Instruction Toolkit for
Textiles and Engineering Services
The Libraries and ABET
The NCSU Libraries plays a role in helping academic
departments meet their accreditation requirements in a way that is both measurable and
and documentable. The Curriculum Integrated Instruction program is structured
around making a substantive contribution to the program outcomes of ABET, Inc.'s (ABET)
accreditation requirements for
engineering programs. By integrating library instruction into the curriculum, we provide
a quantitative means of documenting progress towards the University's engineering
education goals.
At NC State we have identified specific areas where the Libraries
as the campus information specialists contribute to student learning. In
the document titled,
"Criteria
For Accrediting Engineering Programs," ABET states:
Engineering programs must demonstrate that their students attain:
- an ability to apply knowledge of mathematics, science, and engineering
- an ability to design and conduct experiments, as well as to analyze and interpret data
- an ability to design a system, component, or process to meet desired needs within realistic constraints such as economic, environmental, social, political, ethical, health and safety, manufacturability, and sustainability
- an ability to function on multi-disciplinary teams
- an ability to identify, formulate, and solve engineering problems
- an understanding of professional and ethical responsibility
- an ability to communicate effectively
- the broad education necessary to understand the impact of engineering solutions in a global, economic, environmental, and societal context
- a recognition of the need for, and an ability to engage in life-long learning
- a knowledge of contemporary issues
- an ability to use the techniques, skills, and modern engineering tools necessary for engineering practice.
These educational outcomes illustrate the fact that NC State graduates must have a mature
understanding of the information environment in which they will work as future
engineers. The need for students to be able to identify and locate information
and effectively synthesize it with engineering work is implicit in the program
outcomes highlighted above. Additionally, these outcomes call for a finely crafted ability to
conduct research throughout
an engineer's career. The skills needed to conduct such research begin in the
classroom and are developed later through their own experimentation with information
sources. The NCSU Libraries contributes to student learning in this realm in accordance
with the accreditation requirements of ABET.
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