It’s Possible
Together We Go Beyond!
Accreditation System
Current and Emerging Practices in Engineering Education,
Engineers Canada
Preparing for the future
A synthesis of current and emergent practices in engineering education within Canada and internationally to inform accreditation requirements and propose a path forward that will meet the needs of regulators while keeping current with the realities of engineering education. In support of this strategic priority, the following report.
I. Flexible and Assessed Pathways: Realizing new pathways into engineering; Competency-based assessment; and Micro-credentials
II. Open and Inclusive Culture: Equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI); Indigenization and decolonization; and Well-being and whole student
III. Student-Centered Engineering Education: Integrating behavioural and technical skills; Experiential learning; and Project/Problem-Based Learning, as well as gamified education and flipped delivery.
Accreditation System
Benchmarking the Canadian Engineering Accreditation System, Engineers Canada
International Benchmarking of Canadian Accreditation Criteria and Processes
In support of Engineers Canada’s strategic priority to Investigate and Validate the Purpose and Scope of Accreditation, this report provides a benchmarking of the accreditation systems of comparator jurisdictions (Australia, France, Malaysia, and Poland,) and comparator regulated professions within Canada (Information Technology and Processing Professionals, Nursing, and Social Work).
Going Remote & Capacity-Building
Leadership Saskatoon
We began working with Carolyn when we suddenly had to move our in-person program on-line with only a few weeks’ notice. It was so important to us to ensure we maintained the integrity and quality of the program during this process. How do you emulate the connectedness that is experienced among cohort members on-line? Carolyn’s extensive knowledge as a facilitator, educator and curriculum design expert was instrumental in our success. Carolyn not only helped us transition on-line quite seamlessly, but she worked with both staff and facilitators to ensure we had the confidence and knowledge to work independently on a go forward basis.
Carolyn’s high level of skill and comfort with technology and curriculum was noticed not only internally but externally to our organization. We had many compliments and comments as to how effortless our stakeholders’ on-line experiences were and how professional everything was.
It’s very easy working with Carolyn. She has great ideas, the experience and knowledge to back them up. A true professional she is passionate about what she does and it was a pleasure to work with her.
—Sheri Hillestad Smith, Executive Director, Leadership Saskatoon, Alumnus 2015
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Progress
Over the summer, the Accountability Committee developed a Request for Proposal (RFP). In September, Engineers Canada announced that consultants Higher Education & Beyond had been selected to help structure and guide the process.
Since October, Engineers Canada and the Accountability Committee have been working with Higher Education & Beyond to establish project timelines and develop a survey for accreditation stakeholder input on the benefits and purposes of accreditation, the qualities of a well-functioning accreditation system, and the perspectives that should be used by the Accountability Committee to assess the CEAB accreditation system. Questions included accreditation process and its inputs, stakeholder communication, and other accreditation policies.
The findings will have a significant impact on the development of the CEAB’s annual performance tool and reporting mechanisms.
Ultimate Aim
The ultimate aim of this work is to develop an evaluation tool and assessment framework that measures the effectiveness, trustworthiness, transparency, and efficiency of the accreditation system.
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Curriculum Design Capacity-Building
Curriculum Design Seminar, University of Lethbridge Dhillon School of Business
Created custom online sessions and recorded modules in curriculum design for faculty members, academic leadership, and staff.
Carolyn was a pleasure to work with in designing the seminar content and deliverables, and did a great job of developing an online foundation for our curriculum design seminar. She also set up the online resources in our own learning management systems so that we can provide training to others at the University for future curriculum design initiatives. Carolyn created a clear flexible process for us to follow with templates for organizing our thinking, and provided a number of resources that will continue be helpful to consult in developing content. I especially appreciate the rapid change to online synchronous delivery from a face-to-face approach because of covid, and think the end result was even better than what we originally planned.
