Conference Session

Historical Perspectives for Engineering Education

Collection

2010 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Atsushi Akera, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute

Tagged Divisions

Liberal Education

AC 2010-724: ENGINEERING 'MANPOWER' SHORTAGES, REGIONALECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, AND THE 1960 CALIFORNIA MASTER PLANFOR HIGHER EDUCATION: HISTORICAL LESSONS ON ENGINEERINGWORKFORCE DEVELOPMENTAtsushi Akera, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Director, First Year Studies & Associate Professor, Department of Science and Technology Studies. Page 15.474.1© American Society for Engineering Education, 2010 Engineering ‘Manpower’ Shortages, Regional Economic Development, and the 1960 California Master Plan for Higher Education: Historical Lessons on Engineering Workforce

Conference Session

Communication - Needs and Methods

Collection

2010 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Sarah Lockwood, University of Calgary; Daryl Caswell, University of Calgary; Marjan Eggermont, University of Calgary

Tagged Divisions

Liberal Education

material.As a team instructor, the communications instructor works to design, plan and implementat least one major project per academic year, and serves as a resource for otherinstructors. As well, the communications instructor is responsible for the creation of allassignment and project documents, as well as all grading/evaluation guides for the T.A.sFinally, the communications instructor acts as supervisor for the 4-6 communicationsT.A.s assigned to the course.As the course technical writer, the communications instructor produces all reports,manuals and documentation for the course. In addition, the communications instructorserves as co-marker on all assignment exemplars, to ensure that all T.A.s are marking tothe same standard.This paper redefines

Conference Session

Liberal Education for 21st Century Engineering

Collection

2010 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Cherrice Traver, Union College; J. Douglas Klein, Union College

Tagged Divisions

Liberal Education

liberal education was the purpose of Union College’s 2007 proposal to theAndrew W. Mellon Foundation.The Mellon GrantPresident Stephen C. Ainlay approached the Mellon Foundation with a request to increase theopportunities for engineering and liberal arts students to interact. The key part of the proposalreads as follows: A significant part of our current strategic planning effort has been devoted to exploring ways of promoting curricular interactions between engineering and the liberal arts. We have developed courses and programs in intersectional areas such as nanotechnology (supported by the NSF), bioengineering (supported by HHMI) and digital arts (supported by an alumnus). We want to go farther and create many

Conference Session

Normative Commitments and Public Engagement in Engineering

Collection

2010 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Juan Lucena, Colorado School of Mines; Jen Schneider, Colorado School of Mines; Jon Leydens, Colorado School of Mines

Tagged Divisions

Liberal Education

senior engineering design with the following goal: To helpstudents identify and question the underlying assumptions, concepts, methods and practices intheir engineering design courses and projects so they can assess the appropriateness of these fordesign for community.After a detailed dissection of the design project that won an award one of the main engineeringsocieties in the US for “Exceptional Student Humanitarian Prize,” we analyze a design course,the site where projects like these are conceptualized, planned, developed, tested and written up,all activities for which students receive a grade. By dissecting a design project and theconstitutive elements of a design course, we provide engineering students and faculty withcritical reflection

Conference Session

Innovative Courses/Pedagogies in Liberal Education II

Collection

2010 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Paul Ross, University of Wisconsin, Madison

Tagged Divisions

Liberal Education

library system. Referencelibrarians work with students individually and in at least one hands-on workshop on researchtools. Other competencies have to do with elementary project management for a researchproject: project planning, formal proposal, literature review, draft, and final project document.In addition, the course requires at least two technical oral presentations, one using PowerPoint.Table 2 summarizes the general syllabus for the TC freshman comp courses – but with theadditions to the FIGs course with a focus on space exploration.Table 2: The General Syllabus with Educational and Professional ImplicationsGeneral Course Syllabus: 2-credit Technical Communication course in the COE UW – MadisonBased on the general syllabus, focus is on

Conference Session

Historical Perspectives for Engineering Education

Collection

2010 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Amy Slaton, Drexel University; Mary Ebeling, Drexel University

