Conference Session

Fostering Student Learning

Collection

2011 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Alexandra Emelina Coso, Georgia Institute of Technology; Reid Bailey, University of Virginia

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

paper is a single dimension of interdisciplinary understanding, criticalawareness. According to Boix Mansilla et al. (2007; 2009), the dimension of critical awarenessasks the question: “Does the work exhibit reflectiveness about the choices, opportunities, and limitations that characterize interdisciplinary work and about the limitations of the work as a whole, such as what an account failed to explain or what a solution could not address?”In the context of interdisciplinary engineering teams, the study presented here refocuses thisquestion to examine students‟ awareness of the interdisciplinary process as it relates tointerdisciplinary engineering project teams and the opportunities and limitations associated withthose

Conference Session

Student Entrepreneurial Skills and Mindset II

Collection

2011 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Calvin C. Jen, Calvin College; Tyler Scott Helmus, Calvin College; Steven H. VanderLeest, Calvin College

Tagged Divisions

Entrepreneurship & Engineering Innovation

the post-evaluation. Teachers can also share from their own work and personalexperiences, demonstrating the impact of the consideration of virtues on their own work,teaching, and lives – recounting how virtues have been helpful or even necessary to bring aninnovation to a marketable reality. We have the opportunity to push students beyond the typicalquestions, to set higher standards and goals for them, to encourage them to make a positivedifference in society and the global community of which they are all a part.Project reports can require students to also do reflection in writing. Learning is enhanced by Page 22.1390.11using a variety of

Conference Session

Open-Ended Problems and Student Learning

Collection

2011 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Amanda S. Fry, Purdue University; Monica E. Cardella, Purdue University, West Lafayette; Heidi A. Diefes-Dux, Purdue University, West Lafayette

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

of the identical solution. Studentsself-reflected on how they could improve their feedback. Students completed peer reviews oftheir MEA solutions the following week11. Page 22.1339.5B. Data CollectionAs previously stated, this paper reports on one piece of a larger study aimed at investigating therole of feedback in students’ model-development process. The larger study included collection ofcopies of student work, copies of peer feedback generated by students, copies of GTA feedback;video-recordings of teams of students making revisions to their solutions, and interviews withstudents as well as GTAs. This paper focuses on interviews with

Conference Session

Integration of the Humanities and Social Sciences into Civil Engineering

Collection

2011 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Steven J. Burian, University of Utah; Edward Morris Barbanell, University of Utah; Maria Dawn Blevins, University of Utah

Tagged Divisions

Civil Engineering

water conflict.Essentially, we were poorly communicating the relationship of activities and lesson topics tolesson learning objectives and this was causing students to interpret the objectives and relevanceof the activities differently. We therefore created learning objectives for each lesson and made adirect connection to the topic of the lesson and activities in the lesson.JournalStudents were supplied with notebooks and required to record their thoughts, notes, discussions,etc. in journal. The objective was to encourage them to reflect during class and recall or sharetheir journals with others in the class. We anticipated more sharing of thoughts from journals insmall group discussions in class.Outside EventsWater issues in the western U.S

Conference Session

Best Practices in K-12 and University Partnerships

Collection

2011 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Mercedes McKay, Stevens Institute of Technology; Stacy S. Klein-Gardner, Vanderbilt University; Kathy Ann Zook, Adams 50 School District; Megan Yoder, Colorado School of Mines; Barbara M. Moskal, Colorado School of Mines; Michael Hacker, Hofstra University; David Burghardt, Hofstra University; David Crismond, City College of the City University of New York; Christopher Malanga; Timothy James Johnson, S. F. Austin High School, Houston ISD; Brent C Houchens, Rice University

Tagged Divisions

K-12 & Pre-College Engineering

Crismond, City College of the City University of New York Page 22.283.1 c American Society for Engineering Education, 2011 David Crismond is an Associate Professor of Science Education at the City College of New York. Crismond’s main research interests revolve around K-16 science and engineering cognition and pedagogy, and teacher professional development in these areas. Crismond recently completed a collaborative NSF-funded project with Tufts University that developed software called the Design Compass that supports students’ reflective thinking while designing. With Purdue’s Robin Adams

