6 May 2002
Copyright © 2002 World Expertise LLC – All rights
reserved
A periodic electronic newsletter for engineering education leaders,
edited by Russel C. Jones, PhD., P.E.
1)
Commonwealth
nations plan virtual university
2)
United
Arab Emirates develops e-store
3)
France
moves to support young researchers
4)
African
Virtual University scales back
5)
Britain
faces shortage of researchers
6)
Electronic
waste to be recycled in Europe
7)
United
Arab Emirates plans petroleum virtual university
8)
Pacific-rim
countries consider virtual university
9)
Britain
develops model for corporate continuing education
10)
Russian
Universities suffer from bribery and corruption
11)
Hong Kong
advised to consolidate university programs
12)
Arab
grantmaking foundation started
13)
New rules
on student visas
14)
Universities
asked to work on computer security
15)
Science
results used for political aims
16)
International
studies and research constrained by security concerns
17)
State
budget problems impact their public colleges
18)
Office of
Technology Assessment could return
19)
Faculty
salaries rose in 2001-02
20)
President
Bush outlines AmeriCorps expansion
21)
Slovakian
universities barred from fees for distance education
22)
Chinese
universities working with overseas institutions
23)
Cost
issues in online learning
24)
Ford and
General Motors offer distance education to employees
25)
Nebraska
researchers quantify “link rot”
26)
Cybersecurity
needs basic research
27)
9/11
events lead to curriculum changes
28)
Early
admission decision mechanism being dropped by some
29)
Engineering
graduates not well prepared for 21st century practice
30)
Challenges
in internationalizing undergraduate education
31)
NSF
survey shows fewer foreign students
32)
Hispanic
– serving colleges seek more federal funding
33)
IJEE
special issue on assessment
34)
EJEE
special issue on ICT in engineering education
_____________________________________________________________________
International developments
1) The 54 Commonwealth Nations are planning to create a
virtual university designed to benefit the organization’s smaller states,
according to a note in the Chronicle of Higher Education by Daniel del
Castillo. The Commonwealth comprises some 1.7 billion people who share a common
heritage from formerly being part of Great Britain’s colonial empire. The
planned virtual university would serve about 30 of the member states, those with
populations less than 1.5 million people. It would address the ‘digital
divide’ between nations in the group, and would aid challenged countries to
deliver the caliber of higher education that is available throughout much of the
developed world. It is hoped that the virtual university could start delivering
courses as early as 2004. See http://chronicle.com/free/2002/04/2002042301u.htm
2) A new electronic store has been launched in the United
Arab Emirates, aimed at providing computers to students in that country, and
eventually throughout the Middle East. According to a note in the Chronicle by
Daniel del Castillo, the e-store is to provide a large array of computer
hardware, software, textbooks, and educational materials to students from one
virtual location. It addresses the need for easier access to educational tools
in the region. See http://chronicle.com/free/2002/04/2002042501t.htm
3) Several new programs are helping young scientists to
achieve unprecedented levels of independence in France, although major changes
in the ‘mandarin system’ of powerful lab heads may be a long way off.