Tagged Divisions

Liberal Education

optimistic projections about nanotechnological growththat fuel this initiative. In the face of unclear promise about that sector's future, we consider theconsequences of such plans for the most marginalized groups of workers; a sectordisproportionately minority in make-up.To indicate the origins, consequences, and robust nature of such optimism about newtechnologies in American culture, we compare discourse surrounding the PaNMT Partnership toearlier positive invocations of technology as a means of economic uplift. We consider howplanners in Chicago, facing decaying heavy industry and shrinking employment in the 1960s,turned to similarly upbeat depictions of emerging technologies and the post-secondary training ofworkers for that sector. We identify

Conference Session

Innovative Courses/Pedagogies in Liberal Education I

Collection

2010 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Ari Epstein, MIT; Joellen Easton, American Public Media; Rekha Murthy, Public Radio Exchange; Emily Davidson, MIT; Jennifer de Bruijn, MIT; Tracey Hayse, MIT; Elise Hens, MIT; Margaret Lloyd

Tagged Divisions

Liberal Education

generally involves environmental or Earth-systemissues, although it is not exclusively devoted to them. Previous problems have included:developing a plan to provide adequate fresh water for western North America for the nextcentury and beyond; creating a legal, regulatory and scientific framework to preserve theviability of global fisheries; and deciding how (and whether) to rebuild New Orleans in theaftermath of Hurricane Katrina. Students are given broad latitude in structuring their approach tothe problem, and they have great freedom in organizing themselves and their solution to addressthe problem as they see fit.By the spring semester, Terrascope students have thus developed a deep interest, and some levelof expertise, in a specific complex

Conference Session

Liberal Education for 21st Century Engineering

Collection

2010 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Nadia Kellam, University of Georgia; Joachim Walther, University of Georgia; Tracie Costantino, University of Georgia; Bonnie Cramond, University of Georgia

Tagged Divisions

Liberal Education

(Freshmen). The main objective of the first year of the Synthesis andDesign Studio is to introduce engineering undergraduate students to design through anexperiential group design experience and to teach them observation, modeling, the use ofmetaphors, and creative thinking strategies through an ill-structured sustainability design project.Management and Communication (Sophomores). The second year of the Synthesis and DesignStudio will continue with project-based learning and will focus on learning strategies formanaging teams that are working on large-scale, complex issues. Within their design project, thestudents will develop a business plan that includes scope, time, performance, and teammanagement. The course is intended to develop students

Conference Session

Innovative Courses/Pedagogies in Liberal Education II

Collection

2010 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

George Catalano, State University of New York, Binghamton

Tagged Divisions

Liberal Education

fossil fuels.Students were asked to select a product or a process which they had a great interest in or feltpassionate about and perform a detailed LCA analysis. The diversity of the items selected wereamazing…enlightening? The items ranged from a Rubik’s cube to a skateboard to a computergaming box to a Buddhist monk’s robe. ≠ Introduction to Soft System Methodologies (SSM)Primarily Checkland and Wilson developed Soft Systems Methodology from earlier systemsengineering approaches.9,10 The primary use of SSM is in the analysis of complex situationswhere there are divergent views about the definition of the problem — "soft problems" (e.g. Howto improve health services delivery; How to manage disaster planning; When should mentallydisordered

Conference Session

Liberal Education for 21st Century Engineering

Collection

2010 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

John Heywood, Trinity College Dublin

Tagged Divisions

Liberal Education

necessary to make onefurther point about the practice of change that is often overlooked and that is the role ofthose in power. Very often those with the power authorise an individual(s) to makechanges but do not subsequently give them the support they need. The respondents tochange need to see that those with power support the change wholeheartedly and providethe resources for it to be brought about.20Toward curriculum changeIn general, therefore, curriculum change is more likely to be internalised when it is seen Page 15.1.6to be plausible, and planned to take place in small steps that are seen to be naturaldevelopments, one following from the other

Conference Session

Innovative Courses/Pedagogies in Liberal Education II

Collection

2010 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Katherine Wikoff, Milwaukee School of Engineering

