Educating Construction Engineering Students for a Sustainable Ethical, Global Practice

Published in: Engineering for a Smarter Planet: Innovation, ITC, and Computational Tools for Sustainable Development: Proceedings of the 9th Latin American and Caribbean Conference for Engineering and Technology
Date of Conference: August 3-5, 2011
Location of Conference: Medellin, Colombia
Authors: Muge Mukaddes Darwish
Mary Frances Agnello
Bolanle Olaniran
Refereed Paper: #188

Abstract

The new millennium was accompanied by a dramatic technological revolution and challenges in many realms including the energy crisis, environmental degradation, over-population, over-consumption, public health, and education. Construction engineering education is closely affected by these forces, and in turn effects all of these complex and encompassing environmental, economical, ethical and social issues. Solutions to these challenges are increasingly interdisciplinary and international.
It is imperative that global aspects of construction, including global literacy, ethical and cultural characteristics, are incorporated into the education and training process of construction engineers so that they are better prepared for their practice and are globally competent. This paper will discuss existing Current Global Construction Programs and courses and also will provide a hypothetical and specific framework for incorporating global course content in construction engineering education that will empower students in a global market. In doing so, future engineers will have utilized proper educational resources in order to better serve the field of construction on a global level, allowing students to become a more valuable commodity to future employers.