EUROTECH: An International Program in Engineering

Purpose

The introduction into Latin America of a car whose name in Spanish means "it does not go" is a well-known story of one U.S. firm's failure to sell automobiles in international markets. But such spectacular failures are relatively insignificant compared to the daily, seemingly minor but cumulative effects of the inability of most U.S. professionals and businessmen and -women to understand the language and culture of their foreign partners, clients and rivals.

The University of Connecticut was ideally situated to tackle this problem. More dependent on international trade than many states, Connecticut hosts nearly 100 German companies. The demand for professionals with cross-cultural and foreign language abilities as well as overseas work experience is urgent and concrete. EuroTech was formed to answer this need by providing practical study in German, linked with academic training in engineering and industrial experience.

Innovative Features

EuroTech's five-year curriculum confers a B.S. in engineering and a B.A. in German. It offers courses for first- and second-year German that include some technical topics, one-credit modules conducted in German on engineering topics, summer internships with German firms in Connecticut, and a six-month internship in Germany.

EuroTech, which attracts approximately ten percent of beginning engineering students, grew out of well-prepared soil. In the years preceding its inception, the German curriculum had been redesigned to accommodate non-traditional majors by including special purpose language and interdisciplinary courses. The faculty were familiar with languages-across-the-curriculum, content-based instruction, and other innovative pedagogies, and some had experience with scientific German. One instructor was certified in oral proficiency testing.

In the School of Engineering, some faculty members were fluent in German and willing to raise their proficiency to a level that would allow them to lecture in special EuroTech courses. There already existed a history of cooperation between the School of Engineering and the exchange programs of Baden-Wurttemberg and the Fachhochschule Regensburg. EuroTech took advantage of this and of the availability of German-speaking engineers in Connecticut industry. Each year two German exchange students in the sciences or engineering are hired, part-time, by the EuroTech Program to assist with the courses in technical German and with composing and editing the newsletter, and to keep the EuroTech homepage up to date.

The beginning German instruction for engineering students uses the same text as the regular course. EuroTech faculty, however, add vocabulary, discussion topics, realia and exercises appropriate to engineering students. The two sections of beginning German, with about 20 students each, merge into a single section of intermediate, usually because of attrition in engineering.

In the second year, students begin taking three one-credit-hour, content-based language modules. These courses-Recitation in Applied Mechanics, Introduction to the Sciences, and Fields of Technology-are taught by language faculty assisted by a German teaching assistant, and structured around lectures by German-speaking engineers from Connecticut industry. (In Recitation in Applied Mechanics, a module adjunct to Applied Mechanics, two German-speaking professors in the School of Engineering offer the lectures.) To prepare students for these technical lectures, the speaker submits a pr&#eacute;cis of the presentation two weeks in advance. The teaching assistants acquaint themselves with the material and develop the German-English word lists that students will need to understand the lecture. The assistants then explain the material to the language instructor, who prepares simplified study materials for the students to review before the lecture. Near the end of each course, students give technical presentations on topics such as bridge engineering, the jet engine, disposal of toxic wastes, and the principles of air flight. During these presentations, they are evaluated equally for technical accuracy and linguistic competence.

Thus far two interactive computer modules have been developed for EuroTech students using hypertext software. One of these, "Ottomotor," explains the history, construction and functioning of the four-stroke engine. Another, "Hubschrauber," presents the history, principles of function and technology of the helicopter. Modules are planned for each engineering discipline.

EuroTech majors choose their upper-level language classes from regular course offerings for the German studies major. The courses have been designed so that the EuroTech students can fulfill the requirements for the language major and some of the general education requirements simultaneously.

In addition to the U.S. and German internships, EuroTech includes study trips to Germany for freshmen and sophomores, to motivate students early in their language study by introducing them to the German educational system and corporate culture. As a result, some students opt for study abroad in addition to the six-month internship.

EuroTech students are encouraged to undergo oral proficiency testing (before going on the German internship, students must test at a level of "advanced high") and two Goethe Institute examinations-the Zertifikat Deutsch for second-year or third-year students, and the Mittelstufenprufung for those returning from the internship in Germany.

Supplemental German language instruction for engineering faculty and staff was essential to the success of EuroTech. For two years, four engineering faculty members received two hours of weekly classes, and three attended intensive language courses at the Goethe Institute in Germany.

Another important factor in EuroTech's success is the extent to which faculty seek industry's collaboration and involvement. An external advisory board composed of German and U.S. company representatives as well as individuals from government agencies meets twice a year, and provides German-speaking engineers for lecturing in courses, summer internships in the United States, and contacts for German internships. EuroTech's budget for publicity, student scholarships, and program service activities comes from the contributions of companies represented on the board. During the early years of EuroTech the project directors met with 30 companies in Germany to develop internship contacts. The relationship with those companies is maintained through the newsletter and periodic visits.

Evaluation and Project Impact

Although beginning and intermediate EuroTech German courses are enriched with technical content, students use the same texts and take the same written, oral and aural examinations as their peers in regular courses. A comparison of performance in course examinations as well as in oral proficiency testing and in the Goethe Institute Zertifikat pr&#uuml;fung showed no statistically significant difference between EuroTech and regular students.

Compared to German majors, EuroTech students become proficient in the language later in their undergraduate careers. Language majors typically have some knowledge of German when they enter the university, whereas the typical EuroTech student does not. In addition, many German majors have spent some time in Germany when they begin their studies, and most go abroad during their third year. EuroTech students, on the other hand, usually do not go abroad until their fourth year. Once the EuroTech students return from their internships in Germany, however, their command of the language is about equal to that of the German majors. In general, students doing well in pre-engineering courses also do well in German-something that faculty believe may have less to do with particular scientific or linguistic predispositions than with general intelligence, motivation and dedication.

