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Teaching philosophy to engineering students

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 Session M4A

Teaching Philosophy to Engineering Students

John Heywood
Trinity College Dublin, heywoodj@eircom.net

William Grimson
Dublin Institute of Technology, wiliam.gimson@dit.ie

Russell Korte
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, korte@uiuc.edu

Abstract – The intention of this paper is to accompany research and development in these areas. The purpose of
the two special sessions on teaching philosophy in this paper is to review these recent discussions in the
engineering courses as a vehicle for reflection on the light of the questions posed above with the intention of
subject matter of these sessions. outlining areas for research.
In recent years there have been substantial
international discussions on the subject of engineering Keywords: engineering education, ethics, philosophy,
and philosophy. The second of two international philosophical reasoning.
workshops on philosophy and engineering was held at
the Royal Academy of Engineering in November 2008. INTRODUCTION
Many of the outcomes of these deliberations have a The intention of this paper is to accompany the special
bearing on the engineering curriculum and they coincide sessions at this conference on “Teaching Philosophy in
with a resurgent debate about content and method in the Engineering Courses” (Heywood, Grimson and Korte) and
liberal education of engineers. At FIE 2007 and 2008 “Developing Engineering Students Philosophical Inquiry
special sessions and a number of papers focused on Skills” (Korte and Smith). Its purpose is to provide the
engineering education and the more specific philosophy reader (participant) with a vehicle for reflection on the
of education. These developments will be reviewed. subject matter of these special sessions.
One of the emerging issues that relate philosophy and During the last five years there have been on-going
the psychology of development has been the treatment of discussions about philosophy and engineering on the one
ethics within the context of moral development. Another hand [1] and the application of the philosophy of education
emerging issue, the principle subject of this paper, is the to the engineering curriculum on the other hand [2]. Several
idea that in addition to ethics philosophy should be of those engaged in those discussions have advocated the
taught to engineering students. But the proponents of teaching of philosophy in the curriculum [3], and in one
this view do not, it seems, speak with one voice and this case, the Danish Government has made the teaching of the
for the want of a more substantial and focused debate on philosophy of technology as a mandatory component in the
the issue. The different views may be posed as questions liberal education of engineers [4]. The concerns of this paper
thus: Should, philosophy be taught as a separate course are with the desirability of teaching philosophy to
or integrated into existing programmes, as for example engineering students.
design where there is already a relevant and high quality Various reasons have been given for such study. Among
literature? If philosophy is taught as a separate course is them the instrumental view that a study of the philosophy of
its purpose to provide an understanding of the engineering might (a) contribute to the quality of
traditional disciplines of philosophy and the bearing they professional practice, and (b) assist the profession to
have on engineering, or is it to help students acquire a reformulate its identity. In contrast there is the view that it
philosophical disposition (habit of mind)? If it is the contributes to the development of the whole person, i.e., the
latter how does that differ from the commonly held goal view of those who believe that engineering provides an
of higher education- the development of skill in reflective inadequate compass of liberal education. Whether these
(critical) thinking? Or, is it about training students in the views are reconcilable would seem to be a function of how
use of philosophical techniques in engineering? And in the students are taught and what they are asked to do.
respect of the last question is that liberal education? Although there are problems with definitions the case put by
Apart from some European studies of the attitudes of those for liberal education is often couched in terms that
engineering teachers to the introduction of philosophy without it engineers by and large will find it difficult to
into engineering programmes and American work on inhabit the higher circles of political and social decision
moral development there has been little relevant making. Some commentators argued that professional
engineering has lost its identity [5] so it is around the

