The Evolution of a Curriculum Reform Process: Vertical Integration of Computational Thinking by Incremental Steps

In the engineering workplace, engineering graduates are expected to be facile in formulating well-defined problems and in selecting an appropriate computational tool with which to develop a solution once a problem is well posed. In the engineering academic community, we have historically considered the analytical tools of traditional mathematics as the primary solution tools our students must systematically master. The language of mathematics is indeed indispensable for representing engineering problems. But solution tools bundled into modern computational environments provide a second and complementary solution capability. As we tread further into the 21st century, globalization, international competition, an increasingly diverse population, and a rapid growth in computational capabilities and infrastructure are some of the challenges that will test the boundaries of engineering ingenuity. It is important that our students become competent in solving engineering problems using computational skills in a broader sense than simply selecting the “right tool.”

With its origin in our assessment process to its current status in the curricular integration of computational thinking principles, this project has evolved from the first steps of helping students learn more effectively in particular computing environments (ASPEN and MATLAB) to the development of a process by which a wide variety of stakeholder computing needs and perspectives are analyzed and integrated into engineering curricula. Our objective is to use stakeholder input to infuse computational problem-solving competencies not only in chemical engineering, but across engineering in our college. These competencies are aligned with industry needs and enable students to integrate conceptual knowledge, technical skills, and professional practice.

In the process we first identified and attempted to remedy a lack of curricular continuity in student learning of computational tools and their application to problem solving. The undertaking was then developed as an NSF-funded project involving a thorough survey of engineering corporate stakeholders to identify computational competencies needed in the engineering workplace. These findings were analyzed and categorized based on the framework of computing concepts based on the Fluency with Information Technology (FITness) report. The fundamental nature of these concepts notwithstanding, they are instantiated in practical technologies and applications that allowed us to move from the computational competencies identified in our industrial data to computing concepts that could be integrated in the curricula. These concepts have now been introduced into two engineering curricula in the College of Engineering, Michigan State University and in the pre-engineering curricula of our collaborating partner, Lansing Community College. A cornerstone of our approach lies in using industrially authentic problems that require students to apply various computational concepts for their solution. The link to industry has the effect to more fully engage students in their own problem solving and to bring to problem solving a stronger, more enthusiastic attitude. Early results of assessment of student performance in the application of computational competencies in these courses will be presented.