Engineering a professional community of practice for graduate students in engineering education

Abstract

This paper examines the development of a professional community of practice among graduate students and faculty in the nation's first graduate program in engineering education. A cohort of eleven graduate students and four faculty were interviewed over the course of one year. Additional data sources included direct observations and review of supporting documents. Data were analyzed using grounded theory, narrative inquiry, and cross-case analysis. Results from this study: 1) provide a conceptual and structural framework for other engineering educators; 2) articulate common language, methods, and models for engineering education; and 3) offer practical solutions in developing, recruiting, and retaining talent in the field of engineering education.

Conceptual Model of Successful Educational online Community of Practice for Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

“…The main goals of the program are to help each student to generate new knowledge, correctly apply their knowledge in problem solving, and to transform the new understandings through active and continued participation in the profession. The results showed that there is a deep connection between identity and participation in a professional community of practice [3].…”

Engineering Identity Implications on the Retention of Black Women in the Engineering Industry

“…Identity theory has been utilized to better understand students' choice to pursue fields in the STEM profession 18 , why they stay engaged through undergraduate and graduate programs 19,20 , as well as understanding the complexities of identity in the engineering workplace 7 . In science, identity theory has provided insight in to how minority women have redefined recognition in order to remain engaged and successful in a profession that has not been welcoming, historically 16 .…”

The Effect Of International Diversity On Graduate Engineering Education: A Literature Review

“…Another topic featured in a large amount of engineering specific literature on graduate education is preparing engineering graduate students for their future careers (faculty versus industry) [39][40][41][42][43] or for positions they may hold during graduate school (teaching versus research assistant) [44][45][46][47][48][49] .…”