Writing in the 26 April 2002 issue of Science, Michael Balter describes a
‘mandarinate’ – a quasi-feudal hierarchy that has concentrated funds and
vested power in a relatively few lab and institute chiefs. But now French
officials have launched a series of initiatives that give promising young
researchers their own funds and lab space. The driving force for such change
appears to be better treatment of young researchers in other countries,
resulting in a brain drain for France. See http://www.sciencemag.org
4) The African Virtual University, short on money, has made
major changes in its operations according to articles in the Chronicle by
Dan Carnevale and Wachira Kigotho. It has closed its Washington headquarters,
and shifted management operations to its office in Nairobi, Kenya. And it has
dropped plans to offer its own degree programs in a variety of disciplines, and
will instead concentrate on delivering computer-science and business programs
from established institutions. The effort is being funded by major international
agencies, which have committed $16.2-million to date. It is delivering courses
to 31 learning centers currently, in sub-Saharan Africa. See http://chronicle.com/free/2002/04/2002041501u.htm
and http://chronicle.com/free/2002/05/2002050201u.htm
5) Britain is facing a serious shortage of top-quality
researchers in the physical sciences, engineering, and mathematics, according to
a comprehensive report issued by its government. As reported by Kate Galbraith
in the Chronicle, the report states that poor academic conditions and
insufficiently attractive career opportunities are causing students to shun
these disciplines. While enrollments have increased in information technology
and biological sciences in Britain in recent years, other scientific disciplines
have seen decreases. These decreases have occurred even as the demand for
talented researchers has surged. The report cites specific barriers: outdated
labs and equipment, student debt, lack of coordination between high schools and
colleges, paltry stipends for graduate students and postdocs, and too few women
in the pipeline. It recommends ways to address these issues, including funding
for laboratory upgrading and increased student stipends. See http://chronicle.com/daily/2002/04/2002042306n.htm
6) Electronic waste in Europe is growing so fast that it will double between 1998 and 2010, according to European Union projections. As reported in the May 2002 issue of IEEE Spectrum by Alec Applebaum and Tekla Perry, regulators are scrambling to steer old computer components out of landfills in order to control pollution of water supplies. The European Union is preparing a directive to address this issue, which will require that manufacturers take used machines back for free and recycle 65% of their average weight. It is expected that this directive, expected to be fully implemented by 2008, will lead manufacturers to produce more efficient designs – easier to disassemble and break down. The article in IEEE Spectrum also describes in detail how recycling works, and includes status reports on recycling trends in the US and in Japan. See http://www.spectrum.ieee.org
7) The United Arab Emirates is planning a virtual
university focusing on petroleum, according to a note in the Chronicle by
Daniel del Castillo. Abu Dhabi Petroleum University will open in August 2002
with some 25 masters degree students. It will operate entirely online, primarily
serving professionals who are already working in the petroleum industry. Faculty
members will be largely Americans and Britons, with interactions conducted via
the Internet. Expected to draw students from throughout the Gulf region, the
program will take three semesters to complete. See http://chronicle.com/free/2002/04/2002041201u.htm
8) Pacific-rim colleges in 15 countries are considering the
formation of an international virtual university, according to an article in the
Chronicle by David Cohen. The geographic
reach of the proposed ‘international cyberuniversity’, throughout Asia and
the Pacific region, would require resolution of technological issues and
linguistic roadblocks. Institutions in Japan, Thailand, and Vietnam are among
those meeting to develop plans. See http://chronicle.com/free/2002/04/2002042401u.htm
9) Engineering companies tend to provide more training than
other sectors, motivated by rapid changes in technology and business. As
reported by Toby Shelley in the April 11 issue of the Financial Times, the
Engineering Employees Foundation in Britain has developed a ‘people skills
scoreboard’ to assist companies in determining how much they should invest in
such training. The scoreboard allows companies to compare themselves with their
peers, thus providing a point of reference. According to the scoreboard the
average annual amount spent for off-site training by engineering companies is
224 pounds per employee, with electronic firms higher at 366 pounds and
aerospace firms even higher at 620 pounds. See http://www.ft.com
10) Reports of bribe-taking and other corruption at Russian
Universities have increased dramatically over the past year, according to that
country’s interior ministry. As reported by Bryon MacWilliams in the Chronicle,
more than 100 incidents of such abuses were confirmed last year, an increase
of 32% over 2000 levels. The ministry says that reported cases are just the tip
of the iceberg, however, and that corruption is so prevalent that it costs many
students $10,000 to $15,000 just to get admitted to well-regarded universities.
