The first thing I think of when looking at our engineering program is our goal. High school pre-college engineering programs are not there to create engineers. The goal of any high school program should be to develop engineering students. It is the responsibility of colleges and Universities develop engineers. With that goal in mind, it is much easier to create a quality, sustainable program. When I focus on developing engineering students, I am able to navigate through the sea of options, equipment, and vendors all competing for my attention. The foundation of a good engineering student boils down to three skills: 1) team-work, 2) communication, and 3) problem-solving. Everything else is just window dressing. If you want support for this position, read my earlier post on soft skills. So, you are probably wondering what I think needs to be taught. Don't worry, we are still working on engineering aspects. But, I am not worried about them mastering flip-flops or doing finite element analysis in their CADD software. Those are great things to learn, but they do not make a good engineering student. In order to set up students well, I think the program needs to mirror a "typical" college program. Our first course in the 9th grade is a general introduction to engineering and engineering processes. The second course gets into applying math and science to designs. The third year starts our design work. We focus on product design as the vehicle to teach it. Students learn both design and basic business principles around it. The senior year is a capstone project that requires students to apply everything they have learned in a large project. This is a similar sequence to a lot of college programs. My goal is that students feel some familiarity when they step on campus after graduation.
In order to begin, we need students to identify their goals. What do they want to do when they graduate? What do they see themselves doing in 10 years? The reason is not to set out on a locked-in career track. The reason is for learners to understand why they are in these courses. They need to understand what each project and activity provides. Everything we do in our classes has a distinct reason for being. I can't teach every student every single thing they will need. I could spend four years teaching only coding and still not cover all that they might see in college. By setting a goal, learners can determine where they are headed and how each project benefits them. These goals give a good foundation to their portfolio as well. They are able to better articulate where they are in their education and how they are actively working to reach their goals. Throughout the program, I strongly believe that above all, students should master the components of teamwork, communication, and problem-solving. Regardless of what they do after graduation, they will have a strong foundation. Through this, they should also have a strong love of learning. Developing a love of learning and wanting to continue does not mean that we don't have high standards for students. On the contrary. High standards is part of what sets them apart from everyone else. The high standards, supported by a firm foundation create a launch pad for everything else the student does. The technical skills will come in due time. Rushing it does not produce better results. In fact, it does more harm than good. I've seen it over and over again. When a program is centered around teamwork, communication, and problem-solving, anything is possible.
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About me & this blogThis blog is for things related to my class, PL, coaching, or just teaching in general. You can follow me on Twitter @myakSTEM Archives
June 2021
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