Discusses diversity in science education in Europe. Provides a global overview of education in Europe and then presents two European models for global education for engineers and scientists that are becoming increasingly important components of their curricula. (Author/VWL)

Discusses the development of high-level thinking skills and how learning occurs with example studies from literature. Describes the relationship between animal and human cognition, and identifies levels of human understanding which include somatic, mythic, romantic, philosophic, and ironic understanding. (Contains 22 references.) (YDS)

Reviews various initiatives in the United States and Europe designed to increase the number of engineering students participating in international study and offers 13 recommendations to remove barriers encountered by engineering students who wish to study abroad. Recommendations address funding, curriculum, and logistical issues such as credit…

Describes a PC-based teaching module designed to instruct engineering students in transient one-dimensional conduction heat transfer analysis. The discussion considers problem formulation, nondimensionalization, discretization, numerical stability and the time-step restriction, program operation, and program verification. (MES)

Proposes a way to improve the quality of statistics teaching to undergraduate engineering students. Teaching quality can be understood as a goal to be achieved in three nurtured phases: (1) course planning; (2) adoption of methodological approach; and (3) evaluation of results. (Author/SAH)

Explains why the influx of computers into classrooms means that schools need to pay more attention to ergonomic furnishings. The health risks of poorly designed furniture are discussed as are the kings of furniture that work best ergonomically for computer use. (GR)

Explores some of the issues behind mathematical modeling for technology with reference to undergraduate teaching and professional practice. Discusses theory and practice in mathematical modeling and its place and uses of modeling in engineering. (ASK)

Discusses the special considerations, objectives, and mechanisms for mentoring in engineering and other technical environments. Describes how students benefit from mentoring in an engineering curriculum and gives specific examples of student-mentoring programs. (EV)

Three groups of 50 freshman and 50 seniors each, majoring in technology, engineering, and humanities, completed the Personal Problem-Solving Inventory and the Technological Problem-Solving Inventory. There were few differences in personal problem solving but significant differences by major in technological problem solving. Few differences between…

Presents results from a research evaluation of the effects of a team approach and learning style preferences in a new hands-on laboratory course in beginning engineering. Results showed that underrepresented minority and women students may be especially motivated to continue at the postsecondary level in engineering and technology. (MKR)

Discusses short, informal student writing assignments in chemical engineering designed to reinforce chemical engineering concepts relevant to course material, promote creative thinking, and lighten more serious students. (MKR)

Provides the framework that was used to incorporate journal writing into chemical engineering courses. Presents examples of student writing to illustrate the benefits of informal writing. (JRH)

Summarizes the five-year effort of a preengineering program to improve the recruitment and retention of underrepresented college students to pursue degrees in science, mathematics, engineering, and technology at The University of Akron. Assesses the university's successful operation of the special high school Upward Bound and preengineering…

Employs data from the National Science Foundation Graduate Fellowship Program and Minority Fellowship Program to examine several factors affecting science and engineering doctoral awards for women and minorities. After controlling for Graduate Record Examination scores, field of study, and undergraduate grade point average, large sex and race…

Describes a laboratory activity involving a mathematical model of cooking potatoes that can be solved analytically. Highlights the microstructure aspects of the experiment. Provides the key aspects of the results, detailed background readings, laboratory procedures and data analyses. (MM)