The overall amount paid by students and their parents in such ‘unofficial’
educational costs is estimated at $2- to $5-billion annually. See http://chronicle.com/daily/2002/04/2002041803n.htm
11) Hong Kong should focus its spending on a select few
universities, according to a semiautonomous governmental body. As reported in
the Chronicle by Jen Lin-Liu, the University Grants Committee recommends
concentrating the limited funds available on building up a select few of its
eight public universities in order to allow those few to compete effectively
internationally. Such a policy would hopefully make institutions decide what
their strengths are, and have them focus their resources in those areas. It has
been proposed that rather than duplicating courses at each institution, students
should be allowed to move more freely between institutions – transferring
credits readily. See http://chronicle.com/daily/2002/04/2002041208n.htm
12) A unique grantmaking foundation for Arab scientists, modeled after the US National Science Foundation, hopes to award its first research grants next year. As reported in the April 5 issue of Science by Jeffrey Mervis, the private Arab Science and Technology Foundation is expecting a contribution of almost $20-million from a private donor in the next few months. Initial grants are expected to be in the areas of water and energy, biotechnology, new materials, and information technology. Proposals will be evaluated similar to NSF procedures, and researchers held accountable for how the money is spent – a new approach for Arab scientists, who are used to getting allocated government money and just spending it. See http://www.sciencemag.org
13) U.S. immigration officials have announced new rules on
student visas, according to an article by Sara Hebel in the Chronicle. Foreign
visitors who are visiting the U.S. and want to study at an American university
now will have to wait to begin their course work until they obtain a student
visa, effective immediately. Previously such visitors could start studies while
awaiting the processing of a request to change a tourist visa to a student visa.
The change has been made due to concerns that potential terrorists could enter
the country on a tourist or business visa and be able to extend their stay
without strict scrutiny. Higher
education officials see no problem with the change as long as the INS follows
through on a promised 30-day turn around on such requests. See http://chronicle.com/daily/2002/04/2002040902n.htm.
In a related action, the U.S. Senate has approved legislation that calls for new
background checks on student visa applicants from countries that the State
Department considers to be sponsors of terrorism. The House has passed similar legislation, and the President is
expected to sign the measure. The bill, which college lobbyists endorse, would
improve the training and pay of INS employees charged with making the checks.
See http://chronicle.com/daily/2002/04/2002042201n.htm
14) White House officials have asked universities to help
create a national computer-security strategy, according to an article by Dan
Carnevale in the Chronicle. A special advisor to the President on
cyberspace security has asked institutions to coordinate their research efforts
and to develop guidelines for protecting technology systems from outside
attacks. Institutions and their umbrella organizations have already begun to
coordinate their efforts in cybersecutity research. See http://chronicle.com/free/2002/04/2002041901t.htm
Several organizations concerned with university computer technologies have
agreed to make security a more visible priority on campuses, ensuring that this
infrastructure remains secure and reliable. See http://chronicle.com/free/2002/04/2002041801t.htm
15) President Bush’s administration and its critics are
increasingly using ‘science’ to bolster their policy proposals, according to
an article in the Washington Post by Eric Planin. Examples are the
President’s pulling out of the global warming treaty, saying that he was not
convinced by scientific research that the problem was all that serious;
postponing the adoption of tough new standards for arsenic in drinking water,
citing conflicting scientific studies; opposing increased fuel efficiency
standards for autos; and relaxing a proposed ban on snowmobiling in Yellowstone
National Park. The Bush administration’s approach to science policy has become
increasingly controversial, as the White House seems to use studies selectively
to fit its policy agenda and to justify industry-friendly changes in
environmental regulations. Other controversial decisions have been the
designation of Yucca Mountain as the site for nuclear waste disposal, and
efforts to allow drilling for oil in Alaska and for natural gas in Wyoming. See http://www.washingtonpost.com
16) The Bush administration may bar some international
students from ‘sensitive’ academic fields, according to a note in the Chronicle
by Stephen Burd. Areas that have a direct application to the development and
use of weapons of mass destruction are being targeted for such exclusions.
