A New Model of Project-Based Learning in Engineering Education

Ronald R. Ulseth; Jefferey E. Froyd; Thomas A. Litzinger; Dan Ewert; Bart M. Johnson

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Conference: 2011 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition
Location: Vancouver, BC
Publication Date: June 26, 2011
Start Date: June 26, 2011
End Date: June 29, 2011
ISSN: 2153-5965
Conference Session: Project-Based Learning
Tagged Division: Design in Engineering Education
Page Count: 13
Page Numbers: 22.78.1 - 22.78.13
DOI: 10.18260/1-2--17360
Permanent URL: https://peer.asee.org/17360
Download Count: 593

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Paper Authors

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Ronald R. Ulseth Iron Range Engineering

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Ulseth is an instructor of engineering at Iron Range Engineering and Itasca Community College both in northern Minnesota. He is the co-developer of both programs. For the past 20 years he has taught physics, statics, dynamics, fluid mechanics, and thermodynamics. He has successfully implemented engineering learning communities in first year programs. Recently, Ulseth began a new 100% project-based, industry-sponsored, engineering curriculum.

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Jefferey E. Froyd Texas A&M University orcid.org/0000-0002-4426-2681

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Jeff Froyd is the Director of Faculty Climate and Development in the Office of the Dean of Faculties and Associate Provost at Texas A&M University. He served as Project Director for the Foundation Coalition, an NSF Engineering Education Coalition in which six institutions systematically renewed, assessed, and institutionalized their undergraduate engineering curricula, and extensively shared their results with the engineering education community. He co-created the Integrated, First-Year Curriculum in Science, Engineering and Mathematics at Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology, which was recognized in 1997 with a Hesburgh Award Certificate of Excellence. He has authored or co-authored over 70 papers on engineering education in areas ranging from curricular change to faculty development. He is currently an ABET Program Evaluator and a Senior Associate Editor for the Journal on Engineering Education.

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Thomas A. Litzinger Pennsylvania State University, University Park

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Dr. Thomas A. Litzinger is Director of the Leonhard Center for the Enhancement of Engineering Education and a Professor of Mechanical Engineering at Penn State, where he has been on the faculty since 1985. His work in engineering education involves curricular reform, teaching and learning innovations, faculty development, and assessment. He teaches and conducts research in the areas of combustion and thermal sciences. He is an Associate Editor of Advances in Engineering Education and a Fellow of ASEE.

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Dan Ewert Minnesota State University, Mankato, Iron Range Engineering

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Dan Ewert is Director and Professor in Iron Range Engineering, Virginia, MN, a program offered by Minnesota State University, Mankato.

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Bart M. Johnson Itasca Community College

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Bart Johnson is an instructor of engineering and program coordinator at Itasca Community College in northern Minnesota. For the past seven years he has taught physics, statics, dynamics, and solid modeling. Prior to Itasca, he was a design engineer in John Deere's Construction and Forestry Division.

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Abstract

A New Model of Project Based Learning in Engineering EducationA new model for engineering education has been funded and began delivery in January 2010.The Iron Range Engineering (IRE) model is a completely project-based-learning (PjBL), two-year, upper-division program in which students work on external-client design projects. The aimis engineering graduates with integrated technical/professional knowledge and competencies.IRE students do not take classes. 100% of their learning is done in the context of the externalclient projects. Students earn a B.S. in Engineering with emphases along a spectrum betweenwhat might be traditionally called mechanical engineering and electrical engineering. IRE takessilo-busting seriously.The IRE model is a 40 hour per week experience in an engineering-type office setting wherestudents learn engineering design through actual practice working on engineering projects forindustry clients. Students manage the acquisition of their technical competencies concepts incontext with their design. They work 20 hours per week on design execution and in the other 20hours, they master their technical learning with much synergy between the two.Some of the characteristics of this new approach are:* All learning activities are organized around externally-sponsored design projects. Facultymembers use the projects as contexts for developing competencies and learning subject matter.* The IRE model has developed a complete set of competencies for an engineering graduate.* Development of skills for effective teamwork is highlighted in the student experience. Theystart each project by developing a “team contract”, follow that up at mid-project with a formativeassessment aimed at giving feedback to each member on the quality of their “team membercitizenship”, and then complete an assessment tool quantifying the quality of their “team workachieved”.*Faculty and external technical experts (practicing professional engineers) act as facilitators forthe design and professional skills and technical knowledge acquisition through intentionalquestioning, managing, assessing, and evaluating. They provide scaffolding for the students,removing it little by little as skills and knowledge develop over time.* This project-based learning model provides an exciting environment for synergism betweeneducation and economic development. Learning by working on externally sponsored projectsfrom industry and inventors, the innovation process is moved into the undergraduate educationprocess.The IRE program has implemented extensive assessment and evaluation to track cognitivedevelopment, motivation, technical competency acquisition, and professional competencyacquisition and have the indicators feed the continued development of the program.The authors will present a detailed description of the model, highlighting design for industry andteamwork in design aspects and describe early results from the first two years of implementation.Wider application of the IRE model is a cohort based PjBL program which can be instituted insmall programs at the department level or in large departments as a special cohort similar tocurrently implemented honors programs.Keywords Section:Project-Based-Learning for Design, Teamwork in Design, Industry, Entrepreneurial,

