IACEE Pulse: December 2024
In this Pulse:
A Note from the President | IACEE Symposium 2025 Registration | SEFI and IACEE Collaborative Webinar Report | IACEE at the CIEC 2025
A NOTE FROM THE PRESIDENT
As we come to the end of another year, I am filled with gratitude and pride for the community we have together. Looking back on 2024, we have had many noteworthy moments: the successful IACEE World Conference in Spain and our renewed collaboration with SEFI being some of the highlights.
Despite the challenges and uncertainties in the global landscape, our collective resilience, innovation, and commitment to lifelong learning have stood strong. Let us continue to embrace the opportunities and challenges ahead with the same spirit of teamwork and creativity that has characterized IACEE over the years.
Looking ahead, I’m excited to connect with many of you, whether in person or online, at the CIEC in February and the IACEE Symposium in April 2025.
Cheers and Happy Holidays!
Robert Prakash
IACEE President
Registration is now open for the IACEE Symposium 2025
in collaboration with Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana, USA
Early Bird Registration closes February 15, 2025 | Register here
Internationalizing the 2024 European Perspective: a SEFI-IACEE Collaborative Webinar on October 24, 2024: Key Takeaways and Recording
Recording link on YouTube
CEE is no longer confined to local or national educational systems. The 2024 European perspective presented during this SEFI@work emphasizes a unified global approach driven by:
(1) International Collaboration: Organizations like SEFI and IACEE have spearheaded initiatives to align educational goals and create cross-border knowledge-sharing platforms.
(2) Inclusivity in Education: By sharing insights from events such as the SEFI Annual Conference, the scope of lifelong learning is broadened, including attendees from 40+ countries.
Overall, this webinar session emphasized lifelong learning in engineering, discussing advancements in pedagogy, skills frameworks, and institutional roles. It focused on some recent papers presented at the SEFI Annual Conference held in September. Key insights from this webinar were:
Taxonomy for CEE
Creating a taxonomy for continuing engineering education, developed through a qualitative and quantitative process, is a global milestone in aligning educational standards. Key highlights include:
- Focus on drivers, organizational structures, and accessibility to harmonize CEE programs.
- Emphasis on addressing the skill gaps in the workforce by integrating practical training into educational structures.
Educator Frameworks
A competency framework for educators has been proposed to elevate teaching standards in CEE. This framework identifies:
- Key Skills Development: Industry professionals and academic trainers need to emphasize interaction and industry-specific content.
- Integration of Experiential Learning: This involves leveraging workplace learning scenarios to make education more relevant and practical.
Role of Technology in CEE
Emerging technologies like Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) models have revolutionized personalized learning. These models:
- Provide learners with direct access to relevant content from vast educational databases.
- Address the specific needs of professionals looking for focused, skill-based education, especially in fast-evolving technical fields.
Artificial Intelligence (AI) and other innovations are also creating pathways for more engaging and effective educational experiences.
Challenges and Opportunities
Despite its progress, CEE faces notable challenges, including:
- Motivation for Adult Education: Statistics indicate a decline in participation, particularly in Europe, due to a lack of flexible learning systems.
- Recognition of Micro-Credentials: Standardizing micro-credentials and making them stackable across borders remains a significant challenge.
- Business Models for Scalability: Establishing sustainable, scalable business models for universities and organizations offering CEE programs.
- As highlighted in discussions of micro-learning and modular education, opportunities arise in designing education that focuses on real-time skill acquisition rather than just degrees.
The webinar was hosted by Dr. Christopher Smith from Glasgow Caledonian University, a co-chair of SEFI CEE & LLL SIG, and the Vice President of European Partnerships at IACEE.
IACEE will be at the CIEC 2025 on February 5-7, 2025
The Conference for Industry and Education Collaboration (CIEC) 2025 will be held in Henderson, Nevada, from February 5th to 7th, 2025. IACEE Council members will join this featured American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE) event. It has been a tradition of IACEE and the Continuing Professional Development Division (recently renamed as Continuing, Professional and Online Education Division) to partner at this conference and for IACEE to hold its Winter Executive Committee Meeting in conjunction with CIEC. This year, the Winter Executive Committee will be held on February 7th, 9 a.m. - 3 p.m. If you are at the CIEC, please drop by and meet the 2024-26 Executive Committee. All IACEE members are welcome to attend the meeting. Maybe you will be thinking of joining the Council in 2026?