CCE STEM: Collaborative Research: Efficacy of Macroethics Education in Engineering

Seattle University, Seattle WA

Investigators

Abstract

Non-Technical: This award by the Cultivating Cultures of Ethical STEM program in the Directorate for Social, Behavioral & Economic Sciences is managed by the Biomaterials program in the Division of Materials Research. The goal of this collaborative project at University of Colorado at Boulder, Tufts University and Seattle University is to evaluate the various ways in which macroethics is taught in STEM topics (both in and out of the classroom), and determine the most effective methods that can then be adopted by others. In order for STEM areas to reach its full potential to benefit society, students must be prepared to engage in broad considerations of the ethical issues that face the profession. Established codes of conduct describe standards for professional behavior, but these largely relate to individual actions associated with individual projects, so-called 'micro'-ethical considerations. But engineering and other STEM areas fall short of its societal duties, if it ignores 'macro'-ethical challenges - ethical issues that must consider societal implications of technology as well as the collective responsibility of the STEM profession. Macroethics includes issues such as sustainability, poverty and underdevelopment, security and peace, social justice, bioethics, nanoscience, and social responsibility. The extent to which STEM students graduate with an understanding of macroethical issues is unclear, and is in need of organization. The research will start with a large survey of STEM faculty across the U.S., followed by interviews of selected faculty who are effectively using a diversity of methods to teach a range of macroethical issues. In addition, a set of case studies that can serve as models for others will be developed. Best practices that are identified will be propagated through STEM education via a faculty training workshop and online resources. Technical: There is a need for STEM education to prepare students to address macroethical issues such as social responsibility and sustainability. The extent to which students graduate with an understanding of macroethical issues is unclear and in need of organization. The goal of this research is to evaluate the various ways in which macroethics is taught in STEM topics, examining variations in pedagogy and content between different STEM disciplines and institution types. Macroethics educational practices will be examined through Vanasupa's Four-Domain Development Model, which includes both cognitive and affective outcomes, as well as the impact of social context. The methods that are most appealing and successful for educating women and minority students in STEM will be determined. The research goals will be achieved through: (1) a national survey and targeted interviews of ethics instructors; (2) a case study approach to identify effective macroethical instruction settings based on student surveys and interviews, rubric assessment of student work, ethnographic observations, and surveys/interviews with alumni regarding the impacts of ethics education in their practice of STEM topics; and (3) propagate and scale the best practices of macroethics education using approaches similar to that of NSF's I-Corps-L model. Instructors at Seattle University and the University of Colorado will adapt effective methods in their teaching. Dissemination will include a faculty workshop, project website, and publications.