Socially-relevant design: The TOYtech project at Smith College

Journal of Engineering Education, Jul 2002 by Mikic, Borjana, Grasso, Domenico

ABSTRACT

As issues of professional and ethical responsibility are receiving greater emphasis in engineering programs, the view of engineering as a profession in service to humanity is becoming more widespread. One approach to fostering this perspective among engineering students is the inclusion of socially relevant design projects throughout the curriculum. In this paper we present an example of one such project used in the introduction to engineering course at Smith College (the largest women's college in the U. S.) in which students are challenged to design toys that introduce children to the principles that underlie technology (TOYtech, or Teaching Our Youth Technology). Based on student surveys, we found that the majority ofthe course learning objectives were achieved through the implementation ofthe project, with students emphasizing that the project taught them about the importance of working well in teams and of considering the societal impact of engineering practice. In addition, we present our findings regarding the psychological type distribution of our inaugural class of firstyear engineering students and compare these to national values for female engineering students as a whole. These preliminary Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) data suggest that our students are particularly responsive to the ethic of social responsibility in engineering, and that they are strong communicators in addition to possessing a well-organized, practical approach to problem solving.

I. INTRODUCTION

In 1999, the Picker Engineering Program was established at Smith College, thus making Smith the first and only all-women's college in the United States to offer an engineering degree, and one of only a handful of liberal arts colleges to do so. Deeply embedded in the mission of the College is the ethic of social responsibility: "Smith endeavors to produce graduates distinguished by their intellectual capabilities, their capacity for leadership, their ethical values, and their readiness to contribute to the betterment of the world" [26]. In keeping with this tradition, the Picker Engineering Program aims to produce graduates who "will be confident and creative women who bridge the traditional boundaries between the sciences and humanities as leaders in both the profession of engineering and in society as a whole. As critical thinkers and socially responsible decision makers, they will help to engineer a sustainable future for the global community" [27]. As a part of achieving this vision, design projects that emphasize social responsibility and community involvement are planned for the entire curriculum.

The introduction to engineering course entitled "Designing the Future" is structured to introduce students simultaneously to the excitement of the engineering design process, the ethic of social responsibility that is essential for all engineers, and the critical elements that inform engineering thought in general. In this paper we present the TOYtech design project (short for Teaching Our Youth Technology) used in our first-year introduction to engineering course at Smith College during the 2000-2001 academic year. The TOYtech project also serves as the vehicle for our collaboration with the Institute for Women and Technology (IWT), an organization that seeks to increase the involvement of women in conceiving of new uses for technology through the formation of partnerships between institutions of higher learning and local community members. The goal of the TOYtech project is for students to design gender-neutral toys that teach children about technology. A secondary aim is to publicize the project in order to broaden the public perception of engineering as a profession in service to humanity. This paper details the aims and methods of implementation of the TOYtech project, as well as project outcomes and evaluation.

II. BACKGROUND

While women comprise 47% of the U.S. workforce, they represent only 22% of workers in science, mathematics, engineering, and technology (SMET) fields [24]. The statistics regarding female representation among practicing engineers are even more discouraging: only 9% of the engineering workforce is comprised of women. Yet at the same time, industry demand for qualified engineers is soaring: in the decade between 1998 and 2008, the United States faces an anticipated increase of 51% (or 1.9 million jobs) in SMET fields, without a comparable projected growth in the number of skilled workers in these areas [24]. According to the Commission for the Advancement of Women and Minorities in Science, Engineering, and Technology Development (CAWMSET) [7], if women and other underrepresented groups are utilized within the SMET workforce on parity with their representation in the general workforce, this predicted "workforce crisis" may be averted. In response to this anticipated crisis, numerous national engineering societies and representatives from industry and academia alike have espoused the goal of increasing the recruitment and retention of women and minorities in engineering. This relatively recent emphasis on diversifying the SMET workforce is not entirely driven by the anticipated shortage in skilled workers, for many have recognized the value of diversity in engineering teams.