Conference Session

Influences on Female Interest in Pursuit of STEM Fields

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

James Concannon, University of Missouri, Columbia; Lloyd H. Barrow, University of Missouri

Tagged Divisions

Minorities in Engineering

imaginepossible situations and respective outcomes for performing successfully and unsuccessfully; 3) aperson’s ability to learn though observing others; 4) a person’s influence by verbal persuasionsfrom external sources; 5) psychological states; and 6) emotional states 3.In the early 1980s and into 1990s, the self-efficacy construct was taken from Bandura’s initialdefinition and tied to a person’s confidence in passing a course, finishing an engineering degreeprogram, or one’s confidence in finding a job that he or she will like. In 1981, Betz and Hackett4, 5 established field of occupational self-efficacy research, where a person’s confidence in careerrelated pursuits. Lent 6 established the first academic milestones measure of self-efficacy, a

Conference Session

Student Engagement and Motivation

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Dale Baker, Arizona State University; Stephen Krause, Arizona State University; Senay Purzer

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

AC 2008-633: DEVELOPING AN INSTRUMENT TO MEASURE TINKERING ANDTECHNICAL SELF-EFFICACY IN ENGINEERINGDale Baker, Arizona State University Dale Baker, Arizona State University Dale R. Baker is a Professor of Science Education in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction at ASU and is the Co-Editor of The Journal of Research in Science Teaching. She teaches courses in science curricula, teaching and learning, and assessment courses with an emphasis on constructivist theory and issues of equity. Her research focuses on issues of gender, science, and science teaching. She has won two awards for her research in these areas.Stephen Krause, Arizona State University Stephen Krause, Arizona

Conference Session

Issues of Cooperative Education I

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Joe Raelin, Northeastern University; Jerry Hamann, University of Wyoming; David Whitman, University of Wyoming; Rachelle Reisberg, Northeastern University

Tagged Divisions

Cooperative & Experiential Education

careers haveresulted in fewer women entering these fields. Since then, empirical studies have supported thistheory, finding that college-aged women’s self-efficacy for traditionally female occupations wassignificantly higher than their self-efficacy within male-dominated fields.17, 18Conceptual FrameworkThis study seeks to develop a theory that examines the effects cooperative education as well asother factors (demographics, contextual supports) have on self-efficacy beliefs. It includes well-established measures of science/ math/ engineering academic self-efficacy and of career self-efficacy while introducing a new construct, work self-efficacy. Figure 1 displays the conceptualframework for the study, depicting the relationships among

Conference Session

Fostering and Assessing Effective Teaming

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Senay Purzer; Dale Baker, Arizona State University; Chell Roberts, Arizona State University; Stephen Krause, Arizona State University

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

explore if such a relationship exists in the context ofengineering.Research QuestionsThe main goal of this study is to describe the characteristics of team interactions that relate toachievement and self-efficacy. However, before investigating these correlations, we establishedthe reliability and the validity of the instruments we developed. We investigated three researchquestions: 1. Is there a correlation between the self-efficacy scores, measured by the instrument designed for this study, and student achievement? Page 13.415.4 2. What type of team interactions correlate with self-efficacy? 3. What type of team

Conference Session

FPD9 - First Year Learning & Assessment

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Gary Halada, State University of New York at Stony Brook

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

a scenario-based, task-specific on-line assessmentinstrument, the Self-Efficacy Assessment Survey (SEAS), and evaluated its use for pre- andpost-assessment of students in a first year Introduction to Engineering course. Through acombination of the SEAS and other quantitative and qualitative assessment tools, incorporationof problem-based and active learning activities are found to enhance student self-belief in theirability to learn engineering-related material and accomplish certain engineering-related tasks.Use of scenario-based questions to measure student confidence levels (as has been done in theSEAS) provides a unique mechanism to gain insight into student self-efficacy, though questionsmust be carefully designed to limit the impact

Conference Session

Learning to Communicate with Engineers and Non-Engineers

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Mieke Schuurman, Pennsylvania State University; Michael Alley, Pennsylvania State University; Melissa Marshall, Pennsylvania State University; Christopher Johnstone, Pennsylvania State University