University officials are pressing to be involved in discussions going on in the
Bush administration in this area. An interagency working group has been charged
with identifying sensitive areas of study. See http://chronicle.com/free/2002/04/2002041501n.htm
In a related area, the government has issued new regulations governing
satellite-based research between American and foreign researchers. University
researchers are frustrated that they need State Department approval to share
information – even on published research – with colleagues in most other
countries. State Department officials say there is not a real problem, in that
most requests are approved, within a couple of months. The penalty for violating
the State Department rules is $ 1-million. See http://chronicle.com/daily/2002/04/2002041801n.htm
17) States with the biggest budget deficits are taking aim
at higher education to achieve balance, according to an article in the Chronicle
by Jeffrey Selingo. Campuses in California, Tennessee and Wisconsin are
cutting programs, freezing hiring, or raising tuition due to state support cuts.
While there are signs that the nation is coming out of the recession, it could
be this fall before many states see the effects of any upturn – so state
decision makers are being conservative in their budgeting. With cuts in their
budgets, university administrators in state supported schools are concluding
that they cannot continue to ‘do it all’, so programs are being cut. See http://chronicle.com/free/v48/i32/32a02401.htm
18) The Office of Technology Assessment could return,
according to an article in the April 2002 issue of Mechanical Engineering by
Francis Dietz. Legislation has been introduced in the House to bring about the
return of OTA, which Congress eliminated in a 1995 budget-cutting move. Congress
originally established OTA in 1972, to provide objective, nonpartisan technical
information to its committees. During its years of existence, OTA studied such
areas as the strategic defense initiative, sustainable development in
agriculture, urban transportation policy, and the viability of generic drugs. If
the bill is approved by Congress and signed by the President, finding the money
to support a revived OTA will still be a problem. See http://www.memagazine.org/
19) The American Association of University Professors has
reported that faculty salaries rose 3.8% in 2001-02, the largest increase in 11
years, according to an article in the Chronicle by Robin Wilson. But AAUP
warns that the events of September 11 and the recession it propelled will almost
certainly lead to a decline in faculty pay increases for the coming year.
University budgets for next year are being set now, at a time when most states
are seeing constant declining tax revenues. See http://chronicle.com/free/v48/i32/32a10110.htm
20) President Bush has unveiled a detailed blueprint for his plan to expand AmeriCorps and other national service plans, according to an article by Sara Hebel in the Chronicle. To implement his announcement in the State of the Union speech, where he proposed to expand AmeriCorps by 50% to 75,000 individuals, the President has called for increasing funding by 56.4% to $638-million. His proposal also calls for raising the value of the $4725 education awards that participants receive, allowing more flexibility in using them, and requiring colleges to increase the percentage of work-study positions that involve community service. Congress appears to be generally supportive of the basic request for such program increases. See http://chronicle.com/daily/2002/04/2002041001n.htm
21) Slovakian
universities are denouncing a new law that bars public universities from
charging fees for popular distance education programs, saying that it is
counterproductive. As reported by Burton Bollag in the Chronicle, about
40,000 ‘external students’ are enrolled in Slovakia’s public higher
education institutions – paying from $250 to $650 per year. The country’s
92,000 normal day students study free of charge. In recent years, external study
programs have helped meet a need for increased demand for higher education, and
have become an important source of income for the schools. The education
minister, in defending the new law, says that every citizen must have equal
access to university education – and that fees make it hard for poor people to
study. Universities say that they will be forced to cut back on the external
programs without the fees, so that it will be impossible for thousands of
students to study at all. See http://chronicle.com/free/2002/04/2002041101u.htm
22) Chinese
universities have begun working with overseas institutions on distance education
programs, according to a note in the Chronicle by Jen Lin-Liu. Chinese
officials have for a decade been aggressively developing distance education as a
way to deliver courses to students throughout the country. Now courses from
Australia and the United States are being offered through local universities, in
English. A Shanghai newspaper has reported that local institutions were
cooperating with overseas universities in hopes of joining the global school
elite. See http://chronicle.com/free/2002/04/2002043001u.htm
23) Cost issues in
online learning are addressed in a major article in the May/June issue of Change
by Jane Sjogren and James Fay. Noting that most universities are feeling
pressure to offer distance education to fulfill their missions, the authors
indicate that many find it difficult to know how to do it within their
resources. This article proposes a model that is different than ‘continuing
education’, where online learning is treated as an operation outside the core
operations of the university and thus expected to pay for itself. Instead, the
authors propose a model where online learning is integrated into the core
mission of the university, using carefully selected partners to assist with
advice and selected services. The article also identifies the cost components of
internet-based learning, including course design, course delivery and support,
faculty development, and student support. See http://www.heldref.org
24) Ford Motor
Company and General Motors are sponsoring programs that will let employees earn
degrees through distance education, according to an article in the Chronicle by
Michael Arnone. Ford plans to offer employees at dealerships nationwide the
opportunity to earn online bachelor’s degrees in business administration,
specializing in automotive marketing and management. GM will offer online
master’s degrees in business administration to its employees. Employees at
auto dealerships typically have a high turnover rate, and Ford hopes that its
program will give it a competitive edge in attracting and retaining good people.
