You can change the world, but not this homework assignment: The contradictory rhetoric of engineering agency

Mel Chua; Lauren E. Cagle

doi:10.1109/FIE.2017.8190487

You can change the world, but not this homework assignment: The contradictory rhetoric of engineering agency

Mel Chua, Lauren E. Cagle

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding › Conference contribution › peer-review

3 Scopus citations

Abstract

This work-in-progress paper suggests that engineering recruitment messaging and engineering pedagogy send mixed messages to students. We describe the early stages of a critical discourse analysis study that shows recruitment messaging often portraying engineers as powerful agents of change, while the phrasings of pedagogical documents such as textbooks and homework assignments often position engineering students as lacking agency to question or change the constraints that define the problems they must solve. Our analysis of engineering education discourse uses the rhetorical concept of "topoi," or commonplaces, to identify common articulations of what it means to be an engineer. Based on theoretical work on agency in sociology, semiotics, and rhetoric, we conclude that common descriptions of engineers in engineering education discourse can offer conflicting ideas of how much agency engineers possess to change the world around them.

Original language	English
Title of host publication	FIE 2017 - Frontiers in Education, Conference Proceedings
Pages	1-4
Number of pages	4
ISBN (Electronic)	9781509059195
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1109/FIE.2017.8190487
State	Published - Dec 12 2017
Event	47th IEEE Frontiers in Education Conference, FIE 2017 - Indianapolis, United States Duration: Oct 18 2017 → Oct 21 2017

Publication series

Name	Proceedings - Frontiers in Education Conference, FIE
Volume	2017-October
ISSN (Print)	1539-4565

Conference

Conference	47th IEEE Frontiers in Education Conference, FIE 2017
Country/Territory	United States
City	Indianapolis
Period	10/18/17 → 10/21/17

Bibliographical note

Publisher Copyright:
© 2017 IEEE.

Keywords

Agency
Critical discourse analysis
Philosophy
Postmodernism
Rhetoric

ASJC Scopus subject areas

Software
Education
Computer Science Applications

Access to Document

10.1109/FIE.2017.8190487

Cite this

@inproceedings{4ef45822646f4ce8b88aed47aff2a718,

title = "You can change the world, but not this homework assignment: The contradictory rhetoric of engineering agency",

abstract = "This work-in-progress paper suggests that engineering recruitment messaging and engineering pedagogy send mixed messages to students. We describe the early stages of a critical discourse analysis study that shows recruitment messaging often portraying engineers as powerful agents of change, while the phrasings of pedagogical documents such as textbooks and homework assignments often position engineering students as lacking agency to question or change the constraints that define the problems they must solve. Our analysis of engineering education discourse uses the rhetorical concept of {"}topoi,{"} or commonplaces, to identify common articulations of what it means to be an engineer. Based on theoretical work on agency in sociology, semiotics, and rhetoric, we conclude that common descriptions of engineers in engineering education discourse can offer conflicting ideas of how much agency engineers possess to change the world around them.",

keywords = "Agency, Critical discourse analysis, Philosophy, Postmodernism, Rhetoric",

author = "Mel Chua and Cagle, {Lauren E.}",

note = "Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} 2017 IEEE.; 47th IEEE Frontiers in Education Conference, FIE 2017 ; Conference date: 18-10-2017 Through 21-10-2017",

year = "2017",

month = dec,

day = "12",

doi = "10.1109/FIE.2017.8190487",

language = "English",

series = "Proceedings - Frontiers in Education Conference, FIE",

pages = "1--4",

booktitle = "FIE 2017 - Frontiers in Education, Conference Proceedings",

}

Chua, M & Cagle, LE 2017, You can change the world, but not this homework assignment: The contradictory rhetoric of engineering agency. in FIE 2017 - Frontiers in Education, Conference Proceedings. Proceedings - Frontiers in Education Conference, FIE, vol. 2017-October, pp. 1-4, 47th IEEE Frontiers in Education Conference, FIE 2017, Indianapolis, United States, 10/18/17. https://doi.org/10.1109/FIE.2017.8190487

You can change the world, but not this homework assignment: The contradictory rhetoric of engineering agency. / Chua, Mel; Cagle, Lauren E.
FIE 2017 - Frontiers in Education, Conference Proceedings. 2017. p. 1-4 (Proceedings - Frontiers in Education Conference, FIE; Vol. 2017-October).

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding › Conference contribution › peer-review

TY - GEN

T1 - You can change the world, but not this homework assignment

T2 - 47th IEEE Frontiers in Education Conference, FIE 2017

AU - Chua, Mel

AU - Cagle, Lauren E.

PY - 2017/12/12

Y1 - 2017/12/12

N2 - This work-in-progress paper suggests that engineering recruitment messaging and engineering pedagogy send mixed messages to students. We describe the early stages of a critical discourse analysis study that shows recruitment messaging often portraying engineers as powerful agents of change, while the phrasings of pedagogical documents such as textbooks and homework assignments often position engineering students as lacking agency to question or change the constraints that define the problems they must solve. Our analysis of engineering education discourse uses the rhetorical concept of "topoi," or commonplaces, to identify common articulations of what it means to be an engineer. Based on theoretical work on agency in sociology, semiotics, and rhetoric, we conclude that common descriptions of engineers in engineering education discourse can offer conflicting ideas of how much agency engineers possess to change the world around them.

AB - This work-in-progress paper suggests that engineering recruitment messaging and engineering pedagogy send mixed messages to students. We describe the early stages of a critical discourse analysis study that shows recruitment messaging often portraying engineers as powerful agents of change, while the phrasings of pedagogical documents such as textbooks and homework assignments often position engineering students as lacking agency to question or change the constraints that define the problems they must solve. Our analysis of engineering education discourse uses the rhetorical concept of "topoi," or commonplaces, to identify common articulations of what it means to be an engineer. Based on theoretical work on agency in sociology, semiotics, and rhetoric, we conclude that common descriptions of engineers in engineering education discourse can offer conflicting ideas of how much agency engineers possess to change the world around them.

KW - Agency

KW - Critical discourse analysis

KW - Philosophy

KW - Postmodernism

KW - Rhetoric

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85043240278&partnerID=8YFLogxK

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=85043240278&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.1109/FIE.2017.8190487

DO - 10.1109/FIE.2017.8190487

M3 - Conference contribution

AN - SCOPUS:85043240278

T3 - Proceedings - Frontiers in Education Conference, FIE

SP - 1

EP - 4

BT - FIE 2017 - Frontiers in Education, Conference Proceedings

Y2 - 18 October 2017 through 21 October 2017

ER -

You can change the world, but not this homework assignment: The contradictory rhetoric of engineering agency

Abstract

Publication series

Conference

Bibliographical note

Keywords

ASJC Scopus subject areas

Access to Document

Other files and links

Fingerprint

Cite this