Making Connections through CDIO: An International Initiative to Reform Engineering Education

1
(No Transcript)
2
Making Connections through CDIO An International
Initiative to Reform Engineering Education
PERRY ARMSTRONG SCHOOL OF MECHANICAL AEROSPACE
ENGINEERING QUEENS UNIVERSITY BELFAST
3
THE CDIO INITIATIVE

• An International Programme that currently
  involves collaboration
• between Engineering Schools from 19
  Universities worldwide.

• Its aim is to ensure that Engineering Education
  fully prepares
• graduates to become Professional Engineers, and
  employs
• the most effective Teaching and Learning
  Methods available.

• Its basic tenet is that Professional Engineers
  are involved in the
• Conception, Design, Implementation and
  Operation
• of value-added products and systems, and that
  this should
• provide the context for Engineering Education.

4
DEVELOPMENT OF THE CDIO INITIATIVE

• Originated in the School of Aeronautics and
  Astronautics at MIT.

• MIT launched the CDIO Initiative in 2000 as a
  collaborative
• programme with Chalmers University, Linkoping
  University and
• KTH (Stockholm).

• The School of Mechanical Manufacturing
  Engineering at QUB
• had links with Chalmers (through an
  ERASMUS-funded Student
• Exchange programme) and were invited to join in
  2003.

• Over the last two years, applications from a
  further 14
• universities have been accepted .

5
INTERNATIONAL COLLABORATORS

• Massachusetts Institute of Technology,
  Cambridge, USA

• Chalmers University of Technology, Göteborg,
  Sweden
• Linköping University, Linköping, Sweden
• Royal Institute of Technology (KTH), Stockholm,
  Sweden

• Queen's University Belfast, Northern Ireland

• Technical University of Denmark, Lyngby, Denmark
• U.S. NAVAL Academy, Annapolis, Maryland, USA
• Singapore Polytechnic, Singapore
• Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario, Canada
• University of Auckland, New Zealand

6
INTERNATIONAL COLLABORATORS
(Discussions are being held with 3 Australian
universities, 2 from Chile and another Swedish
university)
7
REGIONAL GROUPS
8
UK IRELAND REGIONAL GROUP
Joint Regional Centre Queens and Liverpool
9
ORGANIZATION ACTIVITIES
CDIO COUNCIL
International Meetings
Regional Meetings
Workshops
Telephone Conferences
Conferences
Report progress with implementation in the
various collaborating universities.
www.cdio.org
10
OBSERVATIONS
Student Exchange Schemes can provide important
contacts.
School of Mechanical Aerospace Engineering
11
OBSERVATIONS
The main issues in HE are the same around the
world.

• Student motivation and retention.
• The need to develop personal and interpersonal
  skills.
• The importance of improving student
  employability.
• The challenge of making the learning process
  more active.
• etc.

Staff need more opportunities to share
experience.
Opportunities are needed for (non-professorial)
staff to discuss their teaching and learning
initiatives with staff working in the same
discipline in other universities.
12
OBSERVATIONS
International links should involve as many staff
as possible.

• 10 staff have attended International CDIO
  Meetings.

International programmes have a wide variety of
benefits.

• Programmes such as CDIO are an important source
  of
• New ideas in educational development.
• Research contacts.
• Support for educational funding applications.
• Material for educational publications.
• etc.

pj.armstrong_at_qub.ac.uk