LIFELONG LEARNING: A SKILL NEEDED TODAY FOR THE ENGINEERS OF THE FUTURE

Abstract

This paper will focus on our efforts to introduce the lifelong learning graduate attribute into the classroom environment required by CEAB for engineering accreditation. ENGN334: Intro to Mechatronics is a third year focus area elective course in the new engineering degree at UPEI. It gave the opportunity to develop a syllabus in which the students were encouraged to proactively participate in developing their own weekly learning goals based on the proposed list of topics. From their weekly submissions and subsequent reflections, we tried to answer if the students were setting realistic goals, assessed against SMART learning goals, and how the balance of the short and long term goals changed over the semester. It is therefore the objective of this paper to examine how effective it could be to promote realistic goal setting through professional skill development (PSD) intervention and proactive self-directed learning.