2026 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Against the backdrop of advancing new engineering education to address the national strategy of responding to the new wave of technological and industrial transformation, cultivating talents with both outstanding engineering capabilities and noble ethical integrity has become the core mission of higher engineering education. As a crucial component in achieving this goal, the quality of engineering ethics education curriculum development is paramount. However, it currently faces practical challenges such as marginalization and disconnect from engineering practice. Engineering philosophy, as a discipline exploring the fundamental principles and holistic nature of engineering activities, offers profound theoretical perspectives and methodological support for examining and resolving these challenges. Therefore, this study, grounded in the specific context of China's new engineering development, systematically investigates the practical dilemmas in university engineering ethics curriculum development from an engineering philosophy perspective and envisions feasible pathways for its future transformation. The research employs a combined methodology of text analysis and semi-structured interviews. It systematically collects and analyzes national-level policy documents and course materials from representative universities to grasp macro-level requirements and examine the current state of the courses. This is supplemented by semi-structured interviews with frontline instructors and students from different disciplines, aiming to gain a deeper understanding of the challenges and needs of the courses from the dual perspectives of teaching and learning. Building upon a systematic examination of the “new form” challenges in engineering ethics courses—including goal positioning, faculty capabilities, and teaching methodologies—this research draws wisdom from engineering philosophy's holistic engineering perspective and interdisciplinary methodology. It constructs a theoretical framework integrating engineering philosophy concepts and proposes future course development strategies. This work provides theoretical reference and practical guidance for optimizing China's engineering ethics education system and cultivating outstanding engineers capable of shouldering the great responsibility of national rejuvenation.