Chemical Engineering Education in the Digital age: Opportunities and Challenges

In the last few years there has been a tremendous change in the education landscape mainly due to the rapid technological developments around us. Over time universities have been adopting the use of new technologies in particular to complement on-campus activities. The use of Virtual Learning Environments has become a necessity for teaching and learning delivery. Chemical Engineering programmes have also engaged significantly in this ‘digital transformation’ and never more so than over the past year. Even if there had been reluctance to change, the Covid19 pandemic has forced the chemical engineering education establishment to adapt and evolve. Nevertheless, how much change has actually occurred?

Education is not the only sector that has been affected by digitalisation. It is relevant therefore to distinguish between the digital transformation in education and that which has occurred in engineering practice. For a student to operate in the education environment it is important to have enough ‘digital literacy’. However, for a graduate to operate in the work place it is important to have ‘digital proficiency’. Given that the needs of both sectors are different, a pertinent question is how changes in education delivery have impacted on the development of ‘digital proficiency’ in chemical engineering graduates.

In this presentation I will discuss some of the opportunities that recent changes education environments have opened up, what are the affordances that digital technologies offer for education of chemical engineering graduates and what are the gaps that still need to be breached between ‘training/education’ and ‘practice’. I will also discuss the challenges that have arisen and the difficulties that lie ahead.