A quantitative exploration of engineering students’ professional identification

In today’s fast-moving world, we must continuously adapt to changes in all areas of life, and the ability to do so is increasingly highlighted as a key skill particularly for engineering graduates. At the same time, research shows that having a stable professional identity, and identifying with one’s field is important for aspects such as job-satisfaction and productivity, in addition to overall well-being. However, research of higher education have been critizised for apparently viewing professional identity and employability as synonymous, and an end ‘goal’ of education, rather than exploring the continuous processes of professional socialisation that take place in the everyday practices of universities. Accordingly, we ask: what affects engineering students’ professional identity constructions while they are students? To explore the proposed research question, a quantitative survey instrument measuring professional identification, as well as previously identified related aspects has been constructed. In the research literature, there is little consensus on how to measure professional identity quantitatively, thus, developing a comprehensive measure that can provide insight into these processes is the focal point of the study. Subsequently, the data material consists of 271 engineering students at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology

First year engineering students’ internal and perceived expectations

First-year students’ expectations when entering the university play a central role in how they experience higher education. While there has been a significant number of studies on first-year students’ experiences, much less is known about which role expectations play on a qualitative level. In this study, we will approach the question; How students’ expectations of higher education shape and are shaped by their experiences of entering the university. By drawing on a qualitative thematic analysis of nine interviews with first-year students in an electrical engineering program, we found that students’ expectations to themselves and perceived expectations from others, are key elements in experiencing the learning environment and culture at the university. Grounded in the empirical material and in light of the contemporary research literature on first-year students, learning environments and university pedagogy, we explore students’ positions and aim to better understand the social mesh that they interact within during their first year at the university

Using Challenge Episodes to Identify Social Regulation in Collaborative Groupwork

In recent years, researchers have shown increased interest in the question of how groups regulate their collaborative work and how this in turn affects their learning experience. There is a lack of empirical studies that explore social regulation in student group work. This study in progress attempts to identify instances of social regulation of learning in group work through examining challenges that students experience throughout interdisciplinary group projects. Building on existing conceptual work, we target different dimensions of social regulation – Planning, Monitoring/Performance and Evaluation. Data is collected from four courses within Tracks – a ten-year educational initiative, aiming to respond to the changing educational needs of future engineers. Within Tracks, students meet and learn collaboratively across programme boundaries and take on relevant challenges with a basis in real-world problems together. Students were asked to self-report in form of reflective writings about challenges and coping strategies. First results indicate that groups employed different forms of social regulation though their affiliation with different study programs made it difficult to schedule collaborative, synchronous meetings. Our findings further highlight the role of motivation in collaborative group work and stimulate a discussion about ‘desirable challenges’ that act as catalysts for learning in group work

Tracking social regulation of learning in interdisciplinary group work

Recent years have seen a growing interest in how student groups regulate their learning when taking part in collaborative and interdisciplinary project-courses that are increasingly becoming popular in Engineering Education programs. While there is a rich research landscape on self-regulated learning, more empirical studies are needed on social regulation of peer-learning in collaborative group work. This study addresses this gap by conducting a narrative comparative case study to document shared regulation in three student groups from three project-based courses. Qualitative data was collected through interviews with members from those interdisciplinary groups working on real world challenges. The interviews were analysed for regulation episodes and synthesised into narratives representing key aspects of the groups regulative behaviours. The results are expected to highlight numerous instances of social regulation of learning within the various groups’ at different stages of the project. Preliminary results presented here demonstrate challenges faced by a group when attempting to socially regulate their learning, underlining the importance of scaffolding for collaborative learning. Findings from the full study will highlight the important role that social regulation processes play in group learning and add to the current understanding of the interplay between different modes of social regulation in groups

Student perspectives on co-creating timescapes in interdisciplinary projects

Neoliberal ideology has transformed higher education timescapes in profound ways. However, research has given limited consideration to how pedagogical practices can create a space for students to reshape these timescapes. By drawing upon empirical material, I will first explore how students reflect upon timescapes in an interdisciplinary course. From the student accounts, it appears that it is possible to create spaces that enable students and teachers to express, explore, and negotiate their perspectives and co-create the timescape of courses. In addition, I will explore how an emphasis on dialog, relations, and reflections is perceived by the students and discuss how these pedagogical approaches provide opportunities for the co-creation of timescapes. Finally, I will highlight emerging possibilities to frame a counter narrative to neoliberalism in higher education that accentuates principles and values of authenticity, reciprocity, being more, hope, and collective responsibility

