A Surveying Course as Summer Experience for

G. Padmanabhan; D. Darshi De Saram; Thomas Charles Schanandore; James Schanandore; Robert V. Pieri

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Conference: 2013 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition
Location: Atlanta, Georgia
Publication Date: June 23, 2013
Start Date: June 23, 2013
End Date: June 26, 2013
ISSN: 2153-5965
Conference Session: Beyond the Classroom: Summer and Scholarship Programs to Engage Minorities
Tagged Division: Minorities in Engineering
Page Count: 14
Page Numbers: 23.118.1 - 23.118.14
DOI: 10.18260/1-2--19132
Permanent URL: https://peer.asee.org/19132
Download Count: 394

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Paper Authors

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G. Padmanabhan P.E. North Dakota State University

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G. Padmanabhan, Ph. D., P.E., M. ASEE, F. ASCE is a professor of civil engineering at North Dakota State University, Fargo, North Dakota. He also serves as the Director of North Dakota Water Resources Research Institute. He is a long standing member of ASEE. He has been active in STEM education outreach activities to Native American students at the college, high and middle school levels for the last twelve years. He has received funding in the past from Office of Naval Research, NSF and NASA for outreach to Native American STEM education.

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D. Darshi De Saram North Dakota State University

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Dr. Darshi De Saram is an Assistant Professor of Practice at the Department of Construction Management & Engineering, North Dakota State University. He has a PhD degree in Construction Management from the Hong Kong Polytechnic University, an MTech degree in in Construction Management from the Open University of Sri Lanka, and a BScEng degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Peradeniya, Sri Lanka; getting an academic experience that straddles engineering technology, management and social sciences. His research interests are in soft aspects of construction management.
Before returning to academia to pursue the Ph.D. degree, Darshi has gained ten years of experience in the construction industry, including working in an array of multinational projects. Also, has three years of experience in other industry sectors. He has, thus, gained cross-disciplinary experience in a broad spectrum of activities: design, construction, maintenance, manufacturing, marketing, research and teaching. Presently he teaches Construction Surveying, Financial and Economic Aspects for Construction Managers, Managing for Construction Quality, Electrical and Mechanical Construction, and Land Development.

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Thomas Charles Schanandore North Dakota State University

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Thomas Schanandore is graduate student in the civil engineering department at North Dakota State University, Fargo, North Dakota. He is originally from Mandan, ND and is a member of the Three Affiliated Tribes of the Fort Berthold Indian Reservation. He has been involved with Native American outreach programs at NDSU such as PEEC (Pre-Engineering Education Collaboration) and NATURE (Nurturing American Tribal Undergraduate Research and Education). His involvement in these programs includes assisting in the instruction and teaching of students during summer camp activities.

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James Schanandore North Dakota State University

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James Schanandore is a Ph.D. student in the Biological Sciences Department at North Dakota State University. He is a member of the Three Affiliated Tribes of the Fort Berthold Indian Reservation. He is actively involved in the Pre-Engineering Education Collaborative (PEEC) and NATURE (Nurturing American Tribal Undergraduate Research and Education). Through these programs he aids in the instruction and teaching of the students during PEEC and NATURE.

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Robert V. Pieri North Dakota State University

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Bob Pieri is Professor of Mechanical Engineering at NDSU in Fargo, ND. He has many conference publications on engineering education and design. His primary professional interest areas include: Engineering Education, CADD, Design, Fracture Mechanics, Materials Science and Alternative Energy Options. During the 2003 – 2004 academic year, Dr. Pieri spent a sabbatical teaching math & engineering courses at Turtle Mountain Community College on the Turtle Mountain Reservation in North Dakota. Between the fall of 2008 and July of 2011, Dr. Pieri held the position of Coordinator of Tribally Controlled Colleges – NDSU Partnerships under joint appointment to the Equity, Diversity and Global Outreach Division, Extension Service and Mechanical Engineering Department, where he worked to develop authentic partnering opportunities with the TCC’s and many disciplines across campus. Currently he is the NDSU PI for the Pre Engineering Education Collaboration with 4 ND Tribal Colleges to bring Native Americans into engineering. Prior to joining NDSU, he taught for 10 years at the U.S. Air Force Academy. Prior to his time at USAFA, Dr. Pieri was a Research & Development Engineer with the Air Force, studying problems of pollution in the earth’s atmosphere.

