Memo+41


 * Overview**

Engineers have been playing important roles in technological innovations as well as in social developments. As crucial preparation for the profession, higher education has significant influences to the development of future engineers. At present, the higher education in engineering has received broad influences from the government, society, and especially from industry and business, which are often the active sponsor of universities and future employers of the engineering students. This study mainly examine these influences to the thoughts and practice of engineering education, and their impacts to the development of engineering students. Specifically, this study aims to understand: (i) How does the industry influence the thoughts and practice of engineering education in universities through funding, collaboration, and employment of the graduates. (ii) How does the industry influence the engineering students' goal-setting and self-identity through direct interactions, such as contests organization, internship, lectures, and employment conference. (iii) How do answers to the above questions vary across culture and political regimes.

Focusing on engineering education as an arena where technological and cultural elements intertwine, this study is an initial effort of my plan to pursue a humanistic critique of the role of science and technology in contemporary civilization and to explore the relation between knowledge and human development. Also, a systematic reevaluation of engineering education with a specific examination of its impact to the development of engineering students is of special importance at this time considering (1) the emphasis of high quality technical personnel as a strategic resource for national competence; (2) the reflection on knowledge economy under the global economic crisis; (3) the critique of the Neoliberal thoughts on educational polices and governance.

Based on the above aims, this study focuses on the following research questions: 1.How does the industry/business influence the educational orientation and practices of universities? How do companies influence the orientation of universities through donation? How do companies influence the orientation of faculty through collaborative research? How can companies implant their expectations on students into the agenda of schools by employing the graduates? 2.How does the industry/business influence the goal-setting and self-identity of engineering students? How do companies shape the students' notion of success, creativity, or competence through giving lectures, organizing contests, and other direct interactions? How do the students adapt themselves to the expectations from future employers? How does the experience of engineering education influence the students' expectations and self-evaluations? 3.What political or cultural factors influence the governance, operation, and acceptance of engineering education? How do different parental expectations influence the practice of engineering education? How do different political ideologies influence the educational thoughts?

Multi-sited ethnography {cite} will be carried out to document the multiple interactions between universities and other actors and provide a comparative perspective on engineering education across cultures and political regimes. Ethnographic interviews and participant observations will be carried out at a series of sites in China and the US. The Chinese sites include Tshinghua University, Microsoft Research Asia, Shanghai Baosteel Corporation. Ethnographic work in the US will be carried out at Stanford University, Silicon Valley, and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. Ethnographic interviews will be done on a wide range of objects, including engineering students, faculty members, universities administer, engineers, company employers, educational officials, parents, etc. I also plan to participate in on-campus contests, lectures given by enterprise leaders, employment conferences to observe the direct interaction between companies and students. Social history method {cite}will also be used to guide archive research on industry-university relations, university funds, and educational policies in order to construct a historical context of engineering education.

This study will draw on, and contribute to the literatures in the field of education and human development. It will participate in the conversations in general educational thoughts, industry-university relation, comparative education, and developmental psychology with the following contributions: Document diverse interactions through which business/industry exert influences on the engineering education and report different attitudes toward engineering education from various groups, including employers, faculty, parents, outer society. Compare the historical data of social/political change and its influences on the governance of engineering education in China and the US. Provide suggestions to educational institutions and the governments on the reform of practice and governance of engineering education.

This study will result in publications in major journals in STS, engineering education, or comparative education, this study will also provide materials of my PhD dissertation and later an academic book.