From Tissue Engineering to Engineering Education Research: Designing in vitro cell microenvironments and undergraduate research experiences

This thesis looks at tissue engineering from two perspectives that are closely interconnected with each other: 1) Research in the discipline of tissue engineering that aims to advance our knowledge in the field, and 2) research on how students learn tissue engineering through undergraduate research. In the body, cells are constantly exposed to a concert of different signaling factors that steer their behavior. However, in the majority of in vitro cell studies single factors are investigated in isolation, as there is a shortage of techniques to closely mimic in vivo cell microenviron- ments. This shortage is addressed here by applying approaches to control both spatial and temporal composition of the growth medium and material properties simultaneously. Mi- crofluidic networks were designed to combine controlled liquid gradients with 2D, 2.5D, and 3D extracellular matrix mimics to address key questions on cell-matrix interactions in tissue engineering. It was shown that nanometer scale peptide spacing mildly influences cell chemotactic migration speed, and that contact guidance cues for axon outgrowths on the mi- crometer scale can be overturned by a gradient of bioactive molecules. On an even larger scale, starch microspheres embedded in collagen hydrogels were shown to influence cell attachment, proliferation, and migration by providing a second phase material that potentially influences local growth factor concentrations. Cell response to multiple cell stimuli is not necessarily predictable. With the help of the systems developed in this thesis, it is possible to investigate the complex interplay between different signaling factors in cell microenvironments, eventu- ally leading to improved in vitro tissue models and the development of more advanced tissue engineering scaffolds and strategies. Over the past two decades, there have been numerous calls for universities to forge stronger links between teaching and research. This is particularly important for tissue engineering, as a majority of jobs in this field are located in research and development. The context for the engineering education research part is an undergraduate course on tissue engineering, where students work on projects directly connected to ongoing research efforts. The aim is to under- stand how students experience learning in this discovery-oriented environment. A method for analysing qualitative data was developed to explore students’ pathways in the course: how mo- tivational factors, challenges, and the learning environment influenced the students’ learning and development. Data was collected through surveys, reflective writing and interviews, and the analysis led to the identification of three pathways: learning to navigate the field, learning to do real research and learning to work with others. Overall, the students strongly valued learning in a discovery-oriented environment and three aspects of the course contributed to much of its success: taking a holistic approach to linking teaching and research, engag- ing students in the whole inquiry process, and situating authentic problems in an authentic physical and social context. Based on these findings and a review of the literature in the area, a framework for designing, evaluating, and researching course-based undergraduate research experiences was developed. This work offers a way to meet the long-standing call for a stronger teaching-research nexus to enhance student learning and development. There are strong benefits of combining tissue engineering and engineering education research: advancing the tissue engineering field with the students’ research projects, understanding how students learn to do research and what support structures are needed for it to happen, and for me to develop as a researcher through working within two different research paradigms

15. Navigating Grades and Learning in the Swedish Upper Secondary School Where Neoliberal Values Prevail

Patric Wallin’s research in a Swedish secondary school context explores the problem that conflicting paradigms (neoliberalism and student-centred learning) cause students. They need guidance as they want high grades for university entrance but avoid asking teachers for help for fear that they may appear less competent. Paradoxically, students develop mutual support strategies that counterbalance the competitive individualism engendered by neoliberal practices

Creating cell microenvironments in vitro

Stem cells have a great potential to bring about advancements in fields like developmental biology, drug discovery, cancer biology and tissue engineering. In order to be able to use stem cells to their full potential, it is important to have control over their behavior. In vivo cellular fate processes are controlled by the microenvironment around them and the many different factors in it. Cells communicate with their surrounding environment and shape it actively via cell-cell, cell-matrix and cell-liquid interactions. These interactions often happen on the cellular and subcellular length scale in defined time dependent sequences. Consequently, it is important to have systems that can provide different molecular cues with a high spatial and temporal resolution, in order to mimic cell microenvironments in vitro and study cells under controlled conditions. This thesis focuses on cell-matrix and cell-liquid interactions and different ways to create cell niches in cell culture systems. The focus is on designing and characterizing microfluidic cell culture platforms and, in particular, systems that are capable of forming molecular gradients. Flow-based and diffusion-based microfluidic gradient generators were combined with substrates coated with biofunctionalized gold nano dots, chemical active molecules, or electrospun microfibers. Thus, it was possible to provide cells with topographical cues and a defined surface chemistry, as well as soluble molecular cues in a gradient manner, simultaneously. COMSOL Multiphysics simulations were used to assist the design process and characterization of the microfluidic systems, and also to study cell receptor binding interactions in great detail. The developed toolbox of COMSOL modeling, a liquid handling system, a variety of microfluidic networks, surface modification techniques and molecular gradients allows the formation of multifactorial microenvironments to now study induction of cellular fate process of different cell types in vitro