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concept of identity that the first half of this discussion is educators as members of the profession have these same
centered. responsibilities and if they adopt them they will have to ask
For convenience this discussion is centered on the three how the curriculum might better serve wellbeing. If
crises of engineering identity identified by Dias [6]. He “engineering courses […] give greater emphasis to the goal
argues that there are crises of engineering influence, of benefits in terms of the quality of life of individuals” there
engineering role and engineering knowledge. is it seems, from studies such as those by Seymour and
Hewitt [11], a chance that engineering will assert a more
ENGINEERING INFLUENCE general appeal among the public and students in particular.
Interest by organizations such as the Chinese Academy of However, a reality check shows that there is a long way to
Sciences, The National Academy of Engineering and the go when “service courses” focussed on work in communities
Royal Academy of Engineering arises at a time when the and the developing world, the “low tech” required by
public policy of these academies is concerned with the poor developing nations [12], and more generally liberal
image that engineering has in many countries. It is education are held in such low esteem in engineering
sometimes expressed by distinguished engineers as the education communities.
inability of the profession to inhabit the higher circles of
THE CRISIS OF ENGINEERING ROLE
policy making not only in government but in corporations.
At other times it is expressed in concern about the failure to Dias who is a civil engineer expresses it in the question –“Is
recruit students to engineering programs at university and an engineer a scientist or a manager?” Other areas of
especially women. In these contexts it has to cope with engineering may see it differently. Schiaffonati for instance
critics who suggest that engineering has lost its identity . describes AI as “a science concerning the general
They raise questions as to the very nature of engineering. Or, intelligence and engineering devoted to the design of
to put it bluntly “what is engineering” as opposed to concrete systems” [13] which hardly implies management in
“science,” on the one hand or “technology” on the other the sense of civil engineering. Dias suggests that on
hand hence, the importance of the discussion on whether or occasions engineers have difficulty in explaining how their
not there is a philosophy of engineering that is distinct from role differs from that of technicians and craftsmen.
the philosophies of science and technology. It would seem to “Engineers need an understanding about who they are, in
be a sine qua non that engineering students should discuss other words about their being. The study of being is that
such issues. branch of philosophy called ontology.”
Dias considered that-“while there was a time when It is difficult to believe that such understanding could be
engineering was synonymous with progress and upliftment achieved without reflection and the development of this skill
of man, the technological society and environmental crisis is generally considered to be an important goal of higher
have raised the question as to whether engineers do more education.
harm than good the study of such rights and wrongs is that
branch of philosophy called ethics." THE CRISIS OF ENGINEERING KNOWLEDGE
Davis from his study of ethics in engineering concludes
that “in practice the ethics of engineers is as important to the Dias illustrates this crisis with the question “Is engineering
success of engineering as good design or testing is.” [7]. theoretical or practical?” Some authorities take engineering
That suitably translated could apply to any human endeavor. to be both an art and a science. But, is it? Questions like
The implications for the teaching of ethics are profound these are part of the more general epistemological question-
because it makes it much more than a discussion of codes of “what is engineering knowledge?” Engineering educators
conduct. It would seem that a unitary code goes some way to seem to be overwhelmingly on the side of the theoretical.
providing an underlying bond to the fragmentation that is The theoretical subjects, argues Dias are often “mathematics
perceived. in disguise. Engineering Practice on the other hand is largely
New pathways for the ethics curriculum are being practical in nature, and great reliance is placed on
developed that bring the work of philosophers firmly into established procedures (or ‘rules of thumb’), specified
play. For example, Bowen argues for an “aspirational guidelines (or codes of practice), and that indefinable
engineering ethic.” [8]. He suggests that engineering ethics element called ‘engineering judgement.’ Much importance is
can have practical outcomes in education, within attached to the ability to make qualitative judgements, a skill
professional associations and in industry and work practices. that engineering students are said to lack.
His approach appeals to the philosophies of Buber [9] in Much of the debate about engineering knowledge has
particular and McIntyre [10] as he sets out to redress the focussed on differences between engineering and science.
“imbalance between the prioritisation technical ingenuity Less attention has been paid to the use of tacit knowledge
over helping people.” He argues that engineers have a duty and how that tacit knowledge is obtained. The idea that
of care in the same way that teachers and doctors have. The engineering is simply the application of science as some
special capabilities that for promoting wellbeing which authorities hold is simply without foundation. If it were
engineers have also bring special responsibilities. The engineering would be tightly constrained and many
implications for teaching are profound for engineering innovations never happen. Often engineering is the cause of

