Group 1 − Philosophy and Assessment Group 1 − Philosophy and Assessment. What to do when you don’t know what to do? Answer:  In industry a "student" is completing novel projects, and he or she needs to "know what to do when he or she doesn't know what to do."  If so, then there may be disjunctures between how students are assessed at the university and what they do in practice.  Such disjunctures may lead to re-examining the purposes of assessment of student performance in the larger context of the purposes of engineering education.  Are there guiding philosophical principles in engineering education that might apply to assessment practice? Which may be locally derived?

Group 2 − What is the role of the engineer? Question: What is the role of the engineer in society? What is the impact of engineering education on student values and their understanding of their role in society? Philosophy of engineering education should affect a student’s value system. Affects: Content, Learning, Innovation

Group 3 − What are the ontological and epistemological questions that are important in philosophy of engineering education? Visible Artifacts Behaviors theories in use Ontology/ Epistemology Values and beliefs Underlying assumptions: e.g.: Positivist vs. Constructivist data-based “clean” experiment design knowledge transfer vs. knowledge creation

Group 4 − Could a philosophy of engineering education release the tension between content and practice?

Group 5 − How can we communicate about the philosophy of engineering education with potentially resistive peers? We have a better chance of resolving conflict about achieving outcomes by being more explicit about what philosophies are. The philosophies need to address the skills and knowledge our students will need in the workplace (outcomes). Thus, the philosophies provide a backbone to support arguments for using certain techniques (practice). So how might this be convincing? Perhaps we need a powerful keynote lecture or document to crystallize the importance and/or value of this philosophy: perhaps through a moving story that all can relate to.

Group 6 − What is taken for granted in the language we use? Who decides? Who is left out? Should we be discussing philosophies of engineering education?

Group 7 − What is philosophy of engineering education Group 7 − What is philosophy of engineering education? How is it related to philosophy of science? How is engineering different?

Group 8 − Is the philosophy of engineering education different from the philosophy of education? Is science education different from engineering education?