2023 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Development of engineering students’ entrepreneurial mindset is critical to better prepare them for entering a global workforce driven by technological solutions and new product development. Fortunately, the Kern Entrepreneurial Engineering Network (KEEN) has provided resources for higher education engineering programs across the United States to modernize their curriculum through integration of the entrepreneurial mindset and the 3C’s (curiosity, connections, and creating value). However, unfortunately, limited literature is available which highlights the effectiveness of the newly developed entrepreneurially minded curriculum, in particular for engineering technology courses.
The purpose of this study is to highlight findings and lessons learning as a result of integrating the entrepreneurial mindset (in addition to bio-inspired design and STEAM) into the engineering technology classroom. Specifically, curriculum changes were implemented into a course on programming industrial robots (as part of the minor in robotics). This course is designed for teaching technology students how to install, maintain, and work with industrial robots through real world applications. This course also assists students in discovering the capability of industrial robots to perform many jobs and jobs and real-world applications that could be both unsafe and unpleasant to people. As part of the integration of the new interdisciplinary project (crossing the realms of entrepreneurially minded learning, STEAM, and bio-inspired design), students completed a photovoice metacognitive reflection aimed to understand their perceived learning outcomes. Preliminary thematic analysis conducted on the metacognitive reflections showcase three core patterns within the data. First, students generally highlighted increased engagement and motivation for the newly developed project. Second, students positively noted the opportunity to apply greater amounts of creativity to the newly implemented project. Third, students explained how STEAM was the core component allowing for interdisciplinary understanding within the new project.
From a practical perspective, this study provides evidence of learning gains with curriculum when integrating EM + Bio + STEAM. In addition, this study shows how metacognitive reflections can be used to help students better understand the overarching benefit of completing the project, while at the same time providing the instructor with rich feedback for improving the course. The paper concludes with best practices and lessons learned so other practitioners can easily implement the new curriculum within their classroom.