Beyond planned learning objectives: Entrepreneurial education as the source of accidental competencies for engineering students
- Publisher:
- Curran Associates, Inc.
- Publication Type:
- Conference Proceeding
- Citation:
- 9th Research in Engineering Education Symposium and 32nd Australasian Association for Engineering Education Conference, REES AAEE 2021: Engineering Education Research Capability Development, 2021, 1, pp. 472-480
- Issue Date:
- 2021-01-01
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CONTEXT A growing number of educational institutions and professional associations are emphasizing the importance of an entrepreneurial mindset and competencies in engineers and other technical professionals. The inclusion of entrepreneurship education components in engineering activities contributes to the development of technological innovations, which are aimed at solving essential social and human problems. However, despite the value of entrepreneurship education for engineers, there are limited approaches to evaluation that consider the complexity of the learning process and emerging practices. PURPOSE OR GOAL The purpose of this study is to understand the competencies that engineering students develop through participation in entrepreneurial educational activities. The learning process of engineering students was investigated through the lens of Accidental Competency Formation concept. Additionally, in this study, the authors evaluated how the chosen theoretical lenses provide understanding about the role of specific learning activities in forming students' competences. APPROACH OR METHODOLOGY/METHODS The authors followed the interpretive methodology and used in-depth semi-structured interviews as the data collection method. This research is qualitative and serves as a reminder of importance of students' perceptions and beliefs in understanding the effect of educational interventions on students' formation. Data was collected from 11 engineering students, who participated in the UTS Techcelerator 2020 program, which is a deep tech early-stage accelerator designed to promote prototyping skills for technology students. ACTUAL OR ANTICIPATED OUTCOMES The main outcome of the study is the elicitation of the three different accidental competencies such as self-regulation, adaptability and empathy, which are formed in the engineering students participating in entrepreneurial activities. Additionally, сertain activities and elements of the Techcelerator program educational process were identified as having a particular impact on the formation of competencies, based on students' accounts. CONCLUSIONS/RECOMMENDATIONS/SUMMARY This study provides a holistic approach that allows evaluating the role of entrepreneurial activities in the formation of engineering students' competencies, considering the complexity of the learning process. This conclusion is based on the fact that this study revealed formation of students' competencies that are not projected in program's learning objectives.
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