Making history active: Archival interventions for engineering education

Abstract

This paper demonstrates how methodologies of liberal education can be used to enhance an undergraduate engineering education. In a 2-credit introduction to Science and Technology Studies course at New York University's Tandon School of Engineering,i we engaged in what we call "archival interventions": the introduction of primary sources in the classroom and a visit to the school's library to engage with archival materials. The interventions were the result of a team effort between the course instructor, teaching a humanities course, and the archivist from NYU Libraries. This activity shows how liberal education can have a natural fit within the engineering curriculum. In particular, we wish to demonstrate how even a small-scale project, using available resources, will help to accomplish ABET Criterion 3: Student Outcomes. ABET's Student Outcomes encourage engineering education to follow an active learning model, to discuss the social context and ethics of engineering solutions, and to develop skills of analysis, teamwork, and communication. Our archival interventions, though admittedly limited in scope, embody the principles ABET's Student Outcomes. By working in groups with primary source materials related to science and engineering, we encouraged students to rethink what it means to be an inventor or entrepreneur and to consider the larger social context of innovation. As a reflective project, students wrote short response papers or made presentations based on their work. We measured the students' responses to the interventions through anonymous surveys conducted at the end of the course. We knew from earlier projects of this sort that students enjoyed the insight into the world of working engineers that archival collections provided them. In this intervention, we were particularly interested in responses from first year students, compared to students farther along in their engineering education. Engaging first-year engineering students with the real-world experiences of engineers may support their interest in the field and bolster the retention of students in engineering programs.