Conference Session

Engineering Design in Pedagogy

Collection

2011 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Louis S. Nadelson, Boise State University; Patricia Pyke, Boise State University; Janet Callahan, Boise State University; Anne Hay, Boise State University; Joshua Pfiester, Boise State University; Mark A. Emmet, Boise State University

Tagged Divisions

Design in Engineering Education, K-12 & Pre-College Engineering

education as following prescriptive steps that lead toward known conclusions andconsequently teach to this approach. The current implementation of science education frequently involves teaching inquiry asthe complex interactions between exploring and testing ideas, feedback and analysis from thecommunity, and the benefits and outcomes of research.6 The work of Herried is reflective of theattempts to align the processes of science taught in K-12 to the processes taken by professionalscientists as they engage in scientific inquiry. However, the wide variety of ways that inquiry ispresented in K-12 educational materials7 and the perception of inquiry as synonymous withdoing “good science”8 may prompt teachers to think that engaging students in

Conference Session

Professional Identity

Collection

2011 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Holly M. Matusovich, Virginia Tech; Brock E. Barry, U.S. Military Academy; Kerry Meyers, University of Notre Dame; Rachel Louis, Virginia Tech

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

team leaders and platoons and everything. Just like the whole chain of command.He goes on to talk about what he is expected to know and how he is expected to use that Page 22.69.11knowledge to help the freshmen.We can then ask how CBT contributes to identity development. While it is a highly structuredactivity, we also find that reflection on CBT is critically important. MilA cadets talk aboutrealizing later just how much they accomplished or just what they could do. In talking about thesummer military program in general Matthew said “Being able to like reflect on what I’ve donesince this is like, since this tests you, in different ways

Conference Session

Assessing Students and Programs

Collection

2011 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Christa Moll Weisbrook, University of Missouri; William Schonberg, Missouri University of Science & Technology

Tagged Divisions

New Engineering Educators

inappropriate, toss them out.Step 5. Large Group Session: Review and Refine Themes.Reconvene the entire team. Each small group then reports its findings and lists the themes theydetermined in their session. The entire team should discuss the commonalities and differences inthe lists of group themes and combines, modifies, and refines them to determine a final list ofunique themes to reflect the distinct professional skills, competencies, and accomplishmentsexpected of program graduates after three to five years of employment. Most programs will findthat they will have four to eight final themes.Step 6. Small Group Session II: Draft Objectives Statements.Divide the team into three to five groups. Distribute the themes among these smaller groups witheach

Conference Session

Design Communications & Cognition II

Collection

2011 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Brian Bielenberg, Petroleum Institute

Tagged Divisions

Design in Engineering Education

,particularly in North America, continuing to reflect the recommendations made in the 1955Grinter Report.[12] Based on this five decade old report, engineering schools chose to focus on ascientifically oriented curriculum that emphasizes the basic sciences, mathematics, chemistry andphysics through a core set of six engineering sciences, ignoring concurrent calls to includeprofessional and social responsibilities in the curriculum. As May and Strong[10] point out, “Fivedecades after this report was published, how many engineering schools can truly claim that theirprograms have evolved in terms of core content and methods of instruction in order to maintainpace with modern professional engineering practice?”The Accreditation Board for Engineering and

Conference Session

Civil Engineering Poster Session

Collection

2011 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Ronald W. Welch, University of Texas, Tyler

Tagged Divisions

Civil Engineering

wording was consistent with ABET definitions which are generally difficult todefine clearly, and 2) the addition of four new outcomes focused on additional Page 22.141.2professional topics and discipline depth. Very quickly it was determined by mostprograms and ASCE that the discipline depth could only occur at the Master’s level withlarger breadth occurring at the undergraduate level. The addition of professional skillsabove what even ABET2 EC2000 requires reflects greater recognition of the importanceof the development of professional skills at the bachelor’s level. How/Where are thesesupplementary professional topics to be included in the current

