Collection

2009 ASEE Midwest Section Conference

Authors

E. Carl Greco; Jim D. Reasoner

laboratory skills and knowledge and their ability to apply them in basic circuitsanalysis applications. Several other factors were investigated that could have contributed to thisincrease in student performance on the final laboratory practicum exam; however, the only factorthat significantly and independently contributed to the students' laboratory skills and knowledgebase proved to be student level of participation in the laboratory exercises. The results of thisstudy indicated that students must be fully engaged in the fundamental laboratory exercises tothoroughly and properly learn the skill and knowledge required for application to basic circuitanalysis.IntroductionTraditionally, to teach basic electric circuits skills and knowledge

Collection

2009 ASEE Midwest Section Conference

Authors

Robert I. Egbert

What to Teach in a Freshman Engineering Course? Experiences in the First Year of the Missouri S&T/MSU Cooperative Engineering Program Robert I. Egbert Department of Engineering Missouri State University AbstractThe curriculum in most engineering programs includes some type of freshman level coursedesigned to introduce new engineering students to the various career fields in engineering and tomake the new students aware of some of the university resources available to help them make asuccessful transition to university life. Some programs expand

Collection

2009 ASEE Midwest Section Conference

Authors

Colin D. Paul; Melinda B. O'Neil; W. Roy Penney; Bernard J. Van Wie; Paul B. Golter; Robert R. Beitle; Edgar C. Clausen

method for teaching freeconvection,10 and the use of an integrated experimental/analytical/numerical approach that bringsthe excitement of discovery to the classroom.11 Supplemental heat transfer experiments for usein the laboratory or classroom have also been presented, including rather novel experiments suchas the drying of a towel12 and the cooking of French fry-shaped potatoes.13 Suggestions for theintegration of heat transfer material into the laboratory and classroom have been described byPenney and Clausen,14-20 who presented a number of simple hands on heat transfer experimentsthat can be constructed from materials present in most engineering departments. This cross-course integration of course material has been shown to be a very

Collection

2009 ASEE Midwest Section Conference

Authors

Shannon G. Davis; Bryan W. Hill; Carol S. Gattis; Bradley M. Dearing; Christa N. Hestekin; Edgar C. Clausen

-based science activities.This University of Arkansas Science Partnership Program (UASPP), funded by the Arkansas Proceedings of the 2009 Midwest Section Conference of the American Society for Engineering Education 2Department of Higher Education, focused on the professional growth of 6th, 7th and 8th gradescience teachers from 23 partner schools in the NWA-ERZ. The program was organized as aseries of summer institutes and follow-up activities which teamed teachers with engineeringfaculty to improve teaching skills and to increase the teachers’ use, understanding andapplication of hands-on laboratory exercises. It included classroom

Collection

2009 ASEE Midwest Section Conference

Authors

George E. Meyer

course.During the first five weeks, there is a concurrent and intensive introduction to LabVIEW alongwith fundamental instruction of instrumentation electronics. LabVIEW Instructional modules andexamples are available at various web-sites for demonstrating and simulating electronic circuitsand responses. Most instrumentation textbooks cover analog and digital principles forinstrumentation but in different orders and formats (e.g. Johnson, 2006, Northrop, 1997).Reinforcement of principles and introduction to practical instrumentation and control examplescan only be offered through hands-on laboratory exercises, demonstrations, and preparation of afinal team project. Laboratory exercises for this course include experiments with temperaturesensing, fluid

Collection

2009 ASEE Midwest Section Conference

Authors

R. Asmatulu; E. Asmatulu; A. Yourdkhani

is one of the fastest growing fields. It is basicallyfabrication, manipulation, and characterization of materials at the nanoscale (usually between 1and 100 nm), which will significantly affect economic, educational, and social developments inall areas, such as engineering, science, defense, biomedical and biology [1]. It is also one of theleading technologies for educational revolution in the new millennium. Nanotechnologyeducation is being offered by many universities around the globe for the integration of allengineering and science courses for the future generation [1]. Several nanotechnology programsand centers in the U.S. have been undertaken by the government and by private sectors tointensify the teaching, research, and development

Collection

2009 ASEE Midwest Section Conference

Authors

Nicholas C. Vanderslice; Thomas R. Marrero

XI, and of the University of Missouri system, including staff. The goal wasto obtain information on the feasibility of bio-char as a CO2 sequestering agent; as well as tobecome familiar with university research resources.A significant part of the learning for my undergraduate research project was done in various labson Campus. Independent testing of a sample of bio-char (purchased fromBuyActivatedCharcoal.com) was conducted for elemental composition and particle sizedistribution at the Soil Characterization Laboratory in College of Engineering. At the ResearchCore Facilities in the Veterinary Medicine School analysis by TEM (transmission electronmicroscope) was conducted for pore width and elemental composition. In the College of Arts

Collection

2009 ASEE Midwest Section Conference

Authors

Dan Bumblauskas

emerged over the past decade which allowsfaculty and students to collaborate across great distances. Universities around the world havedeveloped programs aimed at serving domestic and global educational markets. Some of theseuniversities have been leaders in online education and created best-in-class programs. There arechallenges and benefits associated with online distance teaching arrangements. Examples areprovided from the personal experiences of a hybrid graduate student who has taken on-campusand off-campus courses and conducted research remotely.IntroductionBrick-and-mortar educational institutions have long been associated with traditional engineeringeducational degree and continuing professional education programs. Over the past decade

Collection

2009 ASEE Midwest Section Conference

Authors

Dennis Audo; Seth O'Brien

children who are in greatest need. If I Had aHammer holds three basic beliefs regarding education. 1. Every child can learn if engaged properly 2. Success is available to every child 3. Children need to understand the value of education as a foundation for their lives.It is Mr. Wilson’s belief that showing a child how math works in the real world will teach themin an engaging way that no conventional textbook can match. The program’s goal is to create anatmosphere that welcomes mistakes and risks equally, that allows a child the freedom to askquestions and learn. Students should recognize that education is the key to personal growth anddevelopment, and that success is available to anyone who is willing to make an effort andcommitment a part

Collection

2009 ASEE Midwest Section Conference

Authors

Ray A. Luechtefeld; Steve E. Watkins

surprise that we find fraternity files for examinations, term paper writing services, and plagiarism. Such activities constitute a personally rational response to a reward system which pays off for grades rather than knowledge.”The use of extrinsic motivators, particularly grades, is ubiquitous throughout universities,even though their negative effects on student learning and interest have been documentedthrough hundreds of studies. One of the main findings, confirming Kerr’s comment on“displacement” via Cognitive Evaluation Theory 17 – 22 , is that extrinsic motivators likegrades tend to reduce interest and enjoyment by shifting perceptions of control towardexternal, rather than internal forces.While the laboratory and experimental