Tagged Divisions

Liberal Education

course, emphasizing what distinguishesthe sections from the regular sections. Then we describe the methods for measuring the publicspeaking self-efficacy of the students. The paper concludes with the results and correspondingdiscussion.Differences between Engineering Sections and Regular Sections Three main differences existed between the engineering sections and the regular sectionsof the general education course. These differences occurred in the (1) choice of examples and Page 13.1219.4terminology for the instruction, (2) the choice of topics for the major speeches, and (3) theexpectations for delivery and visual aids.1. Choice of

Conference Session

Opportunities for Entrepreneurship Programs and Program Assessment

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

James Green, University of Maryland; Georgina Johnston, University of Maryland

Tagged Divisions

Entrepreneurship & Engineering Innovation

entrepreneurshipin adults, our first psychosocial factor-based hypothesis is to examine the relative influence ofthis factor to the other five factors examined. Hypothesis 1: Late adolescent undergraduates who exhibit high self-efficacy will engage in more new- venturing activities than undergraduates who exhibit low self-efficacy.Need for AchievementThe need for achievement is the need to advance for measurable personal accomplishment.35Entrepreneurship researchers have examined the influence of need for achievement, also calledachievement orientation, on entrepreneurial success since the earliest entrepreneurship researchstudies.35 Schumpeter incorporated concepts of need for achievement into his early theories ofentrepreneurship and

Conference Session

Measuring Success of Graduate Program Components

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

James Zhang, Western Carolina University; Ken Burbank, Western Carolina University; Brian Howell, Western Carolina University; Bill Yang, Western Carolina University; Yeqin Huang, Western Carolina University; Robert Adams, Western Carolina University

Tagged Divisions

Graduate Studies

) USB-6008 DAQ and NI LabView.The tremor motion was simulated using a circuit designed to output 3 differentfrequencies to a vibration motor, resulting in motion in the range of human tremors.This project used two different data analysis methods: Empirical Mode Decomposition(EMD) and Auto-Regressive (AR) process of order p. Preliminary results show that eachof these methods performed in a satisfactory manner. Page 13.1065.6From educational perspective, this project has provided invaluable graduate researchexperience. The skills and self-efficacy gained from this project have stimulated thegraduate student’s research interests and his desire of

Conference Session

The Pipeline

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Paul Plotkowski, Grand Valley State University; Mary Ann Sheline, Grand Valley State University; Margo Dill, Grand Valley State University; Jessica Noble, Grand Valley State University

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

remote controlled aircraft. While influencing longterm educational goals is a primary focus of the STEPS camps, the experiences andactivities are also designed to promote self esteem, self confidence, and demonstrate thebenefits of teamwork and collaboration. Based upon this positive message, Grand ValleyState University began offering STEPS camps in the summer of 2002, and the popularityhas ensured full capacity participation every year thereafter.Pre and post assessments measuring content knowledge, self efficacy about success inmathematics and science, and the likelihood of pursuing STEM related fields are used toevaluate the camps yearly. Results indicate that increase in content knowledge amonggirls in the 2007 program increased from 10.5

Conference Session

STEM Pipeline: Pre-College to Post-Baccalaureate

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Julie Trenor, University of Houston; Olga Pierrakos, James Madison University

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

’ Academic and Career PlansAbstractUndergraduate research experiences in engineering have recently received significant interest asmechanisms for attracting undergraduates to graduate-level work. In particular, the NationalScience Foundation’s Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) initiative aims to recruitstudents to careers in research. Our work employs a social cognitive theoretical framework toinvestigate how participation in a summer undergraduate research program influencesparticipants’ academic and career plans (specifically plans to pursue a Ph.D.) and their self-efficacy for future scientific research. A mixed-methods approach, incorporating surveyinstruments, interviews, and weekly self-reflective journal entries, was utilized to

Conference Session

Assessment and Evaluation of Graphics Programs

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Richard Onyancha, Rose Hulman Institute Of Technology; Matthew Derov, University of New Hampshire; Brad Kinsey, University of New Hampshire

