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The sixteen colleges of the South Carolina Technical College System through an NSF-ATE grant have begun the development of an interdisciplinary problem-based engineering technology curriculum for associate degree programs. The first phase has been the development of an integrated freshman sequence of courses (ET Core). Using interdisciplinary teams (mathematics, science, technology, and communications), an integrated freshman curriculum framework has been developed. The ET Core is built on the six major physical systems (electrical, mechanical, thermal, fluid, optical, and material) common to the engineering technology programs in the South Carolina system and identifies the freshman level mathematics, science, and introductory technology performance objectives. Because technical communication is essential, a communication framework will also be part of the integrated ET Core. Industry has been involved in validation of the performance objectives and identification of problem-based exercises to allow the classroom activities to model the workplace by focusing on teamwork, communication, and problem solving as well as technical content. The curriculum design permits instruction to be delivered in three one semester integrated courses or in concurrently taught linked courses with coordinated presentation of material.
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James Wood (2020) studied this question.