Conference Session

Civil Engineering Poster Session

Collection

2011 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Christianna Irene White, Iowa State University, Institute for Transportation; David J. White, Iowa State University

Tagged Divisions

Civil Engineering

genres and for effective work on teams (e.g., acapstone course with writing and presentation components, research reports). These experiencesshould prepare CE graduates for the exigencies of the workplace. However, considerable concernabout the communication skills of CE graduates is reflected in the significant attention devotedto studying and improving both the communication training and student proficiencies by facultyand researchers who publish in professional engineering education journals (e.g., Journal ofProfessional Issues in Engineering Education and Practice; Journal of Engineering Education)and present at conferences such as those sponsored by ASEE and Frontiers in Education (FIE

Conference Session

Multidisciplinary Technical Session

Collection

2011 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Cynthia C. Pendley, Georgia Institute of Technology; Joseph Homer Saleh, Georgia Institute of Technology

Tagged Divisions

Multidisciplinary Engineering

Institute of Chemical Engineers, AIChE, 2001) Challenger: Go for Launch (BBC documentary, 2001)Each case study is covered in one or two hours. The discussion of the accident is initiated by astudent, assigned to the particular case study at the beginning of the semester. Typical promptsinclude the following: how did the accident unfold (to make sure that the accident sequence isproperly understood by everyone)? What caused the accident? This question, which usuallymakes for a very lively and interesting discussion in class, invites a deep reflection of theconcept of causality in system accidents as well as the appreciation of the idea of chain ofinfluence and network of contributing factors to system accidents. What contributed to

Conference Session

"Green" Topics in Architectural Engineering

Collection

2011 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Jacob Dunn, University of Idaho Integrated Design Lab, Boise; Gunnar Ryan Gladics, University of Idaho, Integrated Design Lab; Kevin Van Den Wymelenberg, University of Idaho Integrated Design Lab, Boise; Ery Djunaedy, University of Idaho Integrated Design Lab, Boise; Sherry McKibben, University of Idaho IURDC, McKibben + Cooper Architects

Tagged Divisions

Architectural

building and to deliver human comfort, reflected a further schismbetween the professions and reached an apex in the years after World War II. According to Dr.Joseph Lstiburek, “During the post-war building boom, the emphasis on educating architectsshifted to aesthetics and design theory relating to aesthetics and away from the fundamentalaspects of construction and understanding of materials, assemblies, building systems, andsubsystems2.” The division of labor is a logical outgrowth of the increased knowledge needed to masterthe expanding profession. For instance, it would be quite a challenge to learn all the newcomplex structural technologies and theories concurrently with a full architectural education.This could again be said of the

Conference Session

Program Criteria, Assessment, and Sustainability in Civil Engineering

Collection

2011 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Mikhail Gershfeld, S.E., California State Polytechnic University, Pomona; Judith Ellen Sheine, California State Polytechnic University, Pomona; Gary LeMarr McGavin, California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, Department of Architecture

Tagged Divisions

Civil Engineering

at the end. Strict deadlines were established for engineering-sensitive decisions and engineering students were required to monitor these deadlines and soundan alert to the architecture students and faculty (who also monitored the design process) if thesewere slipping.Following are comments from some of the architectural and engineering judges that have beeninvolved in the studio for the last three years. They were asked to provide some reflection onwhy they are willing to take 6-8 hrs of their time, typically on Fridays, to judge students’ de-signs.Will Shepphired is a registered engineer and architect. He is a principal of his own successfularchitectural firm. He has been an active member of our judging panel for the last three years

Conference Session

Multidisciplinary Technical Session

Collection

2011 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Lisa R. Lattuca, Pennsylvania State University, University Park; Lois Calian Trautvetter, Northwestern University; Sarah L. Codd, Montana State University; David B. Knight, Pennsylvania State University, University Park; Carla M. Cortes, Northwestern University

Tagged Divisions

Multidisciplinary Engineering

of knowledge and ideas that are distinctive to different fields of study. I'm good at figuring out what experts in different fields have missed in explaining a problem or proposing a solution Reflective Behavior (alpha = .73) Do you agree or disagree?A I frequently stop to think about where I might be going wrong or right with a problem solution. I often step back and reflect on what I am thinking to determine whether I might be missing something. Page 22.1711.12 Teamwork Skills (alpha = .86) Please rate your ability to:A Work in teams of people with a variety of skills

