Embedded Systems Education in the 2020s: Challenges, Reflections, and Future Directions

Embedded computing systems are pervasive in our everyday lives, imparting digital intelligence to a variety of electronic platforms used in our vehicles, smart appliances, wearables, mobile devices, and computers. The need to train the next generation of embedded systems designers and engineers with relevant skills across hardware, software, and their co-design remains pressing today. This paper describes the evolution of embedded systems education over the past two decades and challenges facing the designers and instructors of embedded systems curricula in the 2020s. Reflections from over a decade of teaching the design of embedded computing systems are presented, with insights on strategies that show promise to address these challenges. Lastly, some important future directions in embedded systems education are highlighted.