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searches for principles. It was many years after they were design challenges qualitatively. Again this is a problem not
built that a rational understanding of how the pantheon, confined to students in design courses as Cowan has argued
Brunelleschi’s dome of the Basilica di Santa Maria del [22]. Goldberg suggests that students have difficulty in
Fiore, Marconi’s transmission of radio waves across the decomposing a big design problem into smaller sub-
Atlantic, and many electronic devises actually ‘worked’ problems. He suggests this may be resolved by helping them
before the theories that were developed explained ‘Why’. to think in Cartesian terms. Interestingly Simons in another
Engineers often make things without the scientific principles paper argued that engineering could contribute to philosophy
being understood. It is as Blockley points out both an art and because only recently “have philosophers though it worth
a science [14] and “much of what practitioners actually do is analyzing the concept of the part-whole relationship.” [23]
as a result of experience.” Part of that experience is The kind of analysis Simons presents might provide
education. How does that particular experience influence engineering students with another way of thinking about the
practice? sub problems of a design and how they might help a
At the heart of the philosophical endeavor is philosophy resolve a problem. Whereas, argues Goldberg an
understanding how we think and how others in different alternative to mathematical modeling might just depend “ on
fields think. Grimson has shown how the traditional simple experimentation or library work.”
divisions of philosophy (epistemology, metaphysics, ethics, One task of philosophical reasoning is the systematic
logic and aesthetics) are relevant to the teaching of ordering of thoughts, beliefs, ideas and habits into a coherent
engineering design [15]. But other approaches are possible, view of reality. For engineering educators, the process of
as for example the study of “isms,” [16] The study of philosophical inquiry helps to systematically identify,
individual philosophers, for example Wittengenstein [17] evaluate and synthesize the vast array of ideas into a more
can also throw light on many of these issues e.g “what is coherent system to guide practice. Rather than the
engineering knowledge?”- “How can engineering knowledge articulation of a single philosophy of engineering, Korte and
be built?” And, “what is the worth and value of engineering Smith propose the value of the process of articulating a
knowledge?” Price has shown how project based and philosophical stance for students and faculty alike. The value
research based approaches to design projects have of philosophical inquiry stems from addressing questions of
philosophical bases in Locke and Descartes respectively how, whether, and why [24]. The questions have a direct
[18]. Parodi [19] has shown how the philosophies of bearing on engineering education concerns in that one
Descartes and Bacon were apparent in “massive hydraulic determines, what is the case (informative), how to do things
engineering projects of the nineteen fifties. The “channels of and achieve aims (practical), and what to aim at
many rivers and brooks were corrected with lots of (evaluative/directive).
concrete”. Now “near natural engineering” that is Philosophical inquiry aims to resolve questions as
ecologically based has its foundations in Rousseau and rationally as possible given the chaotic nature of reality-and
romanticism. the debate about the nature of reality. The task of
A very substantial case can be made for the inclusion of philosophical inquiry is to develop a consistent and coherent
the study of the philosophy of engineering alongside ethics understanding of reality by systematically estimating this
in engineering courses and a contribution to liberal reality from the available data or information. Data for
education my be obtained through the cultivation of philosophical inquiry come from multiple sources, such as
reflective practice. There are several ways in which the cultural beliefs, and values, knowledge of social systems,
study may be approached. Additionally at an instrumental and the technical knowledge of science, experts and
level the teaching of the techniques of philosophy is also authorities. The outcome is the best available answer to a
relevant. problem rather than the best possible answer [25].
Furthermore, philosophical information is historically
TEACHING THE TECHNIQUES OF PHILOSOPHY grounded and socially situated. These two attributes of
The case for learning about the techniques of philosophy has philosophical information and data align with the focus of
been put by Goldberg [20], and Korte and Smith [21]. preparing engineering students to practice in the 21st century.
Goldberg suggests that senior design students have difficulty For example Searle talks about the misuse of the term
in asking questions although they are not alone in having objectivity by describing the concepts used to represent
this difficulty which is widespread in the student population. reality as subjective, socially constructed knowledge [26].
They also have difficulty in labeling technology and design Thus, even though the ontology of the world is objective
challenges. By this he means that while students know because it exists independently of our mental states, the
engineering science they know little about the engineering. ontology of our knowledge, tools, language, theories , and
In respect of patterns of failure or design challenges students concepts is subjective with a traceable formation in history.
have difficulty in giving consistent names to the patterns. In a related manner, Elster categorized the causal, functional,
Simons in an unpublished tutorial at the 2009 Workshop on and intentional characteristics of the physical, biological,
Philosophy and Engineering demonstrated how metaphysics and social sciences. He proposed that it is inappropriate to
could help with classification and pattern learning. Related strictly characterize the social sciences as casual or even
to this problem is, the difficulty students have in modeling functional. “Intentionality” is an inherent characteristic of