Conference Session

Engineering Education Research in K-12

Collection

2011 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Melissa Dyehouse, Purdue University; Heidi A. Diefes-Dux, Purdue University, West Lafayette; Brenda Capobianco, Purdue University

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods, K-12 & Pre-College Engineering

incorporateengineering into the elementary classroom. Engineering curricula and engineering teacherprofessional development at the elementary level remains a developing area1. It follows thatassessments measuring the impact of such teacher professional development programs, orengineering interventions on students’ engineering design, science, and technology knowledge,have not been widely developed or utilized. For example, the National Academy Engineering(NAE)1 reports that there is a “paucity of data” available to assess the impacts of K-12engineering education on many student outcomes, which “reflects a modest, unsystematic effortto measure, or even define, learning and other outcomes” (p. 154).There is a need for assessments that are developmentally

Conference Session

Computer Science and Information Technology in K-12 Engineering

Collection

2011 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Anna Victoria Forssen, Colorado School of Mines; Barbara M. Moskal, Colorado School of Mines; Alka R. Harriger, Purdue University, West Lafayette

Tagged Divisions

K-12 & Pre-College Engineering

were revised to contain themore general term, “computing,” which is used in both the CS and IT fields. The currentversion of the IT attitude survey is a subset of statements from the original 52 statementIT survey.Participants’ responses to the statements in the attitude survey were mapped to anumerical value between one and four, with higher values reflecting more positiveattitudes. In other words, a positively worded statement was scored a four for stronglyagree, a three for agree, a two for disagree, and a one for strongly disagree. A negativelyworded statement was scored a four for strongly disagree, a three for disagree, a two foragree, and a one for strongly agree. A high score for a gender statement reflected agender neutral, rather

Conference Session

Civil Engineering Poster Session

Collection

2011 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

John V. Tocco, Lawrence Technological University; Donald D. Carpenter, Lawrence Technological University

Tagged Divisions

Civil Engineering

are placed into one of three categories: foundational, technical and professional.The BOK2 outcomes are also written to reflect preparation as a continuum11,12 , distinguishingbetween Bloom’s level of cognitive achievement13 for baccalaureate level work, to post-baccalaureate, and finally to pre-licensure experience. Therefore, the BOK2 describes whatstudents should achieve by the time they graduate, along with the additional preparation requiredfor them to achieve licensure and practice professionally.Adopting the BOK2 required the review of all civil engineering courses to determine if theircontent was sufficient to meet the new outcomes. Moreover, their respective course objectiveswere painstakingly revised as necessary. The capstone

Conference Session

Assessment Instruments

Collection

2011 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Julie Martin Trenor, Clemson University; Matthew K. Miller, Clemson University; Kyle G. Gipson, Clemson University

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

respective protocol, where at the end of the survey (or at logical midpoints during a long survey) the participant will be asked to reflect upon the questions encountered and responses provided to determine if, after looking back, anything else seems confusing or if there is any additional information the participant thinks we should know but the instrument has not sufficiently drawn out of the participant.Verbal Cognitive Validation in the Context of an Engineering Education StudyPurpose of the Research StudyThis paper presents the utility of think-alouds as a VRM in the context of a particularengineering education study. The study is described here in order to lend context to the methodsand results from the think-aloud

Conference Session

Assessing Student Learning

Collection

2011 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

David J. Therriault, University of Florida; Christine S. Lee, University of Florida; Elliot P. Douglas, University of Florida; Mirka Koro-Ljungberg, University of Florida; Nathan McNeill, University of Florida

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

werecategorized to determine the amount of time spent on each of five exam behaviors: reading fromthe textbook, writing, calculating, reading the test question, and talking/reflecting. Problemsolutions were separately graded using a previously created rubric. The time spent on variousbehavior categories were then examined with respect to grades students received for theirsolutions. Reading from the textbook represented the bulk of students’ time on the problems(35% on average). Interestingly, there was a significant negative correlation between time spentreading the textbook and students’ grades. The more time that students spent with the text, themore poorly they performed. This correlation was strongest for students who had the lowestsolution scores