Tagged Divisions

Liberal Education

the Criterion 3(i)outcome in a way that goes beyond traditional ideas of continuing education. Applyingthe lessons learned from creative communities may help.What causes a place to become a creative center? How does innovation happen? If“creativity” is a behavior, which is how the field of psychology describes it, then can thisbehavior be learned? Can creativity be taught? Can it be assessed?Ideas for incorporating the lessons of creative communities into assessment plans fall intotwo categories: 1) design of the learning experience and 2) design of the performancecritera and assessment measures. Because these ideas are still at the work-in-progressstage, they are subjects for discussion more fully in a future paper. However, thefollowing

Conference Session

Normative Commitments and Public Engagement in Engineering

Collection

2010 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

George Catalano, State University of New York, Binghamton; Caroline Baillie, Western Australia; Donna Riley, Smith College; Dean Nieusma, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute; Chris Byrne, Cascadia Community College; Margaret Bailey, Rochester Institute of Technology; Katy Haralampides, University of New Brunswick

Tagged Divisions

Liberal Education

respondfavorably. We plan on gathering additional longitudinal data detailing the progress of thedifferent cohorts of students as they progress through their undergraduate programs.AcknowledgementThe detailed course modules have been produced through the generous support of thePennsylvania/New York Campus Compact Consortium through the Learn & Serve America,Building on Our Strengths grant. We would especially like to thank Dr. Charlene Grey, Director,PACC, Dr. James Heffernan, retiring Director NYCC and Kate Dantsin, formerly of PACC.References 1. Adams, W.M. (2006). "The Future of Sustainability: Re-thinking Environment and Development in the Twentyfirst Century." Report of the IUCN Renowned Thinkers Meeting, 29–31 January, 2006 2. Ed

Conference Session

Liberal Education for 21st Century Engineering

Collection

2010 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Robert Grondin, Arizona State University; Chell Roberts, Arizona State University

Tagged Divisions

Liberal Education

level of in-migration occurs. One way of visualizing this is to picture a program ashaving a process window. The pipeline strategy is to focus more students into a narrowwindow whereas our goal is to seek ways to appropriately broaden the window.While our initial student body was too small to allow us to develop statistics, our first 15graduates included individual students described below: • One student started in college as a communications major and dropped out. They then supported themselves by playing in a heavy metal band. This student joined our program after the band broke-up; • About 5 students over the age of 30; • Another student who plans on going to law school (political science was this student’s

Conference Session

Historical Perspectives for Engineering Education

Collection

2010 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Rachel Maines, Cornell University

Tagged Divisions

Liberal Education

role of international codes and standards in helping to createwhat the World Health Organization called in 1989 a “national policy and plan of action to createand sustain safe communities.”89,90 Industrial democracies that have already taken this step havedone so with the aid of such codes and standards, and there is every likelihood that such normsas building fire safety codes, uniform traffic laws, aviation safety regulations, and routine Page 15.477.9 9monitoring of indoor and outdoor carbon monoxide will play a role in the reduction of injury andmortality in the developing world as

Conference Session

Innovative Courses/Pedagogies in Liberal Education I

Collection

2010 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Kyle Simmons, University of Utah; Susan Sample, University of Utah; April Kedrowicz, University of Utah

Tagged Divisions

Liberal Education

Ph.D. student in Communication, when she worked as a communication consultant in the Department of Mechanical Engineering. She has been the director of the program since its inception and has developed a four-year curriculum plan in all seven departments in the college. Her responsibilities include faculty development (she has facilitated numerous college-wide workshops), TA training (approximately 15 graduate students from the Humanities work with CLEAR to develop the communication competence of engineering undergraduates), programmatic and basic research, instructional development, and assessment. Dr. Kedrowicz’s work has been presented at international, national, and regional

Conference Session

Normative Commitments and Public Engagement in Engineering

Collection

2010 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Erin Cech, University of California, San Diego

