We were honoured that UCD President Andrew Deeks agreed
to give the 2015 EGA Annual Spring Lecture. In welcoming the President I
remarked how genuinely pleased we were to see an internationally acclaimed
academic take the reins in UCD.
EGA President PJ Rudden and President Andrew Deeks before lecture |
Taking as his theme 'Challenges for Engineering Education
in the 21st Century' the President covered a large number of very topical areas
which are continuing areas for debate in Irish engineering circles.
President Deeks presents lecture |
Firstly, do we educate for 'breath or technical depth'?
The choices are between the 'Bologna Process' of 4 years bachelors degree and 5
year masters with technical depth or the U.S. System which gives more diversity
and flexability.
Secondly do we educate to provide theoretical foundations
or for applied skills? Professor Deeks' experience is that the larger companies
favour the former while the SMEs seek the latter with the need for minimum
training.
What of the Educational Fads? He asks. There's for example Outcome
Based Education (OBE), Problem Based Learning (PBL), Peer Led Team Learning
(PLTL) and Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs)! He does not regard any of them
as a 'silver bullet' especially distance learning.
The advances in technology in the 21st century have
radically altered Engineering Education in terms of computerisation,
communications, globalisation, mobility and rate of change. We are now in the
age of "The Internet of Things" with all the analytical and computational
skills which that brings.
Professor Deeks also dealt with the issue of 'emotional
intelligence' - to recognise one own and other people's intelligence and use
this a guide to thinking and behaviour. People with more emotional intelligence are said to perform better.
EGA's first President Dr Tom Hardiman among an attentative audience |
Another factor is cultural difference defined by Hofstede
(from IBM HR world wide survey of employees between 1967 and 1973) based on
cultural values including 'power distance' i.e. acceptance or not of hierarchy -
higher acceptance in Asia and Latin America and lower in Western Europe - US is somewhere in between.
He spoke of 'capstone experience' where students are
encouraged to take time out in the community or internships in industry. He
emphasised the importance of group projects and group learning as one
approaches degree stage as it better mirrors real life experience. The top
universities are research intensive and must adopt this model to grow their
collaborative research capability.
On the issue of assessment, Professor Deeks talked of
models that delay exams until later years of degree courses and concentrate on
continuous assessment. He has seen the issue raised now in Ireland by secondary
school teachers on the issue of Second Level Reform. He was not definitive on the
way forward but I sense that he agrees with the current recommendation from the
Minister of Education and Skills that the optimum approach is a combination of
both continuous assessment and examinations at critical junctures.
A lively Question and Answer session followed with
questions from representatives of Trinity College, UCD, DIT, Higher Education
Authority and many other senior retired engineers.
Professor Gerry Byrne, Former Dean of Engineering UCD |
Dr Liam Connellan, Former Director General Confederation of Irish Industry and UCD EGA Distinguished Graduate Awardee. |
Dr Gerry Farrell, DIT Director and Dean of Engineering with Dr Aisling Harkin UCD |
Tim Conlon, Higher Education Authority |
Murt Coleman, Executive Board of Engineers Ireland |
In fact the questions ran on so long that we were forced
to bring proceedings to a close as we were well over time when I thanked
President Deeks and presented him with a framed and inscribed Dublin Crystal memento of the event.
I presented him with very sincere thanks
from the EGA and from a very appreciative audience for a highly interesting and
obviously provocative lecture on a subject where he has obvious international
expertise and experience. It's no wonder he won many awards as Professor of Civil and Resource
Engineering in University of Western Australia for teaching.
A highly social gathering of attendees enjoyed a wine
reception in the atrium of the Peter Sutherland School of Law after the
lecture. It was the close of a highly historic and successful day for UCD EGA.
Incoming President of Engineers Ireland Bill Grimson, PJ Rudden and Professor Jane Grimson, former Vice Provost TCD |
Tom Fitzpatrick EU Commission, Conor Fingleton and Mary White both Fingleton White and PJ Rudden |
Head of Mechanical Engineering TCD Professor Darina Murray and Professor Jane Grimson TCD, former President Engineers Ireland |
Dr Greg Foley, Associate Dean for Teaching and Learning DCU, Mark Foley Managing Director Coillte Enterprise and PJ Rudden |
UCD Lecturers Pat Connolly, Dr Aisling NĂ Annaidh, Dr Vincent Hargaden and PJ Rudden |
Professor John Kelly, Rebecca Patterson Marketing Manager (International) UCD College of Engineering & Architecture and PJ Rudden |
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