Electrical and computer engineering education in the 21st Century: issues, perspectives and challenges

Abstract

Preface: The initiation of the study of this special issue went back to the first quarter of 2004 and was conceived by Prof. Kemal Leblebicioğlu, the editor-in-chief. It is, therefore, a product of nearly two years of intensive collaborative labor. I've been attending international panels/discussions on \how teaching engineering can be improved" in this information century with breathtaking progresses in science and technology for sometime [1-4], and have witnessed national and international efforts here and there in universities, in educational and research institutes, governmental agencies, etc. Prof. Leopold B. Felsen and I had an introductory paper [1] on this topic in another special issue of ELEKTRIK published in 2002 [2]. Problems and challenges related to EMC (Electromagnetic Compatibility) and BEM (Bio-Electromagnetic) engineering are outlined in the IEEE paper [3] prepared by me which was published both in 2003 and 2004. Finally, challenges of establishing an intelligent balance between real and virtual engineering labs discussed by me and Prof. Göknar was also published in another IEEE paper [4].