–Carla Carnaghan, Ph.D, CPA, CMA, Associate Professor, Director, Dhillon School of Business Graduate Programs
Engaging Professional Webinars; Evaluation Capacity-Building
Dynamic Data: Mastering Pivot Tables for Engaging Data Viz, British Columbia Chapter of the Canadian Evaluation Society
Quotes and perspectives are from the final feedback form; testimonial by Marla Steinberg, CESBC Member at Large, Professional Development and Communications.
Carolyn delivered a great online workshop. Her teaching style of show one, follow-one and do one really supported learners in picking up the tips and tricks for using pivot tables to explore and visualize data. It really expanded my use of Excel and we received great feedback from learners: “Wow! I knew I was not using Excel to its potential so I’m thrilled that I learned what I did this week!” and “pivot tables aren’t so mysterious now”.
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Centered on the many ways pivot tables help us learn about and use our data, attendees learned about options for displaying data and different ways to categorize data, gaining many useful tricks and tips for using Excel more adeptly. Carolyn’s patient and knowledgeable approach was well-received and the cycle of “being shown a concept, then given the step by step, then space to practice it” with Q & A throughout was very effective. Attendees were “shown all the different ways that pivot tables could be used to analyze data” and learned that “there might be more than one way to do the analysis.” Attendees were provided with a guide and a recording of the instructional videos; these were “critical to consolidate learning”. Overall, a very effective workshop: “this was really really fantastic. Carolyn: your teaching style and content is so effective. Loved everything about this.”
New Curriculum Design
CAFE Youth Inspired Leadership Program
Collaboratively working with the national team to develop a new leadership program.
Details, views, and impressions in portions of this case study were provided by the Canadian Association of Fairs & Exhibitions (CAFE).
The New Initiative
In launching a new youth program, we searched for candidates to help develop the curriculum portion. Working with Carolyn enabled us to create a sustainable convention program for youth in the Canadian Fair Industry. This was a new venture for our organization to welcome a group of youth to the convention and provide them with a separate experience. Carolyn helped us to create a program that we could easily transfer to volunteer facilitators, if needed, because of the detailed lesson plan that was developed over our time together.
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Their Experience
The step-by-step approach to curriculum design was a great help especially to Holly who was new to a project like this. It allowed us the chance to assess important program competencies, create a program outline, determine the timing, and fill in pieces of the program. It was great to see the program come together at a manageable pace which allowed us to make changes as our needs or ideas changed.
Carolyn was a pleasure to work with and always came to each meeting with a positive attitude and ready to work. Carolyn allowed us to choose what we wanted to focus on during our calls. We felt comfortable discussing our ideas with Carolyn and she helped us to understand what was reasonable for the time available and the size of the group we were working with. She also helped us to create realistic working goals between meetings.
The Impact
The 4MAT system was a benefit to the program. Some participants stated that they enjoyed how the program was designed to offer some theory and opportunity for our youth to work together to complete activities. The Youth Inspired! participants seemed to enjoy the program and did provide some feedback to help for next year. We will ask for more feedback before this cohort completes the program at the end of March. Informal feedback from board and the members has been extremely positive, what they have heard about the program and what they have seen has exceeded their expectations.
Digital Credentials
Ontario University Registrars’ Association
Carolyn manages to be both directive and inquisitive, lending the right balance of support that OURA needed in our desire to formalize guidelines for our digital credential initiative. Spending just a few hours of our time, Carolyn was able to guide us through the decisions and considerations to not only create guidelines, but consider how it would be operationalized. She sourced third party material and asked us questions we hadn’t had time to consider before we started this undertaking. Work that would have taken our volunteer executives months to complete was ready for circulation in a few weeks.
—Robyn Parr, President, Ontario University Registrars’ Association, Toronto, ON
Accreditation System
Accountability in Accreditation, Engineers Canada
Stakeholder Perception & Strategic Priority
Engineers Canada’s 2019-2021 Strategic Plan identifies accountability in accreditation as a strategic priority (SP2). This priority came from a perception among accreditation stakeholders that the work of the Canadian Engineering Accreditation Board (CEAB) uses a complicated, unknowable “black box” process.