Conference Session

Experience in Assessing Technological Literacy

Collection

2013 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Claire L. Antaya, Arizona State University; Kristen Parrish PhD, Arizona State University; Elizabeth A Adams P.E., Chandler Gilbert Community College; Amy E. Landis, Arizona State University

Tagged Divisions

Technological and Engineering Literacy/Philosophy of Engineering

a standing relationship with ASU and has contributed to collaborative development,deployment and assessment of sustainability-themed active and experiential modules.During the 2012-2013 academic year faculty at ASU and MCC piloted a water-for-energy waterfootprint module to introduce students to the concept of embedded, or virtual, water (i.e. waterrequired to generate or produce a product or service) and how their decisions, engineeringapplications and sustainability relate to the “real-world” global and complex issue of resourcedepletion today. Module implementation was piloted in one civil engineering course at bothinstitutions for the Fall 2012 and Spring 2013 semesters, see Table 1. MCC’s courses wereintroductory engineering courses

Conference Session

New Approaches and Applications to Enhance Technological Literacy - Part II

Collection

2013 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Kelsey Joy Rodgers, Purdue University, West Lafayette; Heidi A. Diefes-Dux, Purdue University, West Lafayette; Krishna Madhavan, Purdue University, West Lafayette; William C. Oakes, Purdue University, West Lafayette

Tagged Divisions

Technological and Engineering Literacy/Philosophy of Engineering

scales. It was also found that teams that includedspecific products and/or applications of nanotechnology in their project solution showed agreater understanding of nanotechnology. Based on these finding, it is recommended that thenanoscale be explained through comparisons to other scales and nanotechnology-based designprojects should encourage students to learn about specific products and/or applications ofnanotechnology.I. IntroductionFirst-year students know very little about nanotechnology.1-3 The general public is ill-informedabout nanotechnogy.4 This means that high school and college students are not receivingaccurate information about a field that is changing many aspects of our world5-6 and offers manynew learning and discovery

Conference Session

New Approaches and Applications to Enhance Technological Literacy - Part II

Collection

2013 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Katy Luchini-Colbry, Michigan State University; Dirk Colbry, Michigan State University

Tagged Divisions

Technological and Engineering Literacy/Philosophy of Engineering

bookreaders are easy-to-use and will transform the way that consumers work and play – yet manypeople find these gadgets to be confusing and frustrating.We describe the development of a non-credit, personal enrichment course for novice adults that(1) explains the fundamental technologies underlying popular consumer gadgets; (2) guidesparticipants in identifying their goals for using technology; and (3) helps participants findappropriate solutions. The course is designed partly as an opportunity to “touch” newtechnologies, with the instructors providing a variety of gadgets and participants encouraged tobring their personal devices.This course was developed as part of the outreach activities of Michigan State University(MSU), and the curriculum was

Conference Session

Experience in Assessing Technological Literacy

Collection

2013 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

John Krupczak, Hope College; Mani Mina, Iowa State University

Tagged Divisions

Technological and Engineering Literacy/Philosophy of Engineering

on specific technological systems. In this situation,engineering programs should share some of the responsibility in helping to educate allAmericans about technology.1–5In undergraduate education formidable barriers exist to discourage non-engineers from trying todevelop an in-depth understanding about technology and engineering. The engineering major is ahighly-sequenced and lengthy course of study. Access to the major is hindered by a significantarray of prerequisite courses. In these circumstances it is difficult to combine the study ofengineering with any other undergraduate major.Most undergraduate programs require some type of science course as part of the general

Conference Session

Defining and Refining Technological and Engineering Literacy

Collection

2013 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Osvaldo Clua, University of Buenos Aires; Maria Feldgen, University of Buenos Aires

Tagged Divisions

Technological and Engineering Literacy/Philosophy of Engineering

former president of the IEEE Education Society Chapter in Argentina. Contact her at mfeldgen@ieee.org. Page 23.748.1 c American Society for Engineering Education, 2013 Information and Communications Technologies literacy of the University of Buenos Aires Engineering studentsIntroduction The students currently at the University have been described by a number of labels. Theseinclude the net generation, millennial, Google generation and digital natives. These termshighlight the importance of technology in their lives 1. Some authors 2 3 assert than the newtechnologies

Conference Session

New Approaches and Applications to Enhance Technological Literacy - Part I

Collection

2013 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

R. William Graff, LeTourneau University; Paul R. Leiffer, LeTourneau University

Tagged Divisions

Technological and Engineering Literacy/Philosophy of Engineering

works hisproblem successfully, he leaves. From this interaction, the instructor is able to find conceptswhich need to be emphasized, and identify students that need extra help.One of these sessions is the hydro-circuits lab, described in a previous paper,1 designed to givestudents a “feel” for the hydraulic analogies for the resistor, capacitor, voltage and current. Realwater, balloons, plastic tubing, and fluid flow meters are used to show Kirchhoff’s current lawand an R-C transient. It gets pretty messy. One of the civil engineering majors, who hadquestions about fluid flow, became excited during this lab as he realized that the basis for rampumps (inertia pumps) is the same as that for current flow in an inductor. The followingtreatise is

