Page 26.1063.1 c American Society for Engineering Education, 2015 Learning Challenges and Opportunities from Seismic Retrofit Capstone ProjectsAbstractCivil and Environmental Engineering students at Seattle University are required to complete athree-quarter capstone project that is team-based and industrially-sponsored under thesupervision of a liaison engineer from industry and a faculty member. These projects offerstudents opportunities to apply concepts from analysis and design classes to solve real-worldproblems. In the last two years, student teams have completed three seismic retrofit projects ofdifferent complexity levels. Benefits to the students that are
experience in their senior year, formed the first all-female capstone team. The project the team selected was the conceptual design of a performance and visual art center for an existing nonprofit “village” that houses physically and emotionally abused girls. Each team member was responsible for the design of a component of the project based on her civil engineering subdiscipline. An all-female group of industry practitioners agreed to serve as mentors to the capstone team throughout the project cycle. With significant input from the practitioner-mentors, the students designed the project and not only presented to faculty and advisory board members, they also presented to the local chapter of a female-based construction industry
, problem-based learning, and impacts of the learning environment. To improvestudent teamwork experiences in any course, faculty have an opportunity to apply a wealth ofknowledge from fields such as organizational or industrial psychology 5. Some argue thateffective team-based learning in capstone courses require that teams be heterogeneous and haveshared goals, meaningful activities, timely internal feedback, and external comparisons andfeedback 6. Thus, for faculty to facilitate an effective team-based learning experience, they mustbe very deliberate in the planning of team projects, milestones, activities, feedback methods, andtiming.Other research has focused on problem-based learning approaches. One study, focusing on astructural engineering
Ecuadorian villages and twovillages in Panama that did not have a reliable water source. The paper will discuss the creationof a new course that allows the university to offer an international design experience within thetraditional