فصلنامه آموزش مهندسی ایران
پیاپی 99 (پاییز 1402)

To align with current trends in chemical engineering education worldwide and meet the industry’s expectations from chemical engineering graduates, the Faculty of Chemical Engineering at Amirkabir University of Technology undertook a curriculum revision. It was conducted a comprehensive analysis of the curriculum of selected universities across the globe, taking into account the industrial requirements. Based on this analysis, new syllabi for chemical engineering thermodynamic courses, were developed. Based on the previous syllabus proposed by the Ministry of Science, Research, and Technology, the thermodynamic courses offered in the chemical engineering programs at Iranian universities dedicated a significant portion of the curriculum to various types of thermodynamic cycles. Consequently, the courses did not sufficiently cover topics specific to chemical engineering, such as different types of phase equilibria, in addition to vapor-liquid equilibrium. This article briefly overviews the course content and syllabi, reference books commonly used, and teaching methods used in renowned universities worldwide for thermodynamic courses in chemical engineering. Furthermore, we present the proposed syllabi and course plans, along with valuable insights into teaching strategies, active learning approaches, and recommended resources for thermodynamic courses. Our objective is to improve the course plan and instructional techniques employed in teaching chemical engineering thermodynamics.

This article presents an innovative approach to conducting final exams to reduce students’ psychological burden and enhance learning outcomes in engineering education. The method involved a two-hour exam with three different question sets given to 38 undergraduate students. During the middle of the exam, students were surprised with a 5-minute break outside the classroom to relax and consult with each other. This break helped reduce anxiety levels. After the break, students returned to the exam with improved mental calmness. The average grades of students did not significantly changed compared to previous years. Interviews conducted one year later showed positive feedback from students. They felt the approach transformed exam tension into excitement and energy for learning. The method reduced stress, discouraged cheating, and created a positive exam experience. The article suggests that innovative approaches to reduce exam-related psychological burden should be explored further in educational research. By refining and generalizing this approach, it can be implemented globally to benefit students. This research contributes to the ongoing discussions about exams, cheating, and alternative assessment methods in engineering education.

The decreasing demand for STEM majors poses a significant challenge in Iran and has implications for the country’s development. Graduates in STEM fields play a vital role in the progress and growth of a nation. This study aims to identify effective strategies to tackle the crisis of decreasing demand in STEM majors within Iran’s academic system. To accomplish this objective, a mixed-methods, sequential-exploratory approach was employed. The qualitative phase involved a case study methodology, conducting semi-structured interviews with 15 knowledgeable individuals. Practical solutions emerged from this phase. In the quantitative phase, the classical Delphi technique was used to validate these solutions. A questionnaire, based on qualitative findings, was distributed to 13 experts to achieve consensus. Statistical analyses, including Kendall’s correlation coefficient, median, average, and quartile deviation, were employed to analyze the quantitative data. Both qualitative and quantitative findings reveal consensus among experts on nine significant solutions to address the decrease in demand for STEM majors in Iran’s academic system. These solutions include merging small local universities with larger provincial universities, emphasizing the importance of the Document of Higher Education Survey, fostering interdisciplinary sciences, enhancing collaboration with local industries and communities, prioritizing problem-oriented and applied research, attracting foreign students from neighboring countries, improving quality standards, aligning curricula with labor market needs, and providing free and virtual training courses.

The present study was conducted with the aim of analyzing the knowledge structure of the Iranian Journal of Engineering Education and using the co-word occurrence analysis method. The research community includes 673 articles published in the Iranian Journal of Engineering Education between 1378-1401 (1999-2022). The process of data preparation and analysis was done using Raver PreMap, UCINET, Excel and SPSS software. The findings showed that the keywords of curriculum, evaluation and higher education had the highest frequency with 72, 53 and 45 repetitions respectively. Cluster analysis showed that the knowledge structure of Iranian Journal of Engineering Education consists of eight knowledge clusters, which are: The future of education and education of future; The connection and mutual influence of industry and university; Engineering ethics; e-learning; Teaching-learning process; Student issues; Educational revision and transformation and the challenges of educational effectiveness; Curriculum, evaluation and quality assurance. The results of the strategic diagram showed that the sixth cluster: Student issues and the eighth cluster: Educational effectiveness challenges: Curriculum, evaluation and quality assurance are placed in the first area, and in other words, they are the central and developed issues of this area. The fifth clusters: Teaching-learning process and the seventh: Educational revision and transformation were placed in the second region. These clusters are not axial clusters; but they are developed. The second cluster: the relationship and mutual effects of industry and university and the fourth: E-learning are placed in the third part. The clusters of the third part are marginal issues due to their centrality and low density and attract little attention. Also, the first cluster: The future of education and education of future and the third cluster: Engineering ethics were placed in the fourth region, which were the core clusters; but they are underdeveloped.

Students’ learning and motivation have always been important topics in higher education, and the factors affecting them have been investigated in different ways. The present research was conducted with the aim of investigating the effect of teaching methods on students’ motivation and learning. The research was conducted as a survey among  students of University of Zanjan. Data were collected using questionnaire in person and online. SPSS 22 and Smart PLS 3 software were used to analyze the data. The findings showed that there is a significant relationship between all variables in general, but this correlation was not significant in the faculties of science, and agriculture. The teaching method had a significant effect on students’ motivation and learning. In addition, motivation played a mediating role in the relationship between teaching methods and students’ learning. The results of mean test showed that there is no significant difference in research variables between male and female students. In addition, the research model was significantly different among students of engineering faculties with faculties of humanities, and sciences only in one path (the effect of teaching method on motivation).

The present study was conducted with the aim of investigating the effect of personal and financial competencies on the formation of entrepreneurial intention with the mediating effect of Protection Motivation Theory (PMT). This investigation in terms of purpose is in the category of applied research and in terms of the method of data collection, it is a cross-sectional survey type. The statistical population of the research includes 282 foreign students studying in Tehran University, 183 of them were selected according to Cochran’s formula and with the purposeful sampling method available. In order to collect data, a researcher-made questionnaire was used, and to determine its validity, face, diagnostic, and convergent validity were used to determine the extracted mean variance index. In order to determine the reliability of the research tool, Cronbach’s Alpha method and composite reliability were used, and the resulting values were at the appropriate level. The findings of the research indicate that entrepreneurial competence has a positive and significant effect on entrepreneurial intention through the mediation of protective motivation, but its effect was not confirmed directly. Also, the results showed that threat assessment and entrepreneurial intention do not have a confirmed relationship; on the other hand, coping assessment has a significant relationship with entrepreneurial intention.