Conference Session

Defining and Refining Technological and Engineering Literacy

Collection

2013 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Presentacion Rivera-Reyes, Utah State University - Engineering Education; Oenardi Lawanto, Utah State University; Raymond Edward Boyles, Technology and Engineering Education

Tagged Divisions

Technological and Engineering Literacy/Philosophy of Engineering

advancing to thepresent, historical research will uncover the terms and distinctions necessary to establish both anunderstanding and a synthesis of how these current fields have emerged. Chronological eventscan be linked to provide the foundations of engineering education, technology education, andengineering & technology education.1. IntroductionThere is confusion today to define concepts or activities related to the terms “technology” and“engineering”. Society tends to confuse the term technology with science, when technology isconcerned with “what can or should be through modification of the natural world, and science isvery concerned with what is (exist) in the natural world. Also, public opinion inclines to relatethe term technology with

Conference Session

Defining and Refining Technological and Engineering Literacy

Collection

2013 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

John Krupczak, Hope College; Gregory Bassett

Tagged Divisions

Technological and Engineering Literacy/Philosophy of Engineering

proceeds from the specific towards abstract theory.IntroductionA first step in achieving technological and engineering literacy in the general population is anarticulation of the fundamental philosophical perspectives of the discipline. Recent efforts havedrawn attention to the need to clarify an underlying philosophy of engineering.1,2 Theimportance of enumerating and analyzing the philosophical underpinnings of engineering isbecoming more widely recognized. Clarification of a philosophy of engineering is relevant tothe discipline even if many engineering practitioners operate without a conscious awareness ofthis philosophy.1-3 A significant component of these efforts includes attempts to distinguishengineering and technological activity from the

Conference Session

Defining and Refining Technological and Engineering Literacy

Collection

2013 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Robert M. Brooks, Temple University; Mehmet Cetin, Temple University; Jyothsna Kavuturu

Tagged Divisions

Technological and Engineering Literacy/Philosophy of Engineering

point of an industry. The specificdifferences between the two methods are shown in Table 1.The course introduced the students to the application of basic scientific principles (in Physics,Chemistry, Biology) to the environment. More specifically, the concepts of sustainability,ecology and evolution, population, climate, biodiversity and various industries such asagriculture, forests, and energy were covered in the course.The course was organized into several modules. For example, in the climate and air resourcesmodule, the students were introduced to atmospheric circulation, ocean circulation, climate andweather, air pollution and greenhouse effect and climate change. Students were not usuallyaware that systems of positive and negative

Conference Session

Defining and Refining Technological and Engineering Literacy

Collection

2013 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Stephen T Frezza, Gannon University; Richard W. Moodey, Gannon University; David Arthur Nordquest, Gannon University; Krishnakishore Pilla P.E., Gannon University

Tagged Divisions

Technological and Engineering Literacy/Philosophy of Engineering

Page 23.201.1 c American Society for Engineering Education, 2013 Applying a knowledge-generation epistemological approach to computer science and software engineering pedagogyTLC Topic Area: Concepts and Philosophy of Engineering LiteracyAbstract This paper proposes a brief exploration of the epistemology of knowledge, specificallydistinguishing the development of scientific knowledge from the development of engineeringknowledge. Based on a pragmatic theory approach (1), the paper proposes a pattern fordistinguishing the ‘science’ of computer science from its ‘engineering’ aspects. The paper thenapplies these distinctions to traditional Computer Science knowledge, and explores itsrelationship to

Conference Session

New Approaches and Applications to Enhance Technological Literacy - Part II

Collection

2013 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Thalia Anagnos, San Jose State University; Becky Carroll, Inverness Research, Inc.; Shannon Weiss, David Heil & Associates, Inc.; David R. Heil, David Heil & Associates, Inc.

Tagged Divisions

Technological and Engineering Literacy/Philosophy of Engineering

, faculty, and exhibit evaluators havebeen involved in the project funded through a grant by the National Science Foundation awardedto the Golden Gate Bridge, Highway and Transportation District (GGBHTD) to build an outdoorexhibition next to the Golden Gate Bridge. When completed, the exhibition will consist of an85-foot long 1:80 precise scale-model of the bridge accompanied by about two dozen exhibitsstrategically placed around the site. Most of these satellite exhibits are already installed. Someare hands-on interactive exhibits, while others are more traditional informational panels. Topicsrange from cultural, such as the history of the bridge and the Art Deco design, to engineering,such as the design of the towers and retrofit for seismic

Conference Session

New Approaches and Applications to Enhance Technological Literacy - Part I

Collection

2013 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Magesh Chandramouli, Purdue University, Calumet (Tech); Gary R. Bertoline, Purdue University, West Lafayette

