Conference Session

FPD 1: The Path to Engineering

Collection

2014 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Noah Salzman, Purdue University, West Lafayette; George D. Ricco, Purdue University, West Lafayette; Matthew W. Ohland, Purdue University and Central Queensland University

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

engineering. Participation in pre-college engineering classes has been positivelyassociated with engineering self-efficacy,7 and research on the effects of participation in ProjectLead The Way suggests that students are more likely to pursue STEM degrees and, in limitedcircumstances, may have higher GPAs than students who did not participate in these classes.8K-12 and higher education institutions both need information on the effects of pre-collegeengineering programs on undergraduate engineering students. The persistence and grades ofstudents that have participated in K-12 engineering programs and continued on to study incollege engineering programs are possible measurable outcomes of K-12 engineering educationprograms. The NSF, the Department of

Conference Session

FPD 2: Building Community

Collection

2014 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Betsy F. Willis, Southern Methodist University; David A. Willis, Southern Methodist University; Mark Fontenot, Southern Methodist University

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

and performance.1 The study results showed asignificant inverse correlation between faculty distance (approachability and accessibility) andother constructs measured such as self-efficacy, academic confidence, and critical thinking.The living situation (on-campus, commuter, etc.) has a significant impact on students’persistence.4 Many studies support the positive benefits of participation in a living-learningcommunity. Soldner et al.5 state that participation in a science, technology, engineering, or math(STEM) living-learning community “have the capacity to enhance the quality of students’ peerand faculty interactions and deepen their sense of social support” (p. 330). However, somestudies found only small positive relationships between

Conference Session

FPD 11: Culminating Considerations

Collection

2014 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Yvette Pearson Weatherton, University of Texas, Arlington; Andrew P. Kruzic, University of Texas, Arlington; Stephen P Mattingly, University of Texas, Arlington; Ziaur Rahman, The University of Texas at Arlington; Heather L Frost

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

mathematics aptitude measured using ACT and/or SAT Math scoresand not only enrolling in, but also performing well in advanced science (i.e. physics) andmathematics (i.e. calculus) courses in high school.1-3 Additionally self-efficacy, determinedfrom student survey responses to questions designed to gauge their confidence in theirquantitative abilities, parental educational attainment and geographic location (i.e. urban versusrural home) have been found to impact engineering student persistence and achievement. 4,5 Oneof the primary first year indicators is grade point average (GPA), which is indicative of students’quantitative and analytical capabilities, as first year engineering curricula are dominated bymathematics, science and fundamental

Conference Session

FPD 2: Building Community

Collection

2014 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Nora Honken, University of Louisville; Patricia A. Ralston, University of Louisville

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

between informal collaboration andachievement. Two recent studies involving only engineering students10 presented a convincingcase for the relationship between informal collaborative learning and improved confidence andacademic achievement. Collaborative learning strategies investigated in these studies included Page 24.747.2“sharing ideas with peers, obtaining helpful feedback from other students, and working togetherto help each other understand the material, learn new things and complete assignments”.11 Theresults from these two studies concluded that students’ self-reported collaborative learningstrategies were associated with increased self

Conference Session

FPD 4: Peers and Perceptions

Collection

2014 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Sudhir Kaul, Western Carolina University; Robert D. Adams, Western Carolina University

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

, GA.10. Eris, O., Chachra, D., Chen, H. L., Sheppard, S., Ludlow, L., Rosca, C., Bailey, T., Toye, G., 2010, “Outcomesof a longitudinal administration of the persistence in engineering survey,” Journal of Engineering Education, 99, pp.371-395.11. Hanson, J. H., Williams, J. M., 2008, “Using writing assignments to improve self-assessment andcommunication skills in an engineering statics course,” Journal of Engineering Education, 97, pp. 515-529.12. Carberry, A. R., Lee, H-S., Ohland, M. W., 2010, “Measuring engineering design self-efficacy,” Journal ofEngineering Education, 99, pp. 71-79. Page 24.854.14

Conference Session

FPD 11: Culminating Considerations

Collection

2014 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Silvia Husted, Universidad de las Americas Puebla; Judith Virginia Gutierrez; Nelly Ramirez-Corona, Universidad de las Americas Puebla; Aurelio Lopez-Malo, Universidad de las Americas Puebla; Enrique Palou, Universidad de las Americas Puebla

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

creative functioning. These attributes include, but are not limited to, willingness to overcome obstacles, willingness to take sensible risks, willingness to tolerate ambiguity, and self-efficacy. In particular, buying low and selling high typically means defying the crowd, so that one has to be willing to stand up to conventions if one wants to think and act in creative ways. Often creative people seek opposition; that is, they decide to think in ways that countervail how others think. Note that none of the attributes of creative thinking is fixed. One can decide to overcome obstacles, take sensible risks, and so forth.6. Environment. Finally, one needs an environment that is supportive and rewarding of creative ideas. One could

Conference Session

FPD 8: Teaching Design in the First Year

Collection

2014 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Jeffrey Scott Bates, University of Utah

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

. Daempfle, Peter A. "An analysis of the high attrition rates among first year college science, math, and engineering majors." Journal of College Student Retention: Research, Theory and Practice 5, no. 1 (2003): 37-52.18. Hutchison, Mica A., Deborah K. Follman, Melissa Sumpter, and George M. Bodner. "Factors Influencing the Self‐Efficacy Beliefs of First‐Year Engineering Students." Journal of Engineering Education 95, no. 1 (2006): 39-47.19. Olds, Barbara M., and Ronald L. Miller. "The Effect of a First‐Year Integrated Engineering Curriculum on Graduation Rates and Student Satisfaction: A Longitudinal Study." Journal of Engineering Education 93, no. 1 (2004): 23-35

Conference Session

FPD 10: Teamwork

Collection

2014 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Oguz Hanoglu, Purdue University, West Lafayette; Aladar Horvath, Ivy Tech Community College; Heidi A. Diefes-Dux, Purdue University, West Lafayette

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

distribution. The team did not realize thatstandard deviation does not provide sufficient information about how data is distributed for thecontext of the given problem. The lecture discussion on the bell shape of a normally distributeddata set and how standard deviation helps describe that shape were not understood. This resultedin the comment about 96% of the data being included within two standard deviations. This teamdid not test the data sets they were provided for normality.Hattie and Timberley3 discuss that the way students receive feedback is dependent on theircharacteristics (e.g. self-efficacy). Students construct their own meaning out of the providedfeedback. This was observed in Team A’s case (Table 3). Student A-1 said that the

Conference Session

FPD 6: Course Content and Educational Strategies

Collection

2014 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Lydia Prendergast, Rutgers, School of Engineering; Eugenia Etkina, Rutgers University

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

development of engineering community relate to the educational process.21 Others,such as race, gender, and interest in other fields depend on a particular student.22,23,24Engineering identity and self-efficacy are the factors that are influenced both by an individualstudent and the educational process.24,13 The first year curriculum is where many universitiesstart tackling all of these retention-related factors.4,25,26,27 Developing experiences in the first yearthat actively engage the student in learning, such as an integrated curriculum, updated teachingmethods, or a cornerstone course, can be used to counteract attrition by improving theeducational process and addressing issues related to student specific variables.28,29,30,31,32Educational