Education

We train engineers to identify clear and actionable pathways toward socially- and environmentally-responsive technology solutions to our current and future challenges. UConn Engineering students can earn a Human Rights Minor at the undergraduate level – the only program of its kind in the U.S.A. We are innovating to develop curriculum at other levels that will equip students and professionals working around the world with knowledge and skillsets to engage with human rights issues. Our approach is to teach students the theory, help them assess the practice critically, and learn by doing (see our articles" Engineering and Human Rights: Teaching Across the Divide," "Teaching Engineering for Human Rights: Lessons Learned from a case study-based undergraduate class," and our book chapter "Engineering for human rights in Teaching Business and Human Rights, for more information).

Readings

Engineering Education in Human Rights and Sustainability: Exploring Students’ Motivations and the Learning Outcomes from an Undergraduate Class at the University of Connecticut

Abstract: How does a Human Rights framework in engineering curriculum affect undergraduate students’ attitudes and opinions of sustainability and human rights? Deepening inequality worldwide, aggravated by climate injustices and the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, has increased engineering scholars’ awareness of the necessity of developing a new engineering pedagogy and corresponding ethical framework to prepare an engineering workforce that can perform successfully and efficiently in multicultural and globalized settings. The University of Connecticut (UConn) has pioneered in developing a curriculum that equips engineering students with core concepts and methodological tools necessary to analyze the role of engineering in society, using a Human Rights framework. This paper explores learning outcomes in an existing course within this curriculum (i.e., “Engineering for Human Rights”) by analyzing original exit survey data from enrolled students. Our survey instrument integrated New Ecological Paradigm (NEP) statements to assess variation in perceptions of the usefulness of the course content as it relates to sustainability. The findings of this study have implications and suggestions for designing interdisciplinary curricula that integrate engineering, sustainability, and human rights in engineering education.

Lee, M., & Chacon-Hurtado, D., & Hertel, S., & Fenn, S. (2024, June), Engineering Education in Human Rights and Sustainability: Exploring Students’ Motivations and the Learning Outcomes from an Undergraduate Class at the University of Connecticut Paper presented at 2024 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition, Portland, Oregon. 10.18260/1-2--47279

 

Teaching Engineering for Human Rights: Lessons Learned from a case study-based undergraduate class

Abstract: Engineering and technological developments are at the core of societal change, influencing and being influenced by society's cultural, political, economic, and socio-technical context. However, traditional engineering education tends not to equip future engineers with the critical thinking and tools necessary for interpreting their obligations in relation to codes of professional ethics and the duty to hold paramount the safety, health, and welfare of the public. Ongoing environmental and societal challenges (ranging from social inequality to the climate crisis) urgently require the development of an engineering workforce that can perform successfully in a multicultural and globalized world. This paper shares the pedagogy and lessons learned from implementing an undergraduate course at the University of Connecticut based on a Human Rights-Based Approach to Engineering called "Engineering for Human Rights."

Chacon-Hurtado, D., & Sirota, S., & Hertel, S. (2022, August), Teaching Engineering for Human Rights: Lessons Learned from a case study-based undergraduate class Paper presented at 2022 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition, Minneapolis, MN. 10.18260/1-2--41593