Countering Engineering’s “Hidden Curriculum”
Issues in Science and Technology
An award-winning journal devoted to the best ideas and writing on policy related to science, technology, and society.
Many disciplines have what is referred to as a “hidden curriculum”: unofficial or implicit values and norms that students must master in addition to their formal schoolwork. Architects, for example, learn building techniques, professional ethics, and other skills in the classroom; but at leading architectural firms they also learn how to signal unspoken cultural values through “interesting” eyeglasses and monochromatic wardrobes.
Engineering’s hidden curriculum, writes Dr. Idalis Villanueva Alarcón , “teaches that successful engineers proceed lockstep through traditional four-year college degrees, blinkered away from extraneous nonengineering topics.” The rigorous technical requirements of an engineering degree can channel students into highly specialized silos—discouraging the lifelong learning that, she argues, is “necessary for engineers to stay ready to solve problems in the real world.”
To build engineers for life, educators and industry leaders should start by acknowledging the pernicious effects of engineering’s?hidden curriculum and working to change it. By transforming the discipline’s expectations and norms, they can help create “engineers who are flexible, fair, multifaceted, and eager to push the boundaries of innovation.”
Award-winning science communicator/strategist. Medical writer/editor. Plenary speaker/moderator/panelist. Plain language expert. Academic manuscripts, grant proposals (> $1 billion), reports. Founder of WeGotThisSeattle
1 年I just heard phrase "hidden curriculum" at Society for Neuroscience annual conference. Lots of talk of mentoring, helping first-gen, low-income, rural, and minoritized students navigate higher ed. So important! We know more diverse teams get better results in science!