Author
Rylan C. Chong, Dennis R. Depew, Ida B. Ngambeki, and Melissa J. Dark
Abstract
There is an increased need to teach public policy issues in the engineering curriculum. The purpose of this paper is to present an example of a way in which a policy discussion can be integrated into an engineering classroom. The paper will discuss a case study approach envisioned as a module. The module outlined in this paper considers four major social goals (i.e., equity, efficiency, security and liberty) prevalent in the policy world and the implications of their pursuit on energy policy. The interplay of the social goals and energy policy is illustrated using the career of Samuel Insull who was a founding member of General Electric and who is credited with creating integrated power grids in the United States. The module is intended to help engineering students understand the policy context of this major technical achievement in the energy sector and its implications for the current and future energy industry. This particular module uses a case study to achieve this goal. The paper discusses the process of creating and teaching this kind of topic. Specifically, the authors will use this module as an example to discuss choosing a topic, providing a framework for your students, choosing the appropriate scope, and selecting an appropriate case study to illustrate the topic and service the outcomes. Additionally, the authors will discuss more specific concerns such as responding to your students and how to connect the case study to current events. In order to provide a clear example, the authors go into great detail about the topic covered and the case study used in this module. This has the additional benefit of providing instructors interested in social goals and energy with content they can use in their own classrooms.