Tagged Divisions

Technological and Engineering Literacy/Philosophy of Engineering

, the authors have enabled dynamic interaction capabilities within this frameworkthat facilitates ‘re-arranging’ the way in which the information is presented. The application isbeing built using web-friendly technologies such as VRML/X3D and Java/JavaScript tofacilitate online dissemination.Keywords: Engineering literature, Technological literature, Multidimensional Visualization.1. Introduction This study employs desktop Virtual Reality (dVR) based information visualization toorganize and present engineering and technological literature. The visual nature of theinformation presented not only elicits students’ interest but also facilitates better understandingthe literature. Students in engineering and technology schools across the

Conference Session

New Approaches and Applications to Enhance Technological Literacy - Part I

Collection

2013 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Mani Mina, Iowa State University

Tagged Divisions

Technological and Engineering Literacy/Philosophy of Engineering

1 Electrical and Computer Engineering, Iowa State University, Ames, IA 50011, USA 2 Sothern Polytechnic State University, Marietta, GA 30060-2896, USAABSTRACT  This  paper  looks  at  what  some  initial  steps  that  teachers  of  traditional,  lecture-­‐based,  one-­‐sided  engineering  classes  can  take  to  transition  to  Deweyan,  inquiry-­‐based  classes.    The  goal  of  this  study  is  to  identify  concrete  step-­‐by-­‐step  actions  needed  for  transitioning  towards  inquiry-­‐based  classes  where  critical  thinking  and  systems-­‐level  approaches  to  problem  solving  are  prominent  elements  of  the

Conference Session

Experience in Assessing Technological Literacy

Collection

2013 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Brian P Kirkmeyer, Miami University

Tagged Divisions

Technological and Engineering Literacy/Philosophy of Engineering

3.45 on a scale of 0-4 (“0” meaning “Strongly Disagree” and “4” meaning“Strongly Agree”). This suggests that combining interesting topics for students with far-reaching and often unusual concept combinations is a winning formula for promoting cross-disciplinary understanding and growth in students‟ critical thinking skills. Page 23.1317.2IntroductionHeavy metal (often simply referred to as “metal”) is a musical genre consisting of a wide varietyof instrumental styles, lyrical themes and cultural phenomena. Generally speaking, all of thesetopics revolve around the presentation of power and intensity.1-3 While a complete description ofthe genre

Conference Session

New Approaches and Applications to Enhance Technological Literacy - Part II

Collection

2013 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

William R Loendorf, Eastern Washington University; Terence L Geyer, Eastern Washington University; Donald C. Richter, Eastern Washington University

Tagged Divisions

Technological and Engineering Literacy/Philosophy of Engineering

dimensions and the actual dimensions areassociated” (Lindbeck6, 1994). For example, the scale 1 in : 3 ft means that 1 inch in the modelrepresents 3 feet of actual distance.Many professions routinely use scale models. Engineers and technologists use scale models totest the performance of designs early in the development stage without having to buildprototypes. Architects use scale models to evaluate the design and look of new buildings prior totheir construction. Sales people utilize scale models to represent large products to potentialcustomers. Television and movie producers use scale models in their shows in order to speed upproduction and cut costs. In addition, of course, there are many more applications as well.The use of scale models is

Conference Session

New Approaches and Applications to Enhance Technological Literacy - Part I

Collection

2013 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Alicia L Lyman-Holt, Oregon State University; Laia Cari Robichaux, Oregon State University

Tagged Divisions

Technological and Engineering Literacy/Philosophy of Engineering

the development of these fields just as much as society is driven by them ii. As sciencecontinues to grow in our society, so does the need for science literacy among the population. Asmore science appears in the news, citizens need to be able to understand and participate in publicpolicy discussions and make informed decisions based on their understanding of the informationfrom the discourse iii. Therefore, the education and outreach programs at the laboratory are animportant part of its mission.The BOI of the laboratory is generally separate from that of its researchers. The generallaboratory goals of the outreach are: 1. To increase awareness of and esteem for the profession of engineering as whole, and specifically civil engineering

Conference Session

Experience in Assessing Technological Literacy

Collection

2013 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Denise M Wilson, University of Washington; Cheryl Allendoerfer, University of Washington; Ryan C. Campbell, University of Washington; Elizabeth Burpee; Mee Joo Kim, University of Washington- Seattle

Tagged Divisions

Technological and Engineering Literacy/Philosophy of Engineering

recognized,[1]and with the added complications of transnational and intercultural communication thatglobalization brings, even more work remains to be done in preparing students for the real world.Gone are the days when knowledge of basic literacy—e.g., grammar, spelling, structure, etc.—issufficient for engineering writing. A comprehensive framework for literacy must be learned thatconsiders, in addition to basic literacy, more complex and overlapping literacies, includingRhetorical, Social, Technological, Ethical, and Critical Literacy.[2] Cook defines these literaciesas “layered literacies,” describing them as follows: Basic Literacy is the ability to read and writewith completeness, consideration, clarity, courtesy, and correctness, through the