Making Facilitates an Engineering Student's Identity Work in Becoming an Engineer

Autor/inn/en	Yume Menghe Xu; Brian E. Gravel
Titel	Making Facilitates an Engineering Student's Identity Work in Becoming an Engineer
Quelle	In: Journal of Engineering Education, 114 (2025) 4Infoseite zur Zeitschrift PDF als Volltext Link als defekt meldenVerfügbarkeit
Zusatzinformation	ORCID (Yume Menghe Xu) ORCID (Brian E. Gravel)
Sprache	englisch
Dokumenttyp	gedruckt; online; Zeitschriftenaufsatz
ISSN	1069-4730
DOI	10.1002/jee.70027
Schlagwörter	Forschungsbericht; Engineering Education; Self Concept; Undergraduate Students; Prior Learning + Suchen Sie Ihr Suchwort? Ingenieurausbildung; Selbstkonzept; Vorkenntnisse
Abstract	Background: Many students bring rich experiences and identities related to making activities into undergraduate engineering programs. However, the dominant technocentric narratives in engineering dictate which forms of making are legitimized in engineering practices, marginalizing students whose identities do not align with the canonical norms of engineering. Purpose: This study characterizes the identity processes of students with rich experiences related to making as they navigate institutional cultures. It offers insights into how engineering programs can better support students' identity work through making. Design: The study uses narrative inquiry to construct a case study of the engagement of an engineering student, Sarah, in an undergraduate course focused on exploring the relationships between making and engineering. The analysis closely examines Sarah's identity work throughout the course and investigates how the course supported the process. Results: Sarah experienced tensions when navigating the institutionalized narratives of the engineering program, which led her to doubt the legitimacy of her past making experiences as valuable for her participation. Through her identity work negotiating the tensions she experienced, she resisted assimilating with those narratives, recognized her past making experiences as assets for engineering learning, and repositioned herself as a legitimate member of the program. Conclusions: Understanding the tensions undergraduate students experience between their past making experiences and the institutionalized narratives of engineering programs can help educators and researchers to better understand their identity processes. Supporting students in viewing their past making experiences as assets for engineering learning can facilitate their identity work to legitimize their participation in engineering. (As Provided).
Anmerkungen	Wiley. Available from: John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 111 River Street, Hoboken, NJ 07030. Tel: 800-835-6770; e-mail: cs-journals@wiley.com; Web site: https://www.wiley.com/en-us
Begutachtung	Peer reviewed
Erfasst von	ERIC (Education Resources Information Center), Washington, DC
Update	2025/4/11