From Tissue Engineering to Engineering Education Research: Designing in vitro cell microenvironments and undergraduate research experiences

This thesis looks at tissue engineering from two perspectives that are closely interconnected with each other: 1) Research in the discipline of tissue engineering that aims to advance our knowledge in the field, and 2) research on how students learn tissue engineering through undergraduate research.In the body, cells are constantly exposed to a concert of different signaling factors that steer their behavior. However, in the majority of in vitro cell studies single factors are investigated in isolation, as there is a shortage of techniques to closely mimic in vivo cell microenviron- ments. This shortage is addressed here by applying approaches to control both spatial and temporal composition of the growth medium and material properties simultaneously. Mi- crofluidic networks were designed to combine controlled liquid gradients with 2D, 2.5D, and 3D extracellular matrix mimics to address key questions on cell-matrix interactions in tissue engineering. It was shown that nanometer scale peptide spacing mildly influences cell chemotactic migration speed, and that contact guidance cues for axon outgrowths on the mi- crometer scale can be overturned by a gradient of bioactive molecules. On an even larger scale, starch microspheres embedded in collagen hydrogels were shown to influence cell attachment, proliferation, and migration by providing a second phase material that potentially influences local growth factor concentrations. Cell response to multiple cell stimuli is not necessarily predictable. With the help of the systems developed in this thesis, it is possible to investigate the complex interplay between different signaling factors in cell microenvironments, eventu- ally leading to improved in vitro tissue models and the development of more advanced tissue engineering scaffolds and strategies.Over the past two decades, there have been numerous calls for universities to forge stronger links between teaching and research. This is particularly important for tissue engineering, as a majority of jobs in this field are located in research and development. The context for the engineering education research part is an undergraduate course on tissue engineering, where students work on projects directly connected to ongoing research efforts. The aim is to under- stand how students experience learning in this discovery-oriented environment. A method for analysing qualitative data was developed to explore students’ pathways in the course: how mo- tivational factors, challenges, and the learning environment influenced the students’ learning and development. Data was collected through surveys, reflective writing and interviews, and the analysis led to the identification of three pathways: learning to navigate the field, learning to do real research and learning to work with others. Overall, the students strongly valued learning in a discovery-oriented environment and three aspects of the course contributed to much of its success: taking a holistic approach to linking teaching and research, engag- ing students in the whole inquiry process, and situating authentic problems in an authentic physical and social context. Based on these findings and a review of the literature in the area, a framework for designing, evaluating, and researching course-based undergraduate research experiences was developed. This work offers a way to meet the long-standing call for a stronger teaching-research nexus to enhance student learning and development.There are strong benefits of combining tissue engineering and engineering education research: advancing the tissue engineering field with the students’ research projects, understanding how students learn to do research and what support structures are needed for it to happen, and for me to develop as a researcher through working within two different research paradigms

Navigating Grades and Learning in the Swedish Upper Secondary School Where Neoliberal Values Prevail

This chapter examines the practices through which a cohort of Swedish upper-secondary pupils manage their learning processes to avoid the possibility of their teachers doubting their study abilities. It explains how, in contemporary Sweden, a country where the outlook is increasingly neoliberal, university places are competitively awarded, creating concern among students that asking for support might mark them as unsuitable for university entrance. The research uses in-class observations and focus-group interviews to establish how two classes of students actually manage this dilemma and finds an interesting paradox — that the student practices potentially create both negative and positive consequences for their success. By seeking teacher approval rather than teacher assistance they cut themselves off from an established effective form of academic support, but by turning to their own resources and discussing their studies with their fellow students, they improve their capacity to learn independently and work in a group of peers, important skills for higher-level study and for working life. Thus, the competitive practices common in neoliberal economies actually encourage the students to work cooperatively even as they strive to attain the high levels of success needed to guarantee a place in a prestigious university, at least in the context of natural science education, when carrying out laboratory work within the discipline of chemistry. This study is limited in scope in terms of subject coverage, but this context was chosen because the more practical format of such work offers opportunities to observe students learning though action rather than see them being taught didactically and thereby makes studentteacher interaction an option rather than a prerequisite