Engineering is more than a discipline or a career. Engineering is a way of thinking- an approach to solving problems. Engineers draw upon science and mathematics, communication skills, interpersonal skills, and ingenuity to make the world a better place.

Offering students an engineering opportunity in the intermediate school is integral to Westfield’s educational program. An engineering course allows students to apply various content knowledge, tools, and machinery in order to develop a variety of creative solutions to a given problem in many technological areas. The course also assists the students in becoming a technologically literate citizen. To be technologically literate is to understand what technology is, how it works, how it’s engineered, how it shapes society and in turn how society shapes it.

Course Objective

The first course in Westfield’s technology and engineering education program for intermediate school students is Technology, Engineering and Design I, a required, one marking period course for all sixth graders. This course builds the foundation for future courses in the department. In this course, students are exposed to all areas of technology and participate in a variety of hands-on activities that demonstrate their ability to engineer solutions to a given problem. Students explore all aspects of the Engineering Design Process, from brainstorming and prototyping to analyzing and evaluating design options.