Researching engineering education: Some philosophical considerations

Research into engineering education can take different forms, ranging from large scale multi-institutional studies, to cross-institutional impact analysis, to individual teachers undertaking action research. It can often be challenging, requiring an understanding of not only how students learn but also an understanding of educational research methods. Many academics, when first embarking on research into education, naturally draw upon the research methods associated with their own discipline, but this may not be the most appropriate approach for educational research. We reflect here on our own development as researchers into engineering education, diversifying from methods rooted in our own disciplines, electrical engineering and computer science, into methods borrowed from other disciplines. Consideration of underlying philosophical concepts frames this journey and key concerns are the value of controlled experiments in engineering education and the use of interpretativist approaches to illuminate particular situations. Additionally, ethical considerations should inform both the conduct of the research and the dissemination of findings. These reflections will be of interest to engineering educators embarking on their own educational research projects.