979058 - Classroom Lectures: A Bygone Tradition?

The current COVID-19 pandemic has not only significantly impacted public health and the economy but has also created some unimaginable problems in technology transfer, particularly as it applies to classroom teaching at the college/university level. The conventional method of classroom instruction - in person lectures and laboratory experiences, and team design project activities and student mentoring by engineering professionals and faculty - are no longer feasible in a time of accelerating viral transmission and social distancing requirements. The net result is that teaching is in turmoil since society, including parents, students and professors, have been required to adapt, without much time for preparation or adjustment, to a relatively new mode of technology transfer. The new mode? Online/hybrid courses and remote instruction for all aspects of engineering education ranging from introductory science and engineering topics to laboratory and engineering design experiences.
This paper provides a review of the history of formal professional training and past technology transfer norms, as well as new technology transfer methods that have had to be adopted at the college/university level in response to COVID-19 restrictions. It concludes with an analysis by each of the four authors on the future of college/university engineering education across a range of technical disciplines and academic institutions struggling with the new norm imposed by a world-wide pandemic.