Citation
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Ulseth, R. R., & Froyd, J. E., & Litzinger, T. A., & Ewert, D., & Johnson, B. M. (2011, June), A New Model of Project-Based Learning in Engineering Education Paper presented at 2011 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition, Vancouver, BC. 10.18260/1-2--17360

TY  - CPAPER
AB  -                         A New Model of Project Based Learning                              in Engineering EducationA new model for engineering education has been funded and began delivery in January 2010.The Iron Range Engineering (IRE) model is a completely project-based-learning (PjBL), two-year, upper-division program in which students work on external-client design projects. The aimis engineering graduates with integrated technical/professional knowledge and competencies.IRE students do not take classes. 100% of their learning is done in the context of the externalclient projects. Students earn a B.S. in Engineering with emphases along a spectrum betweenwhat might be traditionally called mechanical engineering and electrical engineering. IRE takessilo-busting seriously.The IRE model is a 40 hour per week experience in an engineering-type office setting wherestudents learn engineering design through actual practice working on engineering projects forindustry clients. Students manage the acquisition of their technical competencies concepts incontext with their design. They work 20 hours per week on design execution and in the other 20hours, they master their technical learning with much synergy between the two.Some of the characteristics of this new approach are:* All learning activities are organized around externally-sponsored design projects. Facultymembers use the projects as contexts for developing competencies and learning subject matter.* The IRE model has developed a complete set of competencies for an engineering graduate.* Development of skills for effective teamwork is highlighted in the student experience. Theystart each project by developing a “team contract”, follow that up at mid-project with a formativeassessment aimed at giving feedback to each member on the quality of their “team membercitizenship”, and then complete an assessment tool quantifying the quality of their “team workachieved”.*Faculty and external technical experts (practicing professional engineers) act as facilitators forthe design and professional skills and technical knowledge acquisition through intentionalquestioning, managing, assessing, and evaluating. They provide scaffolding for the students,removing it little by little as skills and knowledge develop over time.* This project-based learning model provides an exciting environment for synergism betweeneducation and economic development. Learning by working on externally sponsored projectsfrom industry and inventors, the innovation process is moved into the undergraduate educationprocess.The IRE program has implemented extensive assessment and evaluation to track cognitivedevelopment, motivation, technical competency acquisition, and professional competencyacquisition and have the indicators feed the continued development of the program.The authors will present a detailed description of the model, highlighting design for industry andteamwork in design aspects and describe early results from the first two years of implementation.Wider application of the IRE model is a cohort based PjBL program which can be instituted insmall programs at the department level or in large departments as a special cohort similar tocurrently implemented honors programs.Keywords Section:Project-Based-Learning for Design, Teamwork in Design, Industry, Entrepreneurial,
AU  - Ronald R. Ulseth
AU  - Jefferey E. Froyd
AU  - Thomas A. Litzinger
AU  - Dan Ewert
AU  - Bart M. Johnson
CY  - Vancouver, BC
DA  - 2011/06/26
PB  - ASEE Conferences
TI  - A New Model of Project-Based Learning in Engineering Education
UR  - https://peer.asee.org/17360
DO  - 10.18260/1-2--17360
ER  -