Philosophy as a Way of Life: A Humanities Approach to Becoming a "Good" Engineer

FAIN: AC-303439-25

University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (Edinburg, TX 78539-2909)
Ian Werkheiser (Project Director: May 2024 to present)
Stephen Leach (Co Project Director: May 2024 to present)
Alexander V. Stehn (Co Project Director: May 2024 to present)

A three-year initiative to redesign a philosophy course required for engineering students using immersive assignments and peer-led dialogue. 

Philosophy as a Way of Life: A Humanities Approach to Becoming a Good Engineer is a three-year initiative to design and implement a professional ethics curriculum for Engineering and Computer Science students using Philosophy as a Way of Life (PWOL) pedagogy. Our redesigned course will center upon a humanistic notion of what makes a good engineer and move beyond a reductive, compliance-based notion of professional ethics for engineers. PWOL pedagogy teaches philosophy by emphasizing the living or existential side of the philosophical tradition through two key pedagogical components: immersive assignments and peer-led dialogue. The program will employ 64 senior students as Peer Dialogue leaders and enroll 1120 students over 3 years. Materials developed will be made freely available as Open Educational Resources.