which conventionally has more of an emphasis on the hands-on experience, also had to be conducted remotely, showing even lower satisfaction among students. Most of professors reported that the average hours they spent on preparing for online lecture increased compared to face-to-face class. Both professors and students preferred in-person exam as a desirable method of end-of-semester assessment for grading. The results of the current study have important implications for the improvement of online course environments. It is important for professors to design a structured class suitable for online education and understand the challenges students encounter during online classes. Also, professors should communicate more openly about their expectations and rubrics for class goals and assignments. Schools also needs to make effort to provide the support for the internet environment of students.

• Journal of Engineering Education Research
• /
• v.12 no.4
• /
• pp.93-101
• /
• 2009

Many engineering professors are forced to execute ABEEK activities. Engineering professors are evaluated by their educational, research and service activities, but are mainly by their research papers published in professional journals. The gap between the duties and the evaluation criteria exists among engineering professors. This paper deals with the possible ways of including the ABEEK activities in the engineering professor evaluation system. Among the five ways suggested for a simple survey, tenured professors prefer to reduce the lecture time but junior professors prefer to reduce the research burden for the benefit from executing ABEEK activities. Based on logical reasoning and the preference among the surveyed professors, ABEEK related activities may be included in the educational part for the professor evaluation system before the ABEEK system is matured. However, ABEEK related activities have to be converted to the duties of engineering professors in the long run as in the US universities.

• Journal of Technology Innovation
• /
• v.5 no.1
• /
• pp.44-66
• /
• 1997

This study is a critical assessment of research productivity through publication among scientists and engineers. Through the analysis of the 223 mail questionnaires collected from professors of mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, chemistry and physics, this study obtains the particular determinants of publication productivity at the science and engineering schools in Korea. The data are analyzed using correlation, ANOVA, multiple regression analysis and path analysis. The result shows that early research productivity and the number of doctoral students are very important to publish good research articles. Also the qualities of professors' Ph.D. institution and the quality of employing university are critical influencing factors to publication productivity.

• Journal of Engineering Education Research
• /
• v.26 no.3
• /
• pp.3-11
• /
• 2023

This study introduces the peer class consulting program at K-Institute of Technology aimed at improving class quality through the diagnosis of professors' teaching methods, analysis of the pros and cons, and assessment of their class management ability. To carry out the program, 641 students taking classes with the professors were surveyed on their satisfaction and learning motivation levels. The class composition was analyzed by monitoring the professor's class. The effect of the consulting was verified by comparing students' class satisfaction scores before and after consulting. Additionally, 29 professors subject to the consulting were surveyed on their satisfaction with the program. According to the results, professors subject to the consulting recognized that the teaching methods and class management strategies presented through the consulting effectively improved student satisfaction and motivation and provided an opportunity to gain confidence through the class. Furthermore, professors subject to the consulting were able to acquire knowledge, skills, and attitudes related to class management, and they perceived the program positively, stating that it allowed them to quickly adapt to the university education environment through cooperative communication with senior professors serving as consultants.

• Journal of Engineering Education Research
• /
• v.26 no.1
• /
• pp.45-57
• /
• 2023

The aim of this paper is to find directions for improving creativity education in a research-oriented college of engineering. As a method, we interviewed 17 professors and 7 students from a research-oriented college of engineering in Seoul, South Korea and learned about their experiences related to creativity education. As a result, we were able to identify 6 topics on which the interviewees' opinions vary. We found that most professors we interviewed did not think creativity was important in their classrooms as they thought passing on engineering knowledge was more important in foundational engineering education, and creativity is hard to define. However, their evaluation method in class showed that they valued creativity, and were trying to teach creativity with little success. Also, while the professors thought they needed more communication with the students to improve creativity education, the students thought they needed more autonomy. In consideration of our findings, we proposed 4 directions for improving creativity education in a research-oriented college of engineering. First, shift perspective on the foundational education for engineering. Second, connect basic curriculum and extracurricular activities. Third, actively connect basic curriculum with the industry. Finally, provide appropriate facilities that enable different types of interactions between professors and students.