Tagged Divisions

Engineering Design Graphics

, such as single inclined objects (p=0.036), doubleaxis rotations (p=0.016) and short 90 rotations (p=0.013) showed statistically significantdifferences with the Experimental group scoring higher than the Control group. Page 13.1200.2Methodology Two web-based tools with automated data collection were used to obtain a measure of auvwfgpvÓu"urcvkcn"cdknkv{"cpf"ugnh-efficacy9. The two tests used were a subset of the PurdueSpatial Visualization Test (PSVT)13 and a Self-Efficacy Test (SET) developed for this research.These two tests were administered to mechanical engineering freshmen at the beginning and atthe end of the fall semesters in

Conference Session

FPD5 - Teaming and Peer Performance

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Arlisa Labrie Richardson, Arizona State University

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

Services in the NASA Center for Success in Math & Science at Estrella Mountain Community College, she utilizes her academic preparation and extensive engineering background to prepare students for successful careers in the science, technology, engineering and mathematics fields through student internships and summer research experiences. Page 13.1289.1© American Society for Engineering Education, 2008 Tinkering Self-Efficacy and Team Interaction on Freshman Engineering Design TeamsIntroductionIn the book Talking about Leaving, Seymour and Hewitt interviewed hundreds of

Conference Session

Factors Affecting Minority Engineering Students

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Pedro Leite, Kansas State University-Salina; Jung Oh, Kansas State University-Salina

Tagged Divisions

Minorities in Engineering

.” Page 13.171.2This research will use a hybrid approach in which quantitative data related to self-efficacy,learning preferences, and structured interviews will be combined in an attempt to identify traitsof successful female students enrolled in Engineering Technology programs at a large land-grantuniversity in the Midwest. Hazzan and colleagues (10) writing about the advantages of usingqualitative research in some studies, notably computer science education, noted that: … in many cases, CSE research deals with topics related to learners’ mental, cultural and social processes. Such processes, by nature, are rich, consisting of many details and perspectives. Accordingly, it is reasonable to assume that if we approach

Conference Session

Cooperative Education and Engineering

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Tylisha Baber, Michigan State University; Norman Fortenberry, National Academy of Engineering

Tagged Divisions

Cooperative & Experiential Education

students’ perceptions of industrialinternships. However, students’ self perceptions of their skills and abilities, a concept called“self-efficacy,” are a critical aspect of their ability to perform in a given situation [7]. Anunpublished work by researchers at the Cambridge-MIT Institute studied how cooperativeeducational programs affected the self-efficacy of engineering students[8] and found thatcooperative educational programs exerted a positive influence on students’ self-efficacy.Academic and Labor Market Outcomes of Cooperative EducationStudies have been done to investigate the positive academic and labor market outcomes resultingfrom cooperative educational experiences in engineering disciplines. As examples, both Gardneret. al.[9] and

Conference Session

The Pipeline

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Cortney Martin, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University; Tonya Smith-Jackson, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

inductive processfor extracting relationships and models and is suited to areas of inquiry that are not wellresearched. The data was coded using a commercial software package for qualitative contentanalysis, Atlas.ti (www.atlasti.com).Children expressed varying levels of self-efficacy, the self-perception of one’s ability tocomplete a given task. Although self-efficacy was not measured directly, based on Bandura’s17social cognitive theories, positive, affirming, motivated, and confident statements wereinterpreted as indicative of high self-efficacy and instances of negative, pessimistic, disengaged,anxiety-related statements were associated with low self-efficacy.The most significant gender-related findings were: (1) of equally skilled girls and

Conference Session

Engineering and ET Relationships & Professional Development

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Kenneth Reid, Indiana University-Purdue University-Indianapolis; P.K. Imbrie, Purdue University