Ford will provide the offerings, but local dealers and their employees will pay
for them. The GM program is aimed at its direct employees, not those at
dealerships, and the company will pay the tuition costs. See http://chronicle.com/free/2002/04/2002041801u.htm
25) Nebraska
researchers are measuring the extent of ‘link rot’ in distance education,
according to an article by Vincent Kiernan in the Chronicle. The
phenomenon is caused when courses have embedded hyperlinks to Web pages that
have moved or ceased to exist. In three graduate level courses examined at their
university, 515 hyperlinks contained in online materials had expired since their
creation in August 2000. The authors postulate that ‘link rot’ is similar to
the rate of decay of radioactive substances, where links have a half-life of 55
months. These results indicate a practical problem for online courses; courses
need to be rechecked periodically to remove or update any expired links. See http://chronicle.com/free/2002/04/2002041001u.htm
26) Cybersecurity
must become a priority in basic research on computer systems, according to an
article in The Bridge by William Wulf and Anita Jones. The authors note
that the present ‘perimeter defense’ model is fragile, and that patching
software each time a new attack is successful does not address the fundamental
problem of cyberterrorism. National defense systems are a juicy target for
sophisticated state-sponsored intruders, as are our financial cybersystems. No
one knows how vulnerable we really are, since costly attacks made to date have
not been made public. The authors address four critical needs: the need for a
new model to replace the perimeter defense model; the need for a new definition
of cybersecurity; the need for an active defense; and the need for coordinated
activities by cyber-communities, the legal system, and regulatory systems. See http://www.nae.edu/TheBridge
27) The September
11 attacks could alter the course of engineering education as schools redesign
their classes and reorder their research priorities in response to the crisis,
according to an article by Alvin Sanoff in the April 2002 issue of Prism. Courses
are being changed to address the design of safer high-rise buildings, issues
such as security and surveillance, the history of biological and chemical
warfare, and even Islam in the modern era. The author states that the more
future engineers study the collapse of the Twin Towers, the more likely they are
to build skyscrapers and other facilities capable of withstanding threats which
they could not have imagined only a short time ago. See http://www.asee.org/prism
Similar arguments are put forth in an article in the Spring 2002 issue of The
Bridge, by Robert Prieto. He argues that the three R’s for the 21st
century are resistance, response, and recovery. See http://www.nae.edu/TheBridge
28) Concluding that
early admission decisions do not serve students well, several institutions are
considering dropping the mechanism. Under early decision, selective universities
allow some number of highly qualified students to get a quick response from
their first-choice institution in exchange for a promise to attend if admitted.
