At Tianjin University (TJU), the construction of Emerging Engineering Education (3E) is in full swing, which gives new vitality to this university with strength in engineering.
TJU’s independently developed underwater glider called "Petrel” set a record in the cruising range and diving depth.
In the new semester of 2019, Zheng Jingxuan, a 2018 postgraduate student of the School of Chemical Engineering and Technology at Tianjin University, has several more public optional courses: Advanced Nanomaterials and Characterization, Quantum Mechanics and Knowledge Engineering; another 19 senior students from Engineering Science Experimental Class of the School went to Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Carnegie Mellon University, Columbia University and other prestigious colleges for their undergraduate graduation design; the Baidu 3E Experimental Class and Joint Lab, together with the NXP Class and Tencent 3E Class formed a matrix that enterprises participate in the exploration of the 3E.
TJU promotes innovation in talent training, organization pattern, and mechanism. In the 3E development, the University built and tested the excellent engineer education and training model “1234+X” based on the “Excellence Plan” for 10 years. It has effectively promoted the leap development of “Excellence Plan 1.0 – Emerging Engineering Education – Excellence Plan 2.0”, and the finding of an effective implementation path that can be replicated and promoted in order to realize the strong engineering education. A few days ago, TJU’s achievement “Engineering Education Reform and Practice in the Emerging Engineering Education” won the first prize of the national teaching achievement in 2018.
Proceed with proposals
For the traditional engineering education, there are some problems: mechanism problem, structural contradiction – between talent training and social needs, and lack of endogenous motivation for the transformation of engineering education paradigm. These problems make it difficult for the higher education talents to meet the needs of engineering innovation talents for the high-quality development of China's economy and society.
For the 3E development, the team responsible for it has a common philosophy for the 3E: 3E is not a partial development, but a major strategy for engineering education reform in the context of the new technological revolution, the new industrial revolution, and the new economy, which is a new way of thinking and a new way for the development of engineering education in China in the future.
It is also based on this consensus that after two months of releasing “Fudan Consensus” of the 3E development, more than 60 universities and colleges jointly formulated the “TJU Action” for the 3E development, which jointly described the construction path of engineering. Tianjin University together with these universities proposed a Roadmap for 3E Development (6 Proposals for Tianjin University Action Plan). These proposals have become the common guidelines for the universities to participate in the 3E action plan, as well as the core expression of the “X” in the new paradigm “1234+X” of the 3E reform and practice.
“1234+X” excellent engineer education training mode refers to: one foundation (talent cultivation with high moral standards), two focuses (focusing on the national major strategic needs, and focusing on the world's technological frontier), three aspects (facing industry, facing the world, and facing the future), four goals (devotion to the country, global vision, innovation spirit, and practical ability) + X (implementation path).
After the "TJU Action", the reform and practice of 3E quickly became a national trend.
Bring forth the new through the old
For Tianjin University, an old university with over 120 years of history and strength in engineering, how to develop 3E requires a new and comprehensive innovation from concept to practice.
Tianjin University first clarified the goal of training excellent engineering talents led by the devotion to the country, and consolidated the talent training objective in the new era which is to constantly cultivate excellent talents with "devotion to the country, global vision, innovative spirit and practical ability”. This includes the four dimensions and 28 elements of the standards of the future excellent talent training, covering the psychology, moral quality, ability, knowledge,etc., and the development of the “Excellence Plan” series of experimental fields, for the 3E talents to build models, set standards, and explore the realization of 3E mechanism.
At Tianjin University, the “Engineering Science Experimental Class” explores the transformation of traditional engineering education. The integration of bachelor, master and doctoral education for pharmacy major taught in English explores the international talent training mode. The cooperation between China and France in the Tianjin International Engineering Institute to explore international engineering talent training. Xuanhuai School explores innovation and entrepreneurship education... These experimental fields continue to explore the experience of 3E development.
At the same time, some traditional disciplines have begun to transform, some new disciplines and programs have been established, and the preponderant disciplines have continued to be aligned with international benchmarks. Adhering to the 3E concept of inheritance and innovation, cross and integration, synergy and sharing, Tianjin University implements the project of program building, focusing on the construction of 10 emerging engineering programs, transforming and upgrading 10 traditional engineering programs, and promoting the reconstruction of programs and content and improvement of level all over the university. Therefore, it will realize the turn from discipline-oriented to industrial demand-oriented, from category division of programs to cross-border integration, and from adaptive service to supportive leading.
In the past two years, Tianjin University has established a path of disciplinary development of “Strengthening engineering, improving science, promoting liberal arts, and developing medicine”. The national first undergraduate program in intelligent medical engineering, the School of Artificial Intelligence, the Institute of Molecular Aggregation Science, and the Institute of Molecular Plus... a batch of schools, research institutes and new programs centered on the 3E have been established. At the same time, the traditional engineering programs are undergoing an update and transformation, such as “upgrading” water conservancy and hydropower engineering with big data, internet of things and artificial intelligence technology, and using “engineering science experiment class” as a carrier to open up machinery, optics, information, computer and other disciplines, to achieve a strategic adjustment of the university's program structure.
At the same time as the disciplinary adjustment, the reform of daily teaching including integration of the bachelor, master and doctoral education as well as integration of the general education and professional education is also carried out. Since 2018, the university fully implemented the “First-class Undergraduate Education 2030 Action Plan”: breaking the “identity” restrictions of bachelor, master and doctor, and implementing cut-through talent cultivation for undergraduates and postgraduates; breaking the “program” restrictions, admitting students according to major categories... Meanwhile, the University implemented Course Quality Improvement Plan, and has focused on the construction of 30 general basic courses, 50 basic courses in discipline, 100 specialized core courses and 100 MOOC courses in batches.
“1.0” towards “2.0”
3E is always the dazzling highlight event at Tianjin University. 3E Forums are held nationally and internationally on the campus. A new 3E concept of “Bring forth the new through the old” was formed, a new 3E program structure “innovation with the time” was created, a new engineering education model of “integration and innovation” was established, and the talent training of “the new from reform” entered into a new phase.
Tianjin University’s exploration of 3E excellent engineering talent training began in June 2010, and the Ministry of Education's “Excellent Engineer Education and Training Program Launching Conference” was held at Tianjin University, which is the start of the “Excellence Plan”. In the 8 years of implementation, TJU has 21 undergraduate programs and 6 postgraduate disciplinary fields to participate in the pilot, involving more than 13,000 students. In December 2013, with the seventh teaching conference as the symbol, the “1234+X” excellent engineer training model was basically formed. In 2017, since the launch of the 3E construction, the “1234+X” outstanding engineer training model has continued to explore and form the X path to promote the transformation of engineering education paradigm, and consolidate it into “6 Proposals for Tianjin University Action Plan”, directly promoting the 3E construction, and providing a practical support and model reference for Excellence 2.0. At the end of 2017, the eighth teaching conference of Tianjin University was held, marking the university's first test of the “Excellence Plan” 2.0.
3E has set up a bridge from the engineering talent training “Excellence Plan” 1.0 to the “Excellence Plan” 2.0. In the view of Wang Shuxin, a principal director of the teaching reform project and Vice President of Tianjin University, 3E talent training is systematical. It is not only necessary for colleges and universities to promote their own talent training reforms, but the whole society should also pay more attention and render supports, to form a synergistic education effect, and cultivate more world-class talents.
Looking into the future, the construction of 3E is just like the “catalyst” of comprehensive reform of universities. It is promoting the comprehensive reform of university organization mode, disciplinary and program structure, talent training mechanism, and teacher evaluation and incentives.
