Conference Session

Project-Based Education in Energy Conversion

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Margaret Bailey, Rochester Institute of Technology

Tagged Divisions

Energy Conversion and Conservation

EducationThermodynamics (ME680) during their fourth or fifth years. Like their peer institutions, RIT hasthe desire and requirement to improve curriculum structure, integration, and assessment. ME413 and 680 form a progression in course work into the study of Thermodynamics and,therefore, the courses are carefully integrated. This integration is achieved through a courseassessment process conducted by the faculty leads from both courses.The goal of Thermodynamics is to provide studentswith practical and relevant engineering science Table 1. Summary of Topics Exploredbackground in thermodynamics. The course also in Thermodynamics (ME 413)provides the groundwork for subsequent courses in Topical Areas

Conference Session

Outreach Projects and General Energy Education

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Robert Fletcher, Lawrence Technological University

Tagged Divisions

Energy Conversion and Conservation

. The planninggroup reviewed the RFP and provided guidance regarding content and approach for the LTUproposal. From the first meeting we focused on two areas, writing a winning proposal and howwe could involve students at every level of the project. Mr. Pratt provided initial input as to thebest on-campus location site for the project, and how best to design the system to comply withthe grant requirements. Because the grant was for a maxim of $60,000, we knew additionalfunding was going to be required. Our Dean of Engineering has been very supportive of ourAlternative Energy program and assured us that if we got the grant that he would help us securethe additional funds to complete the project. This was vital, as the proposal required us

Conference Session

Experiences in Teaching Energy Courses

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Timothy Skvarenina, Purdue University

Tagged Divisions

Energy Conversion and Conservation

automatically created when the students login with their clickers. If desired, points can be assigned for attendance and sent to a CSV file thatcan be read by a spreadsheet.Review QuestionsOne of the strongest uses of the clickers in my opinion is for review questions during lectures.By asking questions and viewing the results, the instructor can gauge how well the students areunderstanding a concept. Just as importantly, students can see how well they are doing withrespect to their peers, because if the instructor desires, the CPS software will display bar charts ofthe results after the question has been completed. Figure 3 shows a series of questions that wereasked of students during the next class period after complex power was covered. The bar