Conference Session

Programmatic Issues in Physics or Engineering Physics

Collection

2009 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Baha Jassemnejad, University of Central Oklahoma; Tim A Handy, University of Central Oklahoma; Scott L Murphy, University of Central Oklahoma; Evan C Lemley, University of Central Oklahoma

Tagged Divisions

Engineering Physics & Physics

AC 2009-592: MENTORING INCOMING FRESHMNN STEM ENGINEERINGSTUDENTS BY SENIOR ENGINEERING STUDENTSBaha Jassemnejad, University of Central OklahomaTim A Handy, University of Central OklahomaScott L Murphy, University of Central OklahomaEvan C Lemley, University of Central Oklahoma Page 14.875.1© American Society for Engineering Education, 2009Mentoring of Freshmen STEM Engineering Students by Senior Engineering StudentsAbstractFor a month in the summer of 2008, six incoming freshmen STEM students (mentees) were mentoredby two senior undergraduate engineering students (mentors) in a robotics based project. The projectfocused on the “ground-up

Conference Session

Innovations in Teaching Physics or Engineering Physics

Collection

2009 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Jennifer Franck, California Institute of Technology; Ted Yu, California Institute of Technology; Juan Pedro Ochoa-Ricoux, California Institute of Technology; James Maloney, California Institute of Technology; Angela Capece, California Institute of Technology; Luz Rivas, California Institute of Technology

Tagged Divisions

Engineering Physics & Physics

underrepresented minority students in science and engineering whohave demonstrated excellent academic records in math and science. This paper describes thescience and engineering course offered by the program including its objectives, teachingphilosophies, and its mentoring process for design and research projects. Assessment isperformed using the Force Concept Inventory (FCI) and shows excellent student gains whencompared with other college-level physics courses. Student surveys and feedback on theprogram, the course, and general science and engineering attitudes are also discussed, andrecommendations for future courses are provided.IntroductionPre-college science and engineering programs offer students an opportunity to explore careers inscience and

Conference Session

Programmatic Issues in Physics or Engineering Physics

Collection

2009 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Reagan Curtis, West Virginia University; Braxton Lewis, West Virginia University; Wathiq Abdul-Razzaq, West Virginia University; Gary Winn, West Virginia University; Robin Hensel, West Virginia University

Tagged Divisions

Engineering Physics & Physics

. Winn, Ph.D., is a Professor in the Industrial and Management Systems Engineering Department at West Virginia University.Robin Hensel, West Virginia University Robin A. M. Hensel, Ed.D., is the Assistant Dean for Freshman Experience in the College of Engineering and Mineral Resources at West Virginia University. Page 14.1103.1© American Society for Engineering Education, 2009 Supporting Students in Physics 111: A Critical Gateway to Engineering Career Paths*This project is funded through a STEP grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF)supporting a multi

Conference Session

Innovations in Teaching Physics or Engineering Physics

Collection

2009 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Warren Turner, Westfield State College; Glenn Ellis, Smith College

Tagged Divisions

Engineering Physics & Physics

evaluations were positive. “I was surprised by how much Ilike physics” was an often-repeated student comment. One enthusiastic student remarked, “Ifound this course extremely valuable. I am a very visual learner so the hands-on project andgraphical focus of the course was exactly what I needed. I really think this course wasexcellent.” The Test of Understanding Graphs in Kinematics Test12was administered to arandom sample of students before and after their exposure to the kinematics curriculum. Theaverage possible gain was 43% of the total score. The average gain for the sampled students was Page 14.657.917% of the total score—thus they had achieved

Conference Session

Programmatic Issues in Physics or Engineering Physics

Collection

2009 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Anca Sala, Baker College; Raghu Echempati, Kettering University

Tagged Divisions

Engineering Physics & Physics

conservation laws.11. Center of mass.12. Rotational motion, including, torque, angular momentum, rotational kinetic energy, and rotational inertia.Table 2. Statics Student Learning OutcomesStudents will be able to:1. Use general principles and problem solving techniques to solve engineering problems.2. Solve operations with vectors such as force or position, resolve them into components, and project them along axes.3. Use Cartesian vectors to solve problems involving the equilibrium of a particle for a concurrent coplanar (two-dimensional)force system and three-dimensional force system.4. Solve for the moment of a force or a couple about a point and determine the resultants of a non-concurrent force system.5. Use scalar methods, vector analysis and

Conference Session

Innovations in Teaching Physics or Engineering Physics

Collection

2009 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Adrian Ieta, State University of New York, Oswego; Rachid Manseur, State University of New York, Oswego; Thomas Doyle, McMaster University

Tagged Divisions

Engineering Physics & Physics

AC 2009-556: SYNERGISTIC LEARNING ENVIRONMENT USINGBLACKBOARD LEARNING CELLSAdrian Ieta, State University of New York, OswegoRachid Manseur, State University of New York, OswegoThomas Doyle, McMaster University Thomas E. Doyle holds a Ph.D. in Electrical and Computer Engineering Science (2006) from The University of Western Ontario, Canada. He also holds a B.E.Sc. in Electrical and Computer Engineering, a B.Sc. in Computer Science, and an M.E.Sc in Electrical and Computer Engineering from The University of Western Ontario. He worked on industrial projects with PlasSep Ltd, within the Applied Electrostatics Research Centre and the Digital Electronics Research Group at The University of Western

Conference Session

Innovations in Teaching Physics or Engineering Physics

Collection

2009 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Radian Belu, Drexel University; Alexandru Belu, Case Western Reserve University

Tagged Divisions

Engineering Physics & Physics

, mathematics and computing are shown inFigure 1.Figure 1 The definition of computational science and engineering.Each module has three main components: lecture(s), which are part of physics or engineering courses;CAS solved related-examples; work groups and home-works. In the lecture(s), the theory is presentedand examples of typical and/or real life problems are worked out using the facilities of the CAS. Duringthe work groups, typically during the tutoring session, small groups or individual students are assigned aset of problems to solve. Students are expected to solve additional problems and to study the course text.The project total workload for a term course is about 80 hours for the average student. The main aim ofthe courses and the CAS-based

Conference Session

Programmatic Issues in Physics or Engineering Physics

Collection

2009 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Teresa Larkin, American University

Tagged Divisions

Engineering Physics & Physics

, students are able to perform a number of interactive, hands-on,investigative activities. While this approach has been ongoing at American University for thepast decade, many other universities are now seeing the benefits of an integrated, active-learningformat for introductory physics instruction [25]. Numerous interactive projects have been developed for the PNM course. For example,students explore the topics of electricity & magnetism by constructing electric circuits andbuilding their own individual battery-operated motors. Students also dissect an incandescentbulb and learn how a 3-way bulb is configured. Figure 1 shows a typical scene during the