E-Learning consequences of the declining interest in engineering studies in Europe

Luz-Marcela Morales (1) , Katherine Maillet (1)

1 IMT-BS - LSH - Département Langues et Sciences Humaines

The success of e-learning in a specific country is based on the number of computer science experts involved in the same geographic area. As a fact, the entire development of an e-learning infrastructure depends on the persons who have the expertise to create and maintain e-materials. Unfortunately, in 2006 official European statistics on education (see Eurostat 2007) showed that the interest in computer science and engineering fields of study had decreased each year, attesting to a decline in interest among K12 students for these careers, thus potentially affecting e-learning progress. This paper aims to illustrate the importance of the declining number of engineering experts in Europe and the possible consequences in the e-learning field if this decline persists. It will also identify similar consequences which have already occurred in other industrialised countries such as Canada and United States (see Computer Research Policy 2007).

Mots clés: Engineering; Teachin and learning methods; Computer science education

Domaines: Apprentissage [cs.LG]

Luz-Marcela Morales, Katherine Maillet. E-Learning consequences of the declining interest in engineering studies in Europe. E-Learn '09 : World Conference on E-Learning in Corporate, Government, Healthcare, & Higher Education, Oct 2009, Vancouver, Canada. pp.3380-3386. ⟨hal-00448622⟩