The mechanism has been criticized for putting too much pressure on high school
students to speed up their decision-making, and for favoring wealthier students
who do not need to shop around for financial aid packages. The University of
North Carolina at Chapel Hill has announced that it will drop the mechanism next
year, according to an article in the Chronicle by Christopher Flores. See
http://chronicle.com/daily/2002/04/2002042504n.htm
Other colleges have been reluctant to take unilateral action in ending
early decisions, fearing that they would lose out in the battle for top
scholars. Yale University’s President has called for an end to the practice at
Ivy League schools, but is worried that any joint action might bring government
action due to antitrust concerns. Yale has asked for a letter from the Justice
Department indicating that in this case no antitrust action would be brought,
according to an article by Gary Putka and John Wilke in the May 3 issue of the Wall
Street Journal. See http://www.wsj.com
29) Today’s
engineering schools are not preparing their graduates as well as they might for
useful practice in the 21st century, according to an article by
William Wulf and George Fisher in the Spring 2002 Issues in Science and
Technology. The authors note that the changing nature of international trade
and the subsequent restructuring of industry, the shift from defense to civilian
applications, the use of new materials and biological processes, and the
explosion of information technology have dramatically changed the practice of
engineering. But in their judgment, engineering education – the profession’s
basic source of training and skill – is not able to keep up with the changing
demands. The authors argue that curricula need to be changed to reflect new
fundamentals such as discrete mathematics, biological sciences, and knowledge of
global cultural and business contexts. They argue that the bachelor’s degree
is no longer sufficient for engineering practice, and that the first
professional degree must be longer. And they argue for formalized lifelong
learning, greater diversity in the engineering workforce, and technological
literacy in the general population. See http://www.nap.edu/issues
30) The challenge
of internationalizing undergraduate education is discussed by Madeleine Green in
the May/June 2002 issue of Change. Noting that American college graduates
will live and work in a world where national borders are permeable, information
and ideas flow at lightening speed, and communities and workplaces reflect a
growing diversity, the author argues that an undergraduate education today must
produce graduates who will be productive both locally and globally and who
understand that the fates of nations, individuals
and the planet are inextricably linked. Internationalism is a change that
is both broad – affecting departments, schools and activities across the
institution – and deep, expressed in institutional culture, values, policies,
and practices. According to the author, the gap between institutional rhetoric
on internationalism and its realization in institutional behaviors is striking
on many campuses. This article is based on a forthcoming publication by the
American Council on Education, Promising Practices in Internationalization, scheduled
for the Summer of 2002. See http://www.heldref.org
31) Fewer foreign
students are flowing into science and engineering graduate programs in the U.S.,
more women are earning doctoral degrees in the sciences, and the number of
colleges winning federal funds for research is dropping, according to a new
report by the National Science Foundation. As reported in the Chronicle by
Ron Southwick, the drop in foreign graduate students is at least partially due
to the ability of countries such as China and Korea to train their own students
in scientific fields. The drop in number of institutions getting federal
research funds ends a 20-year growth period; most institutions involved in that
drop are community colleges and liberal arts colleges. The number of women
earning Ph.D.’s in the sciences and engineering rose from 6932 in 1991 to 9396
in 2000, while the number of men earning doctorates in these fields dropped from
8585 to 7909 in the same period. See http://chronicle.com/daily/2002/05/2002050103n.htm
32) An association
of Hispanic college administrators has announced a legislative agenda aimed at
increasing federal support to institutions that serve large numbers of Hispanic
and Latino students, according to an article by Richard Morgan in the Chronicle.
The group has called on Congress to provide 50% more funds for such colleges
under the Higher Education Act, in 2003. The primary thrust of such increased
funds would be to develop facilities, curricula, and endowments at
Hispanic-serving colleges. In his budget request, President Bush proposed an
increase of only about 3.6% for such institutions. See http://chronicle.com/daily/2002/04/2002041602n.htm
33) The International
Journal of Engineering Education has released a special issue on Assessment,
edited by Gloria Rogers. Some 15 major papers address various aspects of
assessment, including employer input, trust, outcomes, value engineering,
accreditation considerations, student teamwork, capstone courses, and
engineering portfolios. See volume 18, number 2, 2002 at http://www.ijee.dit.ie
34) The European
Journal of Engineering Education has released its March 2002 issue, with a
heavy focus on Information and Communication Technologies in Engineering
Education. Papers describe supporting student projects at a distance, evaluating
the use of ICT, integration of ICT into project-based learning, distance
teaching in a cross-Atlantic collaboration, laboratories in distance education,
and implementing ICT faculty-wide. See http://taylorandfrancis.metapress.com
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