Students indicate that they enjoy all facets of EuroTech, but they spend a lot less time studying German than engineering-only ten percent of their time in the first year and 25-35 percent in the second year.

Attrition appears to correlate with GPAs below 2.0. Among students who indicate in the first German course that they intend to pursue EuroTech, attrition is slightly higher than among those enrolled in engineering alone. Attrition in engineering is about 50 percent. The students who are in EuroTech at the end of the sophomore year and file a plan of study as both German and engineering majors, on the other hand, have a much lower attrition rate-about ten percent.

A questionnaire designed to look into the causes of attrition revealed that students often find college overwhelming, that classes sometimes do not match students' expectations, and that many students have difficulty working methodically. Some EuroTech students leave engineering but complete a degree at the university, while others leave the program but continue in engineering. Project faculty anticipate that, as EuroTech ages, successful graduates as well as interns returning from Germany will help to keep students interested in the program.

Because it was difficult to convey complete information about EuroTech to all the advisors in the School of Engineering, an advisor was appointed and trained in each undergraduate engineering program to advise EuroTech students. Some students assumed that participation in EuroTech automatically entitled them to summer work and an internship in Germany. It is now made clear to them that these benefits depend on satisfactory performance in both the engineering and the language major.

An evaluation by a faculty member from another department took these matters into account but judged EuroTech generally sound, albeit threatened by projected budget cuts at the university. It can be concluded from data accumulated so far that EuroTech succeeds in equipping engineering students with the language skills they need to communicate about topics in their field. It is not uncommon for sixth semester German students to discuss bridge engineering or the mechanics of the jet engine or ask questions about the automatic turning rotary, the rotor head of a helicopter, or the radiation levels in forest floors of post-Chernobyl Europe.

Lessons Learned

When EuroTech students in Recitation in Applied Mechanics review the three laws of Newtonian physics in German, they are already familiar with the content of the lesson, which is also directly relevant to their professional interests. In these situations, the topic of discussion absorbs the student's attention, and the language becomes a natural vehicle for expression. It is possible for exchanges in these classes, therefore, to gain a degree of authenticity that cannot be equaled by the dialogues about generic topics found in many language texts.

The module's one-hour format, although convenient in many ways, limits the amount of material that can be covered, especially when student presentations, language laboratory sessions and discussions vie for class time. Although one hour is sufficient for lectures, preparation and revision sessions would benefit from longer periods. Because the EuroTech curriculum already demands the maximum allowable number of credit hours, it is not feasible to add credits to the modules. Project faculty are considering a flexible arrangement where some classes would last longer than others, even though this might mean sacrificing one or two class meetings during the course of the semester.

Recruiting pre-college students who can cope with the academic demands of the program now requires a considerable amount of time, although this should decrease as EuroTech becomes more widely known and recognized among the high schools. Each issue of the newsletter is sent to a broader base of potential students in the high schools, and on-campus and cable television publicity in some high schools is also planned.

Fundraising has proven more time consuming than anticipated. Efforts to raise money for servicing the program and for student scholarships have seen slow progress at first, but with the first graduates' successful job placements EuroTech is beginning to receive more contributions from employers.

Because few high schools in Connecticut teach German, EuroTech was designed assuming that students would begin the freshman year knowing no German. This has given EuroTech some much needed flexibility. Some students enter the program ready for the courses in advanced German, while others are attracted to EuroTech later in their undergraduate progress. Although course schedules have been developed in the expectation that students will begin EuroTech in the sophomore year, they can begin whenever their interest in international engineering develops. Students who enter after the sophomore year are informed of the requirements for completing EuroTech and assisted in developing an individual schedule. One student, a chemical engineer, began EuroTech in his junior year, knowing no German, and finished his requirements through study abroad at a German university, with little additional time required.

Based as it is on collaboration between liberal arts and engineering and between the university and industry, EuroTech requires a good deal of faculty time. It is important that institutions contemplating similar programs recognize these demands. The program will not survive unless the administration acknowledges the value of curricular innovation, creative pedagogy, and intensive outreach work, especially fundraising. Without this kind of recognition, and its expression through the merit and promotion system, EuroTech-style projects will fail to attract the high-caliber, committed faculty that are essential to their success.

Another critical consideration for such a program is continuity. Personnel changes, whether they be temporary, such as sabbatical leave, or permanent, disrupt progress. To maintain continuity, it is important that responsibility for the program be shared by several individuals. The minimum is two, but a greater number may be better if the necessary duties are coordinated and their successful completion rewarded.

Project Continuation

There are now 46 students in various stages of the program. So far EuroTech has five graduates-two mechanical engineers, one graduate in computer science and engineering, and two chemical engineers. All have been in great demand by prospective employers.

Dissemination and Recognition

EuroTech has received funds from the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) for the study trips. Yankee Ingenuity Initiative, a supporter of high tech projects to improve the skills of local labor, funded the hardware and software for the EuroTech multimedia laboratory. During its six years, EuroTech has been funded by FIPSE and by the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences and the School of Engineering. Most recently the Connecticut Department of Economic and Community Development has agreed to take over the School of Engineering portion of the funding.

Project faculty have written articles and given numerous conference presentations about EuroTech, especially at meetings related to languages-across-the-curriculum. The EuroTech newsletter and Internet home page serve to further disseminate the project.

Available Information

Further information may be obtained from:

Richard P. Long
University of Connecticut
Civil & Environmental Engineering
261 Glenbrook Rd. U-37
Storrs, CT 06269-2037
Telephone: 860-486-2074

or

Friedemann Weidauer
University of Connecticut
Dept. of Modern & Classical Language
337 Mansfield Rd. U-57
Storrs, CT 06269-1057
Telephone: 860-486-3963

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