Indigenous STEM “Engineering”: An Analysis and Integration of Indigenous Perspective for Cultural Sustainable Engineering Education Curriculum in Higher Education for Native American Students

Abstract

This study considered how culturally sustainable pedagogy (CSP) can be integrated intoengineering education in higher education. The study was specifically interested in implementing a CSP curriculum in engineering as a way to increase the number of Native American and Indigenous students in the engineering profession. The approach to this study emphasized Indigenous perspectives for culturally sustainable Engineering Education Curriculum in Higher Education for Native American Students. This research considered how the concept of “Ways of Knowing” and CSP understanding in engineering education can be implemented. To collect data for this study, I administered a survey to members of AISES at the national and regional levels in the Southwest. The goal was to obtain students' perspectives on CSP, using Indigenous Research Methodology (IRM) and Quantitative Methodology. This study yielded Indigenous perspectives on a culturally sustainable engineering education curriculum in higher education for Native American students through a theoretical framework of the Indigenous Engineering Education Model (IEEM) developed for this research.