Engineering Competitions as Pathways to Development of Professional Engineering Skills

Abstract

In this paper we present preliminary findings from a research project aimed at identifying learning outcomes in informal environments. We focused on engineering competitions which have gained momentum across a range of engineering disciplines. Increasingly, students are participating in design competitions that range anywhere from multi-year activities such as Concrete Canoe and Formula SAE to short term activities such as one day competitions or Hack-a-thons. Although competitions are becoming popular, there is little research on what students learn through their participation in these events. Proponents of competitions argue that these activities provide students the opportunity to apply both technical and professional skills and knowledge to a practical or applied problem and through their participation improve their skills or knowledge, i.e. learn. To empirically examine this issue we conducted a qualitative study in one engineering competition. We examined students' experiences of developing professional skills. The purpose for this study was to understand how students conceptualized professional skills as they engaged in the competition. Findings indicated that professional responsibilities were discussed most often as cognitions, behaviors, and dispositions. We organized these into three broad categories: self-management, task management, and team management, which can be used as a framework for future research. By providing students the opportunity to own the problem and its outcomes, engineering competitions can empower students to think like, act as, and become professional engineers.

Measuring the Impact of Extra-/Co-Curricular Participation on Professional Formation of Engineers

“…The results are consistent with previous research [2], [7], [10][11] about the impact of extra-/cocurricular activities on students' academic achievements and their confidence in their capability to perform an activity -self-efficacy-. Suggesting that engineering students' engagement in engineering extra-/co-curricular activities enhances academic skills reinforcing and strengthening the knowledge they gain through engineering coursework.…”

“…As competition teams gain popularity, some researchers are seeking to understand the impact of including informal learning experiences similar to competition teams on a student's academic and professional development. For example, Bland et al performed a qualitative study examining students' experiences developing professional skills through participation in an engineering competition team [10]. They conducted a series of interviews with students on the team in which they learned that with respect to professional skills, students most frequently discussed their professional and ethical responsibility as engineers but also often mentioned the need for self-management (i.e.…”

Gifted Students’ Perceptions of Gifted Programs: An Inquiry Into Their Academic and Social-Emotional Functioning

“…In fact, middle school students indicated that instructional practices in gifted programs supported and promoted self-regulatory processes such as time management and task management including setting goals and self-monitoring. These aspects of discussions of self-regulation are similar to informal learning opportunities such as engineering competitions with the program presenting opportunities to learn or reinforce the time management and task management skills of self-regulated learning (Bland, Kusano, & Johri, 2016). Overall, both elementary and middle school students-especially middle school students-appreciated teachers' efforts to teach them to become responsible, independent, self-regulated learners.…”

Work in Progress: Are Project Teams Actually Developing Professional Skills?

“…Previous research has focused on professional skills that stem directly from ABET criterion. For instance, studies have used the ABET criteria as a guide to see which outcomes students are practicing on project teams (Bland et al, 2016;Koehn, 2006). While others investigate particular skills such as leadership and ethics that are part of ABET (Burt et al, 2011;Wolfinbarger et al, 2021).…”