Tagged Divisions

Engineering Technology

relate to typical cognitive measures of incoming students (high schoolGPA, standardized test scores, etc.)Those characteristics with slight differences include constructs related to the (self reported)learning style and academic ability of the student (with the exception of self-efficacy).Engineering students show a propensity more towards deep learning and away from surfacelearning and a slightly higher self-reported metacognitive ability. One of the subfactors of GoalOrientation, “Classroom Mastery Goal Structure” shows a similar slightly higher value orengineering students and seems related to these constructs.Leadership, found to be slightly different, showed some subfactors (“planning” and“motivation”) to be comparable to Teamwork; other

Conference Session

Problem Solving and Misconceptions

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Mica Hutchison, Northwestern University; Ann McKenna, Northwestern University

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

AC 2008-865: UNDERSTANDING STUDENTS’ USE OF INNOVATIVE LEARNINGSTRATEGIESMica Hutchison, Northwestern University Mica A. Hutchison is a CASEE postdoctoral fellow at Northwestern University. She received a B.S. in Chemical Engineering from the University of Idaho in 2002, a Masters in Chemistry from Purdue University in 2006, and a Ph.D. in Engineering Education from Purdue in 2007. Her research interests include engineering and design education and the retention of engineering students. She investigates these areas using self-efficacy theory and the adaptive expertise framework.Ann McKenna, Northwestern University Ann McKenna is the Director of Education Improvement in the Robert R. McCormick

Conference Session

Methods & Techniques in Graduate Education

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Brant Price, Western Carolina University; James Zhang, Western Carolina University

Tagged Divisions

Graduate Studies

methodsperformed in a satisfactory manner.From educational perspective, this project has provided invaluable graduate researchexperience. Student engagement is an important concept to the learning process, even asa graduate student [8]. The skills and self-efficacy gained from this project have helpedprepare the author for his pursuit of higher education at Purdue University and hisensuing career in the engineering field.References[1] Pledgie, Stephen. Barner, Kenneth E. Agrawal, Sunil K. (2000, March). Rahman, Tariq. Tremor Suppression Through Impedance Control [Electronic Version]. IEEE Transactions on Rehabilitation Engineering, 8(1), 53-59.[2] Chwaleba, Augustyn. Jakubowski, Jacek. Kwiatos, Krzystof. The measuring set and signal

Conference Session

Focus on High School Girls in Engineering

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Michelle Porche, Wellesley Center for Women; Jennifer Grossman, Wellesley Center for Women; Anne Noonan, Salem State College; Peter Wong, Tufts University

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

support from science teachers, while interest andaspirations for mathematics study was associated with math self-efficacy, math salience, andsupport from math teachers. Gender ideology also played a role, but in the opposite directionexpected.To shed additional light on these findings, we analyzed data from Key Informant interviewsconducted with several local and national STEM leaders. Themes from the Key Informantinterviews included attention to extracurricular activities (infrastructural issues, socioeconomicsupport, the need to support adults in their work with urban youth, specific challenges associatedwith after-school STEM opportunities) and messages to girls regarding STEM involvement(gender-specific messages that can discourage or

Conference Session

Student Recruitment and Retention

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

P.K. Imbrie, Purdue University; Joe Jien-Jou Lin, Purdue University; Alexander Malyscheff, Purdue University

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

% Asian/Pacific Islander, 2.88% Hispanic, 78.21%Caucasian and 6.81% Others.Non-cognitive survey instruments and cognitive dataThe students’ non-cognitive measures were collected across nine scales in a self-reported onlinesurvey completed prior to the freshman year. This non-cognitive survey instrument waspreviously reported in the works by Maller et al.5 and Immekus et al14. These scales are:Leadership (23 items), Deep vs. Surface Learning Types (20 items), Teamwork (10 items), Self-efficacy (10 items), Motivation (25 items), Meta-cognition (20 items), Expectancy-value (32items), and Major decision (28 items). All Cronbach’s coefficient alphas for these scales were ≥.80, except for the Teamwork scale (r=.74)14. Scales may be divided into

Conference Session

The Impact of Engineering Disciplines

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Venetia Dover, Howard University; Dawn Williams, Howard University; Lorraine Fleming, Howard University; Viara Quinones, Howard University

