Models for research-based teaching in engineering courses: a case-study at the University of Aveiro (PT) and San José State University (USA)

Abstract- There is considerable educational literature to suggest that the way universities conceive and manage the relationship between research and teaching, impacts negatively or positively teaching practices and student learning in Higher Education. Although the relevance of linking research and teaching is perceived as of central importance by many authors and university leaders, empirical findings suggest that research does not always influence the teaching quality and vice versa. The purpose of this communication is to analyse how institutional policies and practices can help or hinder engineering faculty members to link their teaching and research and how academics perceive the teaching/research nexus with the broader objective to enhance quality teaching and learning in Higher Education. More specifically the objective of this research is to investigate a range of institutional policies and practices at the Universities of Aveiro (PT) and San José State (USA) aiming at understanding how engineering faculty use research-based teaching in their classes. Empirical findings suggest that a research-based teaching model engages more actively the students in the daily tasks and develops deeper critical thinking