A Knowledge-Base for Engineering - Benefits and Lessons Learned Using a Concept Inventory

High-quality engineers must master both calculations and underlying fundamental concepts; this level of retention is crucial to transfer their knowledge to the new challenges they will face. To ensure this, accreditation criteria for engineering programs in Canada require the evaluation of multiple attributes, the first of which is “a knowledge base for engineering”. While most universities opt for in-class grades, at [Institution], we choose to adapt a pedagogical tool (a concept inventory) to formalize the evaluation of our students. They are examined using a subset of questions from over 1200 chemical engineering questions. Data amassed over more than 10 years shows the impact of improvements to this tool. It is used for objective, quantitative feedback and serves as a metric for curriculum improvement. The concept inventory tool is both a reflexion of the ever-evolving engineering curriculum and a critical resource for evaluating and improving the efficacity of knowledge transfer.