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

explores the differences between male and female students and primarily seeks tounderstand: Is gender or academic discipline most influential in students’ perception of theirability to cope with the challenges associated with pursuing a post baccalaureate degree?Overview of Social Cognitive Career TheoryThe theoretical framework guiding this study is Social Cognitive Career Theory. An extensionof Bandura’s general social cognitive theory6, this theory postulates that three social cognitivemechanisms are essential to career development: self efficacy beliefs, outcome expectations, andgoal mechanisms7. This paper utilizes 2 major concepts of this theory: self efficacy beliefs andgoal mechanisms. Bandura asserts that self efficacy beliefs are

Conference Session

Successful K-12 Programs for Girls & Minorities

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Bruce Gehrig, University of North Carolina at Charlotte; Deborah Sharer, University of North Carolina at Charlotte; Stephen Kuyath, University of North Carolina at Charlotte; Anthony Brizendine, University of North Carolina at Charlotte

Tagged Divisions

K-12 & Pre-College Engineering

TechnologyAbstractThe future of America’s global competitiveness depends upon a well-educated, technologically literateworkforce. However, if proactive measures are not taken in the near future, the United States will face aserious shortage of scientists, engineers, technologists, and mathematicians because high school students,especially those from underrepresented groups, are increasingly losing interest in these subjects. The keyin reversing this trend lies in our ability to promote science, technology, engineering and math (STEM)subjects and professions in a more socially relevant, real-world context and to recognize the differences inlearning styles and self-efficacy between males, females and minorities. In an effort to increase thenumber and diversity

Conference Session

Innovative K-12 Engineering Programs

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Gisele Ragusa, University of Southern California; Michael Khoo, University of Southern California; Ellis Meng, University of Southern California; Joseph Cocozza, University of Southern California

Tagged Divisions

K-12 & Pre-College Engineering

described.Teacher Related ResultsScience Teaching EfficacyThe Science Teaching Efficacy Beliefs Instrument (STEBI) is an instrument based onBandura’s definition of self-efficacy as a situation-specific construct. The instrument wasdeveloped by Riggs and Enochs 7 to measure efficacy of teaching science. The STEBIconsists of 23 statements which are divided to provide two sub-scores, which are randomlyembedded in the instrument. Thirteen of the statements yield scores for the PersonalScience Teaching Efficacy (PSTE) subscale, which reflect science teachers’ confidence intheir ability to teach science. The remaining ten statements yield scores for ScienceTeaching Outcome Expectancy (STOE) subscale, which reflect science teachers’ beliefsthat student learning

Conference Session

Focus on IE Principles and Techniques

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Sharon Johnson, Worcester Polytechnic Institute; Bryan Norman, University of Pittsburgh; Jean Fullerton, Elizabethtown College; Susan Pariseau, Merrimack College

Tagged Divisions

Industrial Engineering

experimentation takes more time, and may be moreappropriate for IE courses that seek to develop students’ abilities as process designers, ratherthan managers and engineers who are knowledgeable about processes.Student LearningOur assessment plan calls for experimental studies that evaluate how both behavioral and contentoutcomes of student learning are affected by the new curriculum materials. Behavioral outcomesinclude increased self-efficacy, i.e. a personal judgment of one’s capability to perform aparticular activity. This is a particularly important affective measure for tasks perceived to bedifficult, because it is highly correlated with the amount of effort individuals are willing toexpend and their determination to complete tasks1,2. Self-efficacy

Conference Session

K-12 Engineering Outreach Programs

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Susan Powers, Clarkson University; Bruce Brydges, SUNY Potsdam; Gail Gotham, SLL BOCES; James Carroll, Clarkson University; Peter Turner, Clarkson University; Douglas Bohl, Clarkson University

Tagged Divisions

K-12 & Pre-College Engineering

benchmark tocompare the attitudes and self-efficacy of our students. Based on the assumption that studentswith high self-perception of capabilities display high motivation and attain high achievement, 16- 20 data are being collected from students of teachers in the STEM partnership grant and acomparable group of students. Some of the TIMSS self-efficacy questions (“I like Math, I amgood at math”, etc) have also been asked of students in the K-12 PBLP program for several yearsand preliminary data are available for the students who just completed the extracurricular VEXrobotics competition. Figure 3 illustrates the responses of our Partnership students incomparison with the 1999 national averages. 21 It is clear that the students who completed

