A cognitive apprenticeship approach to engineering education: the role of learning styles

dc.creator	Gérard Poitras
dc.creator	Eric Poitras
dc.date	2011-06-01T00:00:00Z
dc.date.accessioned	2015-08-12T11:16:51Z
dc.date.available	2015-08-12T11:16:51Z
dc.identifier	1750-0044
dc.identifier	1750-0052
dc.identifier	https://doaj.org/article/a247a1f12ee147aa948a3e5841f188fd
dc.identifier.uri	http://evidence.thinkportal.org/handle/123456789/25909
dc.description	Prior to the creation of engineering schools, engineering was taught in an apprenticeship style. However, from the onset of formal engineering education, engineering curricula have been based largely on science and mathematical knowledge. Applied subject based learning (usually called traditional teaching methods) is still a common teaching model in engineering education programmes today. The professor or tutor passes information to the students, the newly acquired knowledge is applied to specific problems and communication between students and professor (and between students themselves) is limited. In order to better prepare future engineers for the workplace, many engineering educators are implementing innovative approaches to teaching and learning in their classrooms (e.g. problem based learning). In the work described in this paper, a cognitive apprenticeship approach is used. This teaching model includes the main assumptions of the problem based learning approach and also defines instructional methods for enhancing learning. The model was used for teaching two groups of civil engineering students enrolled in their third and fourth year. Results of the two experiments showed that the cognitive apprenticeship approach used for teaching undergraduate civil engineering students was favoured by most of the students, independent of their preferred learning style. The implications of these findings with regard to implementing the cognitive apprenticeship approach in civil engineering education are discussed.
dc.language	English
dc.publisher	The Higher Education Academy
dc.relation	http://www.engsc.ac.uk/journal/index.php/ee/article/view/169/254
dc.relation	https://doaj.org/toc/1750-0044
dc.relation	https://doaj.org/toc/1750-0052
dc.rights	CC BY-NC-ND
dc.source	Engineering Education, Vol 6, Iss 1, Pp 62-72 (2011)
dc.subject	learning styles
dc.subject	cognitive apprenticeship
dc.subject	Education (General)
dc.subject	L7-991
dc.subject	Education
dc.subject	L
dc.subject	DOAJ:Education
dc.subject	DOAJ:Social Sciences
dc.subject	Engineering (General). Civil engineering (General)
dc.subject	TA1-2040
dc.subject	Technology
dc.subject	T
dc.subject	DOAJ:General and Civil Engineering
dc.subject	DOAJ:Technology and Engineering
dc.subject	Education (General)
dc.subject	L7-991
dc.subject	Education
dc.subject	L
dc.subject	DOAJ:Education
dc.subject	DOAJ:Social Sciences
dc.subject	Engineering (General). Civil engineering (General)
dc.subject	TA1-2040
dc.subject	Technology
dc.subject	T
dc.subject	DOAJ:General and Civil Engineering
dc.subject	DOAJ:Technology and Engineering
dc.subject	Education (General)
dc.subject	L7-991
dc.subject	Education
dc.subject	L
dc.subject	Engineering (General). Civil engineering (General)
dc.subject	TA1-2040
dc.subject	Technology
dc.subject	T
dc.subject	Education (General)
dc.subject	L7-991
dc.subject	Education
dc.subject	L
dc.subject	Engineering (General). Civil engineering (General)
dc.subject	TA1-2040
dc.subject	Technology
dc.subject	T
dc.subject	Education (General)
dc.subject	L7-991
dc.subject	Education
dc.subject	L
dc.subject	Engineering (General). Civil engineering (General)
dc.subject	TA1-2040
dc.subject	Technology
dc.subject	T
dc.title	A cognitive apprenticeship approach to engineering education: the role of learning styles
dc.type	article