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social phenomena that cannot be rigorously reduced to cause student of engineering asks is “what will it help me
and effect models. become?” One of the issues here is how might the teaching
Both Searle and Elster provide support for a pragmatic of philosophy in engineering courses help students answer
view of an “applied science” such as engineering that that question.
requires interaction with the beneficiaries of work. It is in
the interaction of the social and the technical that A PHILOSOPHICAL HABIT OF MIND
engineering is grounded and, this according to Searle and Support for Harding’s view is to be found in Newman’s
Elster, require the pragmatic, the contingent, and subjective discourse on The Idea of a University. [34] He writes of
interpretation of problems. philosophy in a somewhat different way to that traditionally
It is evident that in many areas philosophy overlaps with associated with the term. He links philosophy, philosophical
the social sciences. This is no more apparent than in the spirit and enlargement or expansion of the mind together.
relationship between ethics and moral development. “And therefore, a philosophical cast of thought, or a
THE PSYCHOLOGY OF THE “OUGHT” comprehensive mind, or wisdom in conduct of policy,
implies a connected view of the old with the new; an insight
Harding’s approach to ethics is firmly based in cognitive into the bearing and influence of each part upon every other
psychology and greatly influenced by Kohlberg’s theory of without which there is no whole, and could be no centre. It is
moral development [28]. He, an engineer, was led to this the knowledge, not only of things, but of their mutual
through earlier work on cheating among engineering relations. It is organized, and therefore living knowledge.” It
students. He argues that recent research “suggests that the is evident that this could be applied to an artefact but that is
average person does not consider ethical dilemmas in the not the context. The context is a world-view that is part of
abstract. Instead ethical decision making appears to be a the person, the understanding that a person has of himself or
complex dance between an individual’s rational calculus of herself in relation to the things of this world. It is the
the ethical dilemmas and their emotional response to the disposition that one has to handle different situations that is
context of the dilemmas[…] in the trenches of daily life influenced by an understanding of who I am and what I want
psychology has a better grasp on the workings of ethical to be. Harding’s questions are likely to be answered better
decision making while philosophy helps to provide by those whose engineering education is situated in a much
direction.” [29] In this respect it would seem important to broader knowledge context than those whose learning is
note the significance of ideas on the development of cultural confined to technological matters alone. An important
attitudes. dimension of such an education would be the inevitability of
In consequence Harding presents a holistic teaching having to understand different ways of thinking. Others
model that originates with Narvaez [30] that has five steps. might argue that such a disposition would be a spin off from
These are to establish a caring relationship with each teaching philosophy within a design program, and some see
student, establish a climate of achievement and character, philosophy of technology as liberal education.
teach ethical skills across the curriculum, using a novice-to-
expert pedagogy foster self- authorship and self-regulation, ISSUES FOR RESEARCH.
and build communities and co-ordinate development
systems. All of these steps are to be undertaken within a When Davis concluded his study of the engineering
framework of moral development. The implications of this professions he posed a number of questions that apply as
for curriculum design would seem to be similar to those for much to engineering educators as they do to the social
cognitive development of the kind described by Perry[31] scientists to whom they were directed.
and Kitchener and King [32] that some engineering schools The contributions discussed as well as many others in the
have implemented. texts in which they were embedded show that they still
Harding writes “And yet as I conclude this paper on the remain to be answered. Little or no empirical work has been
psychology of human morality, it occurs to me that what is done to establish answers to the question “What is
really needed in engineering education is first a re- engineering?” Without answers to that question it is not
examination of our moral identity as a discipline. No amount possible to determine who engineers are. While there have
of pedagogical innovation is going to change the ethical been several important commentaries on what engineers do
capacity of our students if we do not first address the there has been little recent interest in establishing
question of human growth. Who am I and who am I going to empirically what it is that engineers actually do. Answers to
be.” It would seem that service courses of the kind designed this question have a bearing on professionalism and what it
to help communities in the third world and discussions of the means to be a professional, what restricts professionalism
concept of “Peace engineering” force students to confront and what extends it, and how this is wrapped up in particular
such questions [33]. The challenge was put to this writer in beliefs about the curriculum. Are engineering educators a
another way by a Franciscan monk thus “what is more different kind of professional to practising engineers?
important, what have I achieved? Or what have I become/”
Inherently as we search for an identity the key question is
Related to this are the fundamental beliefs that engineering
what have I become? And, the question that a potential educators have about themselves and the way they impinge
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on their everyday work. It has been pointed out that while
much is known about students little is known about their [11] Seymour, E and N. M. Hewitt (1997). Talking about
teachers. Even so, we know very little bout the beliefs that Leaving. Why Undergraduates leave the Sciences. Westview
students have about themselves and engineering. Is one of Press, Boulder, CO
the reasons that liberal studies programs are not successful
the belief of students that education is an artifact they have [12] Leydens, J. A and J. C. Lucena (2009) Knowledge
to endure to become an engineer with the consequence that it valuation in humanitarian engineering education in ref 1 (a).
has to be seen to be engineering? Is it the case they feel quite
capable of forming their own belief systems without resort to [13] Schioffonati, V (2008) From philosophy of science to
the artifact of formal academic study? These are important philosophy of engineering. See ref 1 (c) pp46/47
areas in which little is known yet capable of empirical
research. [14] Blockley, D (2008) integrating hard and soft systems in
ref 1 (c) pp 10/11.
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[10] MacIntyre, A (1985). After Virtue. 2nd edition. [24] Rescher, N (2001) Philosophical reasoning: A Study in
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978-1-4244-4714-5/09/$25.00 ©2009 IEEE October 18 - 21, 2009, San Antonio, TX

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 Session M4A
[25] ibid

[26] Searle, J. R. (1995). The Construction of Social Reality.

Free Press, New York.

[27] Elster, J (1983). Explaining Technical Change. A Case

Study in the Philosophy of Science. Cambridge University
Press.

[28] Kohlberg, L (1984) Essays in moral development Vol 2.

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[29] Harding, T. S. (2008). The psychology of the ‘ought’.

Proceedings Frontiers in Education Conference (IEEE),
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[30] Narvaez, D (2008) Human flourishing and moral

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[31] Perry, W. G. (1970). Intellectual and Ethical

Development in College Years. A Scheme. Holt, Rinehart
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