Tagged Divisions

Liberal Education

undergraduate education ready to be practicing representatives of theirprofession. Therefore, undergraduate engineering must provide that professional socialization,whether or not students plan to pursue advanced engineering degrees.The existing professional socialization literature clearly demonstrates that becoming aprofessional is more than the mastery of technical competence or expert knowledge.1, 12, 13 Tothe extent that professional socialization is a process of preparing the neophyte to go out into theworld to earn a living, it involves the cultivation of “practical skill” as well as the nurturing of a“professional identity.” 14, 12, 15 Learning “practical skill” translates into hands-on understandingof the challenges faced in working with

Conference Session

Communication - Needs and Methods

Collection

2010 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Christine Nicometo, University of Wisconsin, Madison; Kevin Anderson, University of Wisconsin, Madison; Traci Nathans-Kelly, University of Wisconsin, Madison; Sandra Courter, University of Wisconsin-Madison; Thomas McGlamery, University of Wisconsin-Madison

Tagged Divisions

Liberal Education

hospital staff for a new operating room design. The engineer managing the projectremarked, “We found out from the surgeons that they think they want it to be 65 degrees [ steadytemp in the operating room], - but they don’t really [tonal emphasis], since they actually need tocontrol certain fluctuations.” From his interactions with the medical team, the engineer haddiscovered that their stated desire was not going to meet the clients’ actual physical needs inreality. Only through listening carefully to them and adjusting his design team’s plan was thespace his team designed going to truly meet the needs of the client. Another engineer fromGeminid put this skill another way, stating, I think it is important for us to listen to understand what

Conference Session

Communication - Needs and Methods

Collection

2010 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Warren Waggenspack, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge; Sarah Liggett, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge; Warren Hull, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge; David Bowles, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge; Stephen Sears, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge; Daniel Thomas, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge; Paige Davis, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge

Tagged Divisions

Liberal Education

appropriate strategic planning will enable us tomaintain the future viability of the Studio and our communication initiatives to prepare studentsto use 21st century technologies.References[1] Waggenspack, W.N., Hull, W. R., Bridwell-Bowles, L., Powell, K. “Integrating Communication-IntensiveClasses and Communication Studios into the Louisiana State University College of Engineering,” Proceedings of the2006 Annual Conference of the American Society for Engineering Education. June 2006.[2] Waggenspack, W.N., Hull, W. R., Bridwell-Bowles, L., Farrell, J., Bowles, D. “Implementing Informal WritingAssignments and a Written Feedback and Revision Loop to Enhance Learning in Engineering Courses” Proceedingsof the 2008 Annual Conference of the American

Conference Session

Innovative Courses/Pedagogies in Liberal Education I

Collection

2010 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Deborah Sinnreich-Levi, Stevens Institute of Technology; Susan Metz, Stevens Institute of Technology; David Silverstein, Stevens Institute of Technology

Tagged Divisions

Liberal Education

. Starting very shortly, presentationswould bring more than certificates and token prizes – or cost more than momentaryembarrassment. But in addition to the students’ enjoying the competition, perhaps the mostsalutary result was that the design spine instructors present in the audience were struck thatalthough some students were quite accomplished, some others displayed a distressing lack ofskills. The instructors all said they would either continue to have the workshops offered to theirclasses or begin to do so (that is, instructors who had not yet requested workshops planned to inFall 2009). The 2010 competition will be announced early in the spring semester to give widervisibility to the efforts of the WCC workshops and student success. The first

Conference Session

Liberal Education for 21st Century Engineering

Collection

2010 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Betty Harper, Pennsylvania State University; Lisa Lattuca, Pennsylvania State University; Alexander Yin, Penn State University; Patrick Terenzini, Pennsylvania State University

Tagged Divisions

Liberal Education

itemsand response options were appropriate and understandable.22Population, Sample, and Data CollectionThe study’s sampling plan was designed to provide a nationally representative set of engineeringprograms. The institutional population was defined as all four-year engineering schools offeringtwo or more ABET-accredited programs in the “big five” engineering disciplines: chemical,civil, electrical, industrial, and mechanical. Based on the recommendation of the overall project’sNational Advisory Board, biomedical/ bio-engineering was included as one of the focaldisciplines, despite its relatively small size, due to its prominence in Educating the Engineer of2020 and its position as a growing discipline. Because information from the P2P studies