Conference Session

Student Recruitment and Retention

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Jennifer VanAntwerp, Calvin College; Rachel Reed, Calvin College; Crystal Bruxvoort, Calvin College; Neil Carlson, Calvin College

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

Many studies also note a lack of self-efficacy (self-confidence specific to thetasks of engineering) among students who leave.11,12 This low self-efficacy is often a poorrepresentation of real ability, as measured by objective evidence.13Much current effort is also dedicated to assessment of existing intervention programs. In order totranslate such work to new settings, it would first be necessary to identify how the students (andtheir reasons for persisting in or leaving engineering) are similar at different schools and indifferent types of programs (or engineering departments). This strategy requires having a way tomeasure both the characteristics that correlate with persistence as well as factors that areassociated with the context in which

Conference Session

Assessment

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Mieke Schuurman, Pennsylvania State University; Laura L. Pauley, Pennsylvania State University; Dennis Gouran, Pennsylvania State University

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

#0206630 (PI McGourty): http://nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward.do?AwardNumber=02066305. Mickelson, S.K., Hanneman, L. F., Guardiola, R. & Brumm, T.J. (2001). Development of Workplace Competencies Sufficient to Measure ABET Outcomes. Conference Proceedings of Annual ASEE Conference and Exposition. June 2001, Albuquerque, New Mexico.6. Bandura (1986). Social Foundations of Thought and Action: A Social Cognitive Theory. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall. Page 13.238.87. Bandura, A. (1997). Self-efficacy: The exercise of control. New York: W.H. Freeman and Company.8. Bandura, A. (1989). Human agency in social

Conference Session

Fostering and Assessing Effective Teaming

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Alan Cheville, Oklahoma State University; James Duvall, Oklahoma State University

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

project. This goal is assumed to be related to mastery goals since effort isrequired for mastery. The third goal is designed to measure student effectiveness defined as theratio of results and effort. Effectiveness is assumed to be related to self efficacy and is anintrinsic and mastery oriented goal. Determining effectiveness as the ratio of two separatemeasurements—effort and results—may additionally permit the determination of whetherstudent perceive effort or results as contributing more to team design projects.Research QuestionsThe overall research question addressed in this study is to understand what formats of peerevaluation instruments are more or less effective for measuring student performance on divide-and-conquer team projects. To

Conference Session

Learning to Communicate with Engineers and Non-Engineers

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Leslie Potter, Iowa State University; John Jackman, Iowa State University; K. Jo Min, Iowa State University; Matthew Search, Iowa State University

Tagged Divisions

Liberal Education

futurecommunication. This assessment step is a key part of the communication skill set.Given the recognized need to improve communication skills by the engineering educationcommunity as well as curriculum assessments of our industrial engineering (IE) program(described by Potter, et al.19), we have developed an innovative communication course to addressthe skills gap. In this paper, we describe the new course and present assessment results from thefirst offering of this course during the Fall 2007 semester, including skill assessment, self-efficacy data, and qualitative feedback from students. Examples of student work and assessmentprocesses are included. Finally, we describe short term changes to the course and long termimpact expectations.Course content

Conference Session

Programming for Engineering Students II

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Jeremy Garrett, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University; Thomas Walker, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University

Tagged Divisions

Computers in Education

opportunity asurvey was developed and implemented at the end of the spring 2007 semester. The surveyasked the students to answer a common set of questions, eight questions for each of the sixlanguages. Those questions included perceptions of relevance and perceptions of effects on self-confidence (also known as “self-efficacy”). The survey also asked the students whether, or not,they would recommend each programming language for use with future students. Although thesurveys were anonymous, standard demographic data was requested, and that has allowed simplecomparisons to be made not only between programming languages but also to compare theattitudes of women and minorities to those of white males (for this study, the responses ofwomen and minorities