An Engineering Problem 1

A first step is to articulate a clear statement of the problem 2

An Engineering Problem A first step is to articulate a clear statement of the problem Example How would we design a class to best meet engineering students’ needs? 3

An Engineering Problem An assertion: The student is the customer for the class 4

An Engineering Problem An assertion: The student is the customer for the class Employers, parents, faculty, and others are stakeholders 5

An Engineering Problem A second step is to gather relevant information. 6

An Engineering Problem A second step is to gather relevant information. What are the customer needs? 7

An Engineering Problem A second step is to gather relevant information. What are the customer needs? What are the students’ career trajectories? 8

Motivation

An Engineering Problem A third step is to analyze the information that has been collected 10

Motivation

An Engineering Problem Knowledge Bases Underlying Sciences Underlying Math Mechanics of Solids Mechanical Behavior of Materials System Dynamics Dynamics Fluid Mechanics Thermodynamics Heat Transfer Engineering Design Process Manufacturing 14

An Engineering Problem Frequency of Use 1.Hardly ever - a few times a year 2.Occasionally - at least once a month 3.Regularly - at least weekly 4.Frequently - on most days 5.Pervasively - for most everything I do 15

An Engineering Problem Frequency of Use 0.Never 1.Hardly ever - a few times a year 2.Occasionally - at least once a month 3.Regularly - at least weekly 4.Frequently - on most days 5.Pervasively - for most everything I do 16

An Engineering Problem Skills Engineering Reasoning and Problem Solving Experimentation and Knowledge Discovery System Thinking Personal Skills and Attributes Professional Skills and Attributes Independent Thinking Teamwork Communications External and Societal Context Enterprise and Business Context Market Context Developing an Idea Designing Testing 17

Mean frequency of use

An Engineering Problem How can we design a class to best meet students’ needs? 19

An Engineering Problem How can we design a class to best meet students’ needs? Look more deeply into the data 20

Mean frequency of use

Personal Skills and Attributes Initiative and Willingness to Take Risks Perseverance and Flexibility Creative Thinking Critical Thinking Awareness of one’s Personal Knowledge, Skills, and Attitudes Time and Resource Management 22

Personal Skills and Attributes Initiative and Willingness to Take Risks Perseverance and Flexibility Creative Thinking Critical Thinking Awareness of one’s Personal Knowledge, Skills, and Attitudes Time and Resource Management 23

Independent Thinking Skills in Working Independently Skills in Setting Project Goals Ability to Extract and Evaluate Relevant Knowledge from Various Sources Confidence in Own Skills and Abilities 24

Communication Written Communication Electronic/Multimedia Communication Graphical Communication Oral Presentation Inter-Personal Communications Communication of Information to Those Outside the Field 25

Teamwork Goal Setting Scheduling Leadership Effective Teamwork 26

Professional Skills and Attitudes Professional Ethics Integrity Responsibility and Accountability Professional Behavior Proactively Planning for One’s Career Continuous Learning 27

Engineering Reasoning and Problem Solving Problem Identification and Formulation Modeling Estimation and Quantitative Analysis Analysis With Uncertainty Understanding Causal Relationships 28

An Engineering Problem We will help you to learn these important skills in the context of solving an engineering problem that is important to Harvard and to the world 29

An Engineering Problem We will help you to learn these important skills in the context of solving an engineering problem that is important to Harvard and to the world We’ll begin by gathering relevant information 30