CeTUSS (Centrum för Teknikutbildning i Studenternas Sammanhang) : A national center for pedagogical development in technology education

• IntroductionCeTUSS four years of activity have been spent working to achieve a goal central to the theme of thissummit as its Manifest illustrates:CeTUSS promotes approaches to learning and teaching that improve the alignment of technologyeducation with the needs of society and students. The intent is to increase both motivation andparticipation of students through the introduction of learning approaches that make the contentboth relevant and meaningful. The methods by which the center accomplishes this mission are toidentify, develop, and disseminate ideas that make technology educationpersonally meaningfulsocially relevantinterdisciplinarybased on collaboration (both local and international).CeTUSS activities are primarily aimed at building a community of teachers/researchers active indeveloping and evaluating student-centric pedagogical ideas. An important part of the vision isenhancing communication between learners and teachers. Results are relevant to individual teachers, butare also an important resource for staff developers and directors of undergraduate education concernedwith restructuring engineering education in the face of new expectations from employers and society.Concrete activities includeRun a network and provide an inspiring meeting place forTeachersStaff developersSubject-specific didactic researchersOrganize workshops and coursesInitiate local seminar seriesReport research and development results at relevant conferences attended by those that will benefitmost from learning research resultsVisit all relevant higher education institutions in SwedenBuild a knowledge-baseRun a development projectInternationalize the IT in Society courseA tenent of the center is that wider participation in engineering education will emerge as an indirecteffect of making technology education more integrated with societal aspects. We also expect this toincrease the relevance of engineering degree programmes for a broader range of students. Anotherpositive consequence is that the “traditional” technology student is expected to acquire a moresophisticated and relevant repertoire of communication skills.Since the center was launched in 2004 several new activities have emerged. In 2007 we have extendedour initiative to encompass building awareness of the pedagogical merits of introducing work placeskills into educational programmes. An important aspect of this is the identity issue, both from thestudent and the educator point of view, as well as from potential future employers. We believe that beingclear about the relation between the education and the profession is crucial and will increase the qualityof the education and provide a base for recruiting engaged and motivated students.

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