Describes the National Science Foundation (NSF) report on undergraduate science education that emphasizes goals for undergraduate education. Discusses barriers to improving science, mathematics, engineering, and technology education and highlights recommendations based on the report. Concludes that the report contains a useful look back at the…

Interviews with 16 second-year science and technology cooperative education students revealed their mixed confidence in practical science skills and self-efficacy in learning new skills. Some were confident, some apprehensive about analytical thinking skills. They were confident about their ability to communicate science information and their…

Provides an overview and discusses outcomes of the Rural Girls in Science (RGS) program which was developed to foster interest in science, engineering, and mathematics among rural high school girls in the state of Washington. Replaces initial guiding concepts (self-esteem and scientific pipeline) with science-affirming and affirming science…

Speculates on the issue of whether innovation can be taught. Uses historical accounts to suggest characteristic patterns of innovation. (DDR)

Notes that communication across the curriculum initiatives face multiple curricular and pedagogical challenges that are especially appropriate for investigation within a scholarship of teaching and learning framework. Examines technical classes that emphasize speaking and writing. Indicates that students were resistant toward the incursion of…

Reviews science learning in higher education, specifically in engineering, and the influences of technologically-mediated approaches on the cooperative learning of practical work and science. Discusses reasons for including practical work in science education, implementing practical work in distance education, and using technology and learning…

Describes a two-semester numerical methods course that serves as a research experience for undergraduate students without requiring external funding or the modification of current curriculum. Uses an engineering problem to introduce students to constrained optimization via a variation of the traditional isoperimetric problem of finding the curve…

The U.S. Department of Defense has begun using its buying power to enforce standards on the vendors and contractors of automatic data processing hardware and software. An example of this, the Computer-Aided Acquisition and Logistic Support (CALS) program, is described, and how it will affect electronic publishing systems is discussed. (five…

The annual census of industrial employment, production workers, women, the workweek, scientists and engineers, chemical employment, wages, and productivity in the chemical industry is presented. Trends in the numbers of workers, productivity, and unit labor costs are illustrated in graphs. (CW)

Discusses the life of George Washington Carver. Explains how he achieved his goals of educating a better southern farmer and creating a better southern citizen based on his principles of agriculture economics. Discusses Carver's educational and teaching experiences that eventually lead to an expansion of human potential. (JS)

Changes in engineering education due to the unification of the European Community are discussed from three perspectives: legal, academic, and industrial-technological. The problem is examined in the context of long-term Community objectives. Specific recommendations are made. The situations of the United Kingdom, France, Germany, and Spain are…

Described are research efforts in the United States designed to help improve the competitive nature of high technology manufacturing in the U.S. U.S. policies and techniques are compared with those of Japan. Six recommendations for improving manufacturing practices in the U.S. are detailed. (CW)

Analyzes the recent changes and future of chemical science in East Germany, Poland, Czechoslovakia, and Hungary. Summarizes the American government's responses to the changes. (YP)

California's Mathematics, Engineering, and Science Achievement (MESA) program, based at the University of California at Berkeley, administers Minority Engineering Programs on 18 public and private college and university campuses. The programs have been successful in raising retention rates among underrepresented minority groups, and are being…

Describes a four-year undergraduate course which covers mechanical/manufacturing engineering and management functions emphasizing problem solving. Outlines the course structure and project work in each year. (Author/YP)