Conference Session

Technology in the ECE Classroom

Collection

2011 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

David Jakob Fritz, Oklahoma State University; Wira Mulia, Oklahoma State University; Sohum Sohoni, Oklahoma State University; Kerri S. Kearney, Oklahoma State University; Mwarumba Mwavita, Oklahoma State University

Tagged Divisions

Electrical and Computer

. Page 22.1491.1 c American Society for Engineering Education, 2011 The Progressive Learning Platform for Computer EngineeringAbstractThis paper describes the Progressive Learning Platform (PLP), a system designed to facilitatecomputer engineering education while decreasing the overhead costs and learning curveassociated with existing solutions. The PLP system is a System on a Chip design withaccompanying tools reflecting a contemporary CPU architecture. It is unique in that it can beused in a number of courses (Digital Logic Design, Microcomputer Principles, ComputerArchitecture, Compilers, Embedded Systems) as students progress through a ComputerEngineering curriculum. The system consists of a fully

Conference Session

ABET Accreditation, Assessment, and Program Improvement in ECE

Collection

2011 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

John K. Estell, Ohio Northern University; Stephen M. Williams, Milwaukee School of Engineering

Tagged Divisions

Electrical and Computer

), advisory board reports, and revision history documented in the university bulletin.” • “It was stated that our Objectives were too focused on current students and not on our alumni. However, our stated objectives were word for word the same as they were in 2003 (they were clearly stated and reflected our objectives at that time so why change them?). I also note that Criterion 2 has not changed since 2003. It was therefore strange that our Objectives have now garnered a weakness when they were just fine in 2003. I believe this underscores a weakness in the Accreditation process in which the published Criteria are too open to interpretation by the specific visiting committee. Programs should be

Conference Session

General Topics in Graduate Education

Collection

2011 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Mysore Narayanan, Miami University

Tagged Divisions

Graduate Studies

. Page 22.248.1 c American Society for Engineering Education, 2011 Assessment Based on Howard Gardner’s Theory of Multiple Intelligences Mysore Narayanan, Miami University, Ohio.Abstract Scholars in the area of cognitive science and educational psychology agree that‘assessment’ as ‘learning’ should not be treated like a third-party research project orsome administrator’s questionnaire. Assessment must be actually viewed as acommunity effort or nothing. Assessment must be driven by a faculty's owncommitment to reflect, react, innovate and improve. Educators have also recognized thatit is very important that instructors make a strong effort to teach to the

Conference Session

Innovations in Teaching Physics or Engineering Physics II

Collection

2011 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Teresa L. Larkin, American University

Tagged Divisions

Engineering Physics & Physics

. While females haveslightly higher mean grades and higher mean GPAs in the course, they have significantly lowerFCI gains than their male constituents. If course grade can be taken to reflect how much astudent has learned, and GPA as a measure of academic success, then it would be reasonable tothink that the female students would have slightly higher FCI gains than their male counterparts.The results presented here reflect the opposite and give rise to a discussion in terms of testingand the potential connection to gender issues. Research on standardized tests (i.e. SAT, GRE, LSAT, etc…) and their relationship togender have been widely reported in the literature [45 – 46]. In 1992, the American Associationof University Women Educational

Conference Session

Recruitment & Retention of Women II

Collection

2011 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

John J. Duffy, University of Massachusetts, Lowell; Linda Barrington, University of Massachusetts, Lowell; Manuel A Heredia, University of Massachusetts, Lowell

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

). However, one of the earlier definitions is still widely accepted andcomprehensive: Service-learning is “a course based, credit-bearing, educational experience inwhich students (a) participate in an organized service activity that meets identified communityneeds and (b) reflect on the service activity in such a way as to gain further understanding ofcourse content, a broader appreciation of the discipline, and an enhanced sense of civicresponsibility." (Bringle & Hatcher, 1995). Key elements of service-learning that appear to beimportant to researchers and practitioners include: projects or placements that meet academicobjectives in a credit-bearing course, the meeting of real community needs, analysis or reflectionon the part of students to