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Abstract

A Surveying Course as Summer Experience for a Tribal College Pre-Engineering ProgramA surveying course has been designed and delivered for a tribal college pre-engineering program beingdeveloped under the tribal college-university Pre-Engineering Education Collaborative (PEEC) initiativeof the National Science Foundation. The collaborative, one of only four in the nation, is established tobring university engineering schools together with tribal colleges to develop pre-engineering programsin the tribal colleges. Under the collaborative, students will begin their studies in a pre-engineeringprogram at one of the four participating tribal colleges and then transfer to a university to completetheir studies. The program is in its second year and course development and delivery are in progress.The surveying course is offered as a summer experience over a two-week period during whichparticipating students from the tribal colleges assemble at the university. The course content isequivalent to that of the surveying course offered in a regular semester at the university; an objective ofthe program being to enhance instruction without lowering the bar. Surveying was chosen as the firstcourse to be offered because fieldwork (outdoor activity), integral to the course, is attractive to studentsand thus helpful to sustain their interest. Because most surveying endeavors require group work,students get a taste of working in teams to complete tasks. The ability to integrate applications oftrigonometry, computer aided graphics and spreadsheets into the course is another reason. Surveyingfieldwork requiring intense coordination and management of logistics afforded students opportunitiesto observe how tasks are accomplished. When condensing a 16 week semester schedule to a 2-weekcamp, the major concern was to allow reasonable time for studying, homework and reflection. Theschedule was, hence, set so that students were given time overnight before conducting tests andfieldwork on material taught any day. Being a hands-on course, much of the learning happened in thefield. Every attempt was made to ensure that students from different tribal colleges will work togetherin groups, thus increasing interactions among people across tribal reservations. On each fieldworkstudents were required to maintain a detailed record on a field book that was rigorously graded, andwrite a reflective journal to emphasize the need to develop into reflective practitioners. Two advancedgraduate students assisted the engineering professor in instructing the students on fieldwork andprocessing field observations using spreadsheets. Beyond that, they took the lead in designing andconducting a series of tutorials making students create survey maps using computer aided graphics, andgain experiences in algebra, trigonometry, numerical methods, statistics and calculus. Further, the twoperformed yeoman service helping students catch up whenever they fell behind, thus gaining an in-depth knowledge of challenges faced by students. Another activity was demonstration of GPS and GIStechnology by two currently active professional surveyors, and introduction to the working environmentin their firm. Overall, students gained experience that may stimulate interest to acquire skills towardspursuing a career in engineering. Details of the course and reflections on future improvements will bediscussed in the paper.

Citation
Format

Padmanabhan, G., & De Saram, D. D., & Schanandore, T. C., & Schanandore, J., & Pieri, R. V. (2013, June), A Surveying Course as Summer Experience for Paper presented at 2013 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition, Atlanta, Georgia. 10.18260/1-2--19132

TY - CPAPER
AB - A Surveying Course as Summer Experience for a Tribal College Pre-Engineering ProgramA surveying course has been designed and delivered for a tribal college pre-engineering program beingdeveloped under the tribal college-university Pre-Engineering Education Collaborative (PEEC) initiativeof the National Science Foundation. The collaborative, one of only four in the nation, is established tobring university engineering schools together with tribal colleges to develop pre-engineering programsin the tribal colleges. Under the collaborative, students will begin their studies in a pre-engineeringprogram at one of the four participating tribal colleges and then transfer to a university to completetheir studies. The program is in its second year and course development and delivery are in progress.The surveying course is offered as a summer experience over a two-week period during whichparticipating students from the tribal colleges assemble at the university. The course content isequivalent to that of the surveying course offered in a regular semester at the university; an objective ofthe program being to enhance instruction without lowering the bar. Surveying was chosen as the firstcourse to be offered because fieldwork (outdoor activity), integral to the course, is attractive to studentsand thus helpful to sustain their interest. Because most surveying endeavors require group work,students get a taste of working in teams to complete tasks. The ability to integrate applications oftrigonometry, computer aided graphics and spreadsheets into the course is another reason. Surveyingfieldwork requiring intense coordination and management of logistics afforded students opportunitiesto observe how tasks are accomplished. When condensing a 16 week semester schedule to a 2-weekcamp, the major concern was to allow reasonable time for studying, homework and reflection. Theschedule was, hence, set so that students were given time overnight before conducting tests andfieldwork on material taught any day. Being a hands-on course, much of the learning happened in thefield. Every attempt was made to ensure that students from different tribal colleges will work togetherin groups, thus increasing interactions among people across tribal reservations. On each fieldworkstudents were required to maintain a detailed record on a field book that was rigorously graded, andwrite a reflective journal to emphasize the need to develop into reflective practitioners. Two advancedgraduate students assisted the engineering professor in instructing the students on fieldwork andprocessing field observations using spreadsheets. Beyond that, they took the lead in designing andconducting a series of tutorials making students create survey maps using computer aided graphics, andgain experiences in algebra, trigonometry, numerical methods, statistics and calculus. Further, the twoperformed yeoman service helping students catch up whenever they fell behind, thus gaining an in-depth knowledge of challenges faced by students. Another activity was demonstration of GPS and GIStechnology by two currently active professional surveyors, and introduction to the working environmentin their firm. Overall, students gained experience that may stimulate interest to acquire skills towardspursuing a career in engineering. Details of the course and reflections on future improvements will bediscussed in the paper.
AU - G. Padmanabhan P.E.
AU - D. Darshi De Saram
AU - Thomas Charles Schanandore
AU - James Schanandore
AU - Robert V. Pieri
CY - Atlanta, Georgia
DA - 2013/06/23
PB - ASEE Conferences
TI - A Surveying Course as Summer Experience for
UR - https://peer.asee.org/19132
DO - 10.18260/1-2--19132
ER -