Integrating Cultural Heritage and Values into Technical Education: A Framework for Holistic Software Engineering Talent Cultivation

DOI

10.2991/978-94-6239-630-2_5How to use a DOI?

Keywords

Engineering Ethics; Values-Based Education; Software Engineering Pedagogy; Cultural Integration; STEM Education; Cultural-Technical Integration Theory (CTIT)

Abstract

Software engineering education faces a global challenge: the growing disconnect between technical skill development and ethical formation—the "skills-values gap." This paper presents a novel pedagogical framework that systematically integrates cultural values into technical curricula through the “6+6+N” model. Implemented in Chinese higher vocational education, this model comprises six digital support systems, six value-education paradigms, and extensible practical scenarios. Grounded in the proposed Cultural-Technical Integration Theory (CTIT), which leverages collectivist cultural principles emphasizing service orientation, practice-driven learning, and collaborative excellence, the framework aligns with modern software engineering competencies. A quasi-experimental study (n=240, experimental group=120, control group=120) with enhanced controls demonstrates statistically significant improvements in professional competencies (Cohen's d=0.72), ethical literacy (d=0.85), and innovation capabilities (d=0.68). Students in the experimental group showed substantially higher scores in ethical reasoning assessments and increased success in national competitions. Initial implementation across 15 institutions suggests promising replicability, though further validation is needed. This research contributes a systematic approach to values-based engineering education that may be culturally adaptable with appropriate validation.

Copyright

© 2026 The Author(s)

Open Access

Open Access This chapter is licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/), which permits any noncommercial use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license and indicate if changes were made.

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TY  - CONF
AU  - Cheng He
AU  - Guoluan Chen
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/04/23
TI  - Integrating Cultural Heritage and Values into Technical Education: A Framework for Holistic Software Engineering Talent Cultivation
BT  - Proceedings of the 2025 International Conference on Educational Technology and Management Information Systems (ETMIS 2025)
PB  - Atlantis Press
SP  - 35
EP  - 47
SN  - 2352-538X
UR  - https://doi.org/10.2991/978-94-6239-630-2_5
DO  - 10.2991/978-94-6239-630-2_5
ID  - He2026
ER  -