Conference Session

NSF Grantees Poster Session

Collection

2011 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Marilyn Barger, Hillsborough Community College; Richard Gilbert, University of South Florida; Marie A. Boyette, FLATE

Tagged Topics

NSF Grantees

provides precise feedback that reflects that understanding. Therefore,camp staff should conduct a debriefing with the programmer(s) after every robot challengeactivity. These meetings should start with camper evaluation of the robot’s performance and adetailed analysis of the program’s part in performance success or failures. The staff should avoiddictating programming actions to correct flaws but never leave the camper really uncertain as towhat to do next. In addition, this may be a great opportunity to reinforce the difference betweenhow the camper collects and acts on information vs. how the robot has to be programmed toaccomplish the same tasks. It has been our experience that this is the first time the campersexperience the impact their

Conference Session

International Experience, Effective Instruction, and Student Exchange Programs

Collection

2011 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Waddah Akili, Iowa State University

Tagged Divisions

International

practicalproblems and issues that practitioners usually face, into the classroom.(6) Pedagogical studieshave demonstrated that the case study/ case history approach to engineering education provides agreater understanding of the multifaceted nature of civil engineering.(7,8) They can be used to Page 22.312.2simulate a variety of learning protocols such as: design and analysis experiences,interdisciplinary issues and concerns, costs, hazards, owner preferences, and compliance withstandards and guidelines. Cases, by and large, describe situations, projects, problems, decisions,etc., and are primarily derived from actual experience, and do reflect thoughts

Conference Session

Best Zone Paper Competition

Collection

2011 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Dan Budny P.E., University of Pittsburgh

Tagged Topics

Council of Sections

benefited all students, faculty, and advisorsinvolved. Through writing assignments that require students to research engineering fieldsand achievements, while reflecting on their own interests and experiences and goals, theE/FEWP creates a substantial picture of students’ own evolving academic and professionalawareness—a picture that is useful to and enhanced by significant freshman advising andmentoring.Freshman Engineering ProgramThe Freshman Program at the University of Pittsburgh has an academic and an advisingcomponent. The mission of both components is to create a first year experience thatpromotes the student’s continued pursuit of an engineering degree. Part of the EngineeringLibrary’s mission has been to work with freshmen in order to give

Conference Session

FPD IX: Research on First-Year Programs and Students, Part II

Collection

2011 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Xiang Gong, Beihang University, Beijing, Institute of Higher Education; Monica E. Cardella, Purdue University, West Lafayette; Qing Lei, Beihang University, Beijing

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

) covers the entire four years. This reflects two meanings. On the Page 22.346.7one hand, the importance of FEHPs has been continually manifested and emphasized, as it is notonly the first stage of the entire honors program, but it also takes the responsibility of gettinghonors students well motivated and prepared for future engineering study and work. The majordifference in first-year programs between Uni-US and Uni-CN (actually between mostuniversities in the United States and China) is that in the United States, there is at least aone-year period in which students take “general education” courses. However, there is no similargeneral education in

Conference Session

Core Concepts, Standards, and Policy in K-12 Engineering Education

Collection

2011 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Mike Ryan, Georgia Institute of Technology; Brian D. Gane, Georgia Institute of Technology; Marion Usselman, Georgia Institute of Technology

Tagged Divisions

K-12 & Pre-College Engineering

motivation for students to seekcontent knowledge and conceptual understanding that help them solve problems or addresschallenges. Common among effective PBIL curricula and experiences is a focus on student-generated ideas, where students reflect on their actions and investigations to make new decisionsand to improve conceptual understanding 11,12.There is a large amount of research extolling the benefits of curriculum and learning experiencesrooted in PBIL13,14,15,16,17. These studies have found that PBIL affords: more active learning ofcontent; the development of problem-solving skills; increased ownership in learning; greaterunderstanding of the nature of the scientific endeavor; more flexible thinking; improvedcollaboration skills; and