The Appropriateness of Design Cognition for Entrepreneurship Education of Engineering Students

Abstract

The study argues that the needs of engineering students for managerial education are distinct and evolving over time towards entrepreneurial mindset due to new industrial and technological trends. Consequently, managerial education of engineering students is shifting towards Science and technology entrepreneurship education (STEE). Moreover, considering the relevance of design cognition in entrepreneurship and engineering, it is argued that STEE can tackle the challenge more effectively by incorporating design cognition in the education process. Propositions are derived from research literature, and a teaching model approach is proposed that elaborated on the incorporation of cognitive acts of design in various aspects at ontological, didactical, and contextual levels in STEE. The proposed framework views education as a process of co-construction, centered on students where the role of teacher is like a coach. Students work in teams and practice the cognitive acts of design that lead to the development of interpersonal, entrepreneurial, and managerial skills. For this purpose, open-ended questioning, real life case studies, problem and project based learning, and lean methodology are proposed as effective content and pedagogies to promote the entrepreneurial behaviors required in the current industrial scenario.