Grand Challenges for Engineering: Imperatives, Prospects, and Priorities: Summary of a Forum by National Academy of Engineering

Author:National Academy of Engineering [National Academy of Engineering]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Engineering and Technology: Policy, Reviews and Evaluations
Publisher: The National Academies Press
Published: 2016-04-22T00:00:00+00:00

Education, the problems the Grand Challenges address, and the role of the US National Academy of Engineering were the topics that dominated the discussion among the presenters and participants in the second half of the forum.

PREPARING YOUNG PEOPLE TO SOLVE

THE GRAND CHALLENGES

The Grand Challenges can serve as an organizing principle and motivating force at all levels of education. As Dan Mote said, “You can’t start early enough. That is clearly a message for us. It’s all about connection and the excitement of youth.”

Building on El-Baz’s idea of a children’s book for each of the Grand Challenges, Georges Belfort of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute suggested producing a movie that teaches young students what engineering is and how people can create and build things. Andy Jackson of the University of Pennsylvania emphasized the importance of making sure that all teachers understand the relevance of the Grand Challenges, including social science teachers, geography teachers, and all the other teachers who influence students’ educational and career choices. “Unfortunately most of our high schools, at least in the United States, don’t have engineering programs,” he said. “They do math, physics, science, [but] they don’t know how to put it all together.”

The best way to introduce the Grand Challenges, said El-Baz, is to present the problems to students and let them get enthusiastic about solving those problems. When that happens, the response of students is overwhelmingly positive, he and several other presenters said. When Juma and Harris have talked about the Grand Challenges in high schools, for example, they have been surprised by the interest shown by students. “Because it’s a long-term issue, the best place to start is with people who are likely to be here in the long term,” said Juma.

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