Resumen de Alumni perspective on professional skills gained through integrated assessment and learning
Jennifer Lebeau, Michael Trevisan, Jay McCormack, Steven Beyerlein, Denny Davis, Paul Leiffer, Phillip Thompson, Howard Davis, Susannah Howe, Patricia Brackin, Robert Gerlick, M. Javed Khan
Engineering professional skills are critical components of an engineer’s performance in industry. Engineering professional skillsinclude the ability to work in a team environment, awareness of and ability to contextualize engineering ethics, and an ability toestablish and realize professional development goals. Engineering capstone design courses present the opportunity for an authenticlearning experience with respect to complex, professional skills in situations similar to those in which they will be used in practice.The Transferable Integrated Design Engineering Education (TIDEE) consortium of engineering educators and researchers havedeveloped and tested the Integrated Design Engineering Assessment and Learning System (IDEALS). IDEALS consist of ninemodules with formative and summative assessments to guide and measure student learning of professional skills integrated withcomplementary instructional materials to facilitate use in project courses. Results from prior testing were positive from bothstudent and faculty perspectives, but a key stakeholder—recent alumni users now working in industry—required furtherrepresentation to determine IDEALS impact. A total of forty-two alumni that were recent users of the system completed thesurvey. 85%, 86% and 70% of survey respondents attributed enhancement in professional skills to the IDEALS teamwork,professional development, and professional responsibility modules respectively. Additionally, 82% of respondents reported someenhancement in terms of their reflective writing skills.
