CeTUSS

CeTUSS 2008

Nationellt Centrum för TeknikUtbildning i Studenternas Sammanhang

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National Center for Contextually Relevant Student Learning 

• Mats Daniels
• Anders Berglund
• Arnold Pears

CeTUSS 2004-2010

• Why CeTUSS?

Engineering in decline!

CeTUSS 2004-2010

CeTUSS acts to align technology education with the needs of students and society and thus increase both student motivation and participation with a clear aim to improve learning

Methods: Promoting learning environments that are 

• personally meaningful,
• socially relevant,
• interdisciplinary, and
• based in collaboration (local and international).

CeTUSS 2004-2010

Exemplify the creation of meaningful contexts for students learning technology

• Between subjects / applications of technology
• Societal aspects
• Encourage students to learn together

Results

• Make technology studies fun and meaningful
• Better learning
• Increased motivation
• Widening the student recruitment base

CeTUSS 2004-2010

Ultimate Goal

• Build community
• Enhance capacity for scholarship in Eng. Education in Sweden
• Conduct a joint project on a National scale

CeTUSS 2004-2010

Mats Daniels

CeTUSS Director

Senior Lecturer, Uppsala University

Director of Undergraduate Studies

Chair IEEE Nordic Education Society chapter

Future ITiCSE site coordinator for ACM

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Currently

Professor in Computing Education (Uppsala)

Research Programme Director - Computing Education (Uppsala)

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CeTUSS 2004-2010

Arnold Pears

CeTUSS Director

Senior Lecturer: Uppsala University

- Boards of Studies Tech. and Nat. Sci.

- Uppsala Academic Senate

Engineering and Computing Education focusing on scholarly teaching approaches.

Professional

- IEEE FIE Steering Committee

- Koli Calling Conference Chair 2008

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Currently

Chair of the Department of Learning in Engineering Sciences, KTH.

Professor in Computing Education (Uppsala)

Professor in Technical and Science Education (KTH)

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CeTUSS 2004-2010

Anders Berglund

CeTUSS Director

Senior lecturer, Uppsala University

Director of the Master Programme in Computer Science

International Coordinator

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Researcher in Computing Education

CeTUSS 2004-2010

• CeTUSS  started 2004

Activities 2004-2009:

• 7 Workshops
• 3 Courses
• 2005 Caroline Baillie
• 2006/2007 Stepping Stones
• 2008 Blekinge Tekniska Högskola
• Building Community
• Encouraging local conferences
• Facilitating exchange on local and international level
• Local networks (E.g. YlNät in Uppsala) 

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CeTUSS 2004-2010

• The Courses

CeTUSS 2004-2010

The Learning Experience: Student Perspectives

• Course Leader: Caroline Baillie, Queens Univ., Ontario, Canada
• Participants from KTH, Uppsala, Gothenburg, Mälardalens Högskola, Högskolen i Gävle etc.
• 2 day course of activities, lectures, group exercises and discussions.

CeTUSS 2004-2010

Stepping Stones

• Research structure
• Survey, adapted from PiE
• Concept Map of engineering terms
• Critical Incident Interview
• Photo Elicitation Exercise

• Research Leaders: Robin Adams (Purdue) and Sally Fincher (U. Kent).
• Theory and framing retreat (Johannesberg Castle, Sweden)
• Joint project, 13 universities across Sweden
• Data analysis workshops and retreat (Wiik Castle, Uppsala, Sweden).

CeTUSS 2004-2010

Enhancing Teaching in Computer Science

• Course tailored to the needs of a department at Blekinge Technical University
• University course counted towards requirement for pedagogical education
• Run February 2008 - March 2009
• Seminars, lectures, individual projects, and dissemination

CeTUSS 2004-2010

• The Workshops

CeTUSS 2004-2010

Workshop series (1)

• Collaboration in Engineering Education 
• December 6-7, 2004
• Teaching and Assessing Engineers
• April 27-28, 2005
• Cross-Disciplinarity in Engineering Education
• December 5-6, 2005
• Perspectives on use of Technology in Engineering Education
• December 4-5, 2006 

CeTUSS 2004-2010

Workshop series (2)

• Disseminating Scholarly Teaching Practice and Work Life Related Skills and Engineering Education 
• October 18-19, 2007
• Engineering Education: Identity & Relevance
• June 16-17, 2008
• Engineering Education: Reformation
• September 30 - October 1, 2008

CeTUSS 2004-2010

• Research Capacity Building

CeTUSS 2004-2010

Stepping Stones:

Data Demographics

CeTUSS 2004-2010

Survey

• Adapted from Persistence in Engineering survey (Academic Pathways Survey)‏
• Original instrument extensively validated
• Source http://www.engr.washington.edu/caee/

CeTUSS 2004-2010

Concept Map

• Arrange and relate engineering terms to one another
• Captured as “explanograms” to preserve the sequence of development

CeTUSS 2004-2010

Critical Incident

Q1 In a few words, what would you say real engineering is?

Q2 Can you give me some examples of engineering in the world? (If the participant asks “what is in the world” encourage them to interpret it as they see fit.)

ELICITING CRITICAL INCIDENT

Q3 Can you think of an engineering experience you have had that you particularly enjoyed? Or an experience that you felt represented your ideas of engineering? We are interested in something that actually happened to you.

• a. Can you give a brief overview of the experience?
• b. What did that experience involve? (Questions i-v are optional prompts)
• i) Scale: was it a big thing? Or a more private, “aha” moment?
• ii) Setting: where did this happen? Was it at home, or in school, or somewhere else?
• iii) Circumstances: was this one in a sequence of things, or a one-off? Were they doing something normal, or unusual?
• iv) Client: was it when you were involved in an engineering experience yourself? If so, whom were you working for?
• v) Groups involved: were you working with others at the time? Were you in a team? Were you working with other teams?
• c. What is it about that experience that summarises “engineering”?
• d. Why do you think this particular experience came to mind? Why was it important?

CeTUSS 2004-2010

Photo Elicitation

• Collected reactions to three images
• Association of image with eng.
• After discussing image “what is eng.?”
• Have perceptions changed over time?
• Specific time/issue that challenged view of eng.

CeTUSS 2004-2010

Image A

CeTUSS 2004-2010

Image B

CeTUSS 2004-2010

Image C

CeTUSS 2004-2010

Studies conducted

CeTUSS 2004-2010

Stepping Stones Results

Students' experience of engineering in terms of:

• education, characteristics and goals
• motivations
• perceptions

and much more in the report

http://www.it.uu.se/research/publications/reports/2007-018/2007-018.pdf

CeTUSS 2004-2010

Attitude to persistence

CeTUSS 2004-2010

Self assessment of competence

CeTUSS 2004-2010

Exposure to Engineering

CeTUSS 2004-2010

Perceptions of skill desirability

CeTUSS 2004-2010

What is engineering about?

CeTUSS 2004-2010

What do engineers do?

CeTUSS 2004-2010

A Concept Map

CeTUSS 2004-2010

Concept Map Analysis

CeTUSS 2004-2010

Gender differences?

• N= 521, Male=383, Female=108
• Females identify parental expectations and job prospects as strong motivators.
• Males rate importance of good communication skills slightly more highly than females.
• No significant difference on statement
• ”Technology plays an important role in society”

CeTUSS 2004-2010

Stepping Stones Outcome

• The National Study explored -
• Student experiences of engineering and
• Concept map analysis of central terms
• Gender and engineering
• Full report evailable at
• http://www.it.uu.se/research/publications/reports/2007-018

CeTUSS 2004-2010

Final Conclusions

• A programme from 2004-2009
• More than 200 academics participated
• Series of Workshops
• Series of Courses with more than 20 universities represented
• Lasting community - even today people reminisce on their participation.

CeTUSS 2004-2010