Teaching and Engineering - Essay Example

Comparing and Contrasting Two Relevant Professions Roll No Comparing and Contrasting Two Relevant Professions Engineering is directly involved in large number of professions. In professions where it’s not directly involved, it affects them in one way or the other. In this research paper, the profession I am working toward, which is elementary school teacher, is compared and contrasted with an automotive interior engineer in order to study the effects that automotive interior engineering has on it.

Introduction Engineering in general often involves application and testing of engineering knowledge and skills (JobJunction Inc.). However, the knowledge and skills have to be taught to an engineer. This is done through teaching. It is important to mention that teaching the knowledge and skills of engineering requires building upon the foundation that is conceived in elementary schools. Thus for a good engineer it is important to have a strong foundation in basics of scientific knowledge and skills.

The lines below take a look at how a specialized field of engineering, automotive interior engineering, effects elementary school teaching. A comparison of elementary teacher and automotive interior engineer An elementary school teacher needs to hold at least a bachelor’s degree. She/he also requires a certification or license from the state. An elementary school teacher is responsible for preparing children for future schooling (U.S. Bureau of Labor). An elementary school teacher’s daily duties include lesson planning and teaching basic science and math as well as skills such as social skills.

In addition to this, the teacher is also responsible for making students understand basic science concepts, solve scientific and math problems as well as help them think critically. The teacher is also responsible for assessing and grading students communicate with parents about their child’s progress and well as supervising student to help them develop new skills or overcome their weaknesses. An elementary school teacher works with students in a class room where he/she not only follows rules him/herself but also enforces classroom rules on students ( U.S. Bureau of Labor).

To become an automotive interior engineer, on the other hand, a person also needs to hold a bachelor’s degree in engineering (JobJunction Inc.). However, no certificate or license is required from state for an engineer to practice. An automotive interior engineer is responsible for using engineering theories and principles to assist in the release of the new part for automotive interior. The duties in this profession require that the engineer comes up with a reliable design with minimum time and cost using the best resources available (Nelson).

An automotive engineer’s job requires working from a desk as well involvement in design and conducting of tests in a lab. An automotive interior engineer is also required to follow rules and regulation set by the employer or by the industry (JobJunction Inc.). The effects of automotive engineering on elementary education Though these two professions seem totally exclusive, however, seen from another perspective automotive interior engineer does have a link with elementary school teaching. First of all, automotive interior engineering is a branch of engineering, and all fields of engineering involves math in one form or the other (Nelson).

Thus for an engineer, it is important to have a strong foundation in math and this starts in elementary schools. Therefore, elementary school teachers are required to provide their students with a solid foundation in basic mathematics so that they face little or no problem at all in building on that when they study at advanced levels. One of the key skills of an automotive interior engineer is his/her ability to think critically in order to evaluate his/her options for optimum design (Nelson).

This skill is developed overtime and requires a strong foundation, thus, for anyone to become automotive interior engineer, he/she must be taught to think critically and ask questions during elementary education. To study automotive interior engineering or any field of engineering also requires excellent reading skill which also has its roots in elementary education. Since automotive interior engineering involves application of engineering principles, it also involves experimentation or testing (JobJunction Inc.). Thus for an elementary school teacher it is also important to familiarize its pupil with scientific experimentation so that they better understand its purpose and apply it optimally.

Furthermore, an engineer is also required to follow rules and regulation set by industry or the employer, hence, it is also required from an elementary school teacher to train his/her students to follow rules and teach them their importance. Conclusion Engineering and teaching may seem like totally different fields of profession; however, on closer inspection one can clearly see that they have a significant link between them through knowledge and skills. While automotive engineers are regarded as significant resource in automotive industry, this significance comes from the fact that they have be “taught” the knowledge and skills required in engineering professions.

And, without a strong foundation, all advanced knowledge and skills would be useless. Thus automotive engineering requires strong elementary education and effects elementary schools teachers in how and what they teach their students. Bibliography U.S. Bureau of Labor. What Kindergarten and Elementary School Teachers Do. 2013. 9 March 2013. . JobJunction Inc. Automotive Interiors Product Engineer. 2013. 9 March 2013. . Nelson, James. Interview with Dr. James Nelson. 22 February 2013. U.S. Bureau of Labor.

Kindergarten and Elementary School Teachers. 2013. 9 March 2013. . Appendix A Date Interview conducted: February 22nd, 2012 Name of person being interviewed: James Nelson 1)What do engineers do? The main purpose of engineers is to apply the principles of science and mathematics to develop economic solutions to technical problems of the world. Their work is the link between scientific discoveries and the commercial applications that meet our needs. 2) What is the area of specialty of the professor you are meeting with?

Product Development (Design and Release Engineer), Automotive Interior. 3) How many years of industrial and academic experience does he have? For this position, only one year. Besides that I worked as an Engineering Manager (Electrical Distribution) for 3 Years. 4) In your opinion, what is the best part of an engineering job? It would have to be the part of my job called “Engineering Judgment.” This is using my own personal theories and experience to assist in release a new part. 5) What are the challenges and opportunities of an engineering profession?

Budget and Timing are the main challenges for an Engineer. This is also a big opportunity to be able to create a reliable design with minimum cost, but you need to make sure that you use the best resources and time. 6) What is a helpful trait/s to posses when dealing with engineering? I think analytic behavior helps you a lot. You want to be good with math and some basic theory of physics. 7) What is the average starting salary of an engineer? 55000 to 75000 depending on company and benefit package. 8) Which attributes are essential to succeed in engineering education and engineering profession?

Hard work, positive mentality and being involved with real life project work. You have to have persistence and dedication to what you are working on as well as the ability to work with others on time and budget constraints. 9) Is New England College a good place to pursue and engineering degree? Yes, I highly recommend New England College because it has friendly faculty members, as well as small classrooms which will help you to prepare for subject matter. It has a nice lab environment and there is a lot of opportunity to get involved.