In the midst of rapid technological change and the rise of artificial intelligence, there is a need and an opportunity to rethink higher education. Our role as engineering educators must consider cultivating spaces of care, empathy, and belonging. Students are not only future engineers—they are human beings navigating uncertainty, complexity, and pressure. This presentation invites us to reimagine engineering pedagogy as an act of compassion, one that prioritizes listening to student voices, fostering authentic connections, and nurturing resilience alongside rigor. While AI and other tools may reshape aspects of teaching and learning, they cannot replicate the transformative power of educators who care deeply. By embracing pedagogies of compassion, we can help students not only succeed in their disciplines but also thrive as empathetic, thoughtful, and socially responsible engineers in an unpredictable world.

There are mainly three types of engineering lecturers in Asia who recognize themselves as experts in engineering education, which are (1) those who conduct rigorous research in engineering education to produce new knowledge in engineering education; (2) those who innovate certain teaching and learning methods to improve the learning of engineering contents; and (3) those who are appointed to assess or design engineering curricula or programs at higher learning institutes. 

All three types of engineering lecturers could become experts in engineering education if they are able to understand and apply certain learning theories and educational research methods in producing their research, innovation or assessment in engineering education.

 The speaker will share her experience in helping her engineering colleagues on how learning theories and educational research methods could be used in research in engineering education to strengthen engineering education thus elevating the teaching and learning of engineering.