AC 2007-3115: RE-ENGINEERING ENGINEERING: TEACHING STUDENTS HOW TO THINK CRITICALLY

Teaching and learning in the American school system should be directed toward creating self-guided, independent thinkers. Teachers who are committed to creating a critical thinking environment realize that the primary purpose of all education is to teach students how to learn effectively. More importantly, institutions of higher education, specifically those whose mission statements include educating students who may not be as academically prepared as their peers, may want to consider re-engineering their curricula so that they can produce self-guided independent thinkers. This mixed methods research study will examine the affect of critical thinking instruction in a critical thinking course on minority engineering students’ cognitive skills at Morgan State University (MSU). Morgan State University is a historically black college and university (HBCU) in Baltimore, Maryland. The diverse student population consists of approximately 6,000 students, with more than 500 students enrolled within MSU’s School of Engineering. When conducting a critical thinking pilot course during the spring 2006 semester at Morgan State University, results from a preand postassessment showed 50% improvement in students’ critical thinking performance. Purpose The Center for Advanced Microwave and Research Applications (CAMRA) is a NASA-sponsored University Research Center (URC). Its mission is to produce a significant number of students who obtain advanced degrees in STEM disciplines. In order to satisfy these requirements, CAMRA’s educational engineering researchers are implementing and assessing novel and innovative programs and interventions. Initially, during the summer 2005, CAMRA, through its summer bridge program, the Pre-Accelerated Curriculum in Engineering Program (PACE), hypothesized that a course on critical thinking could elevate information processing and, as a result, increase academic outcomes in STEM courses. To further this engineering education research study, the researchers conducted a pilot course during the Spring 2006 semester with CAMRA Scholars, which consisted of freshmen, sophomore, and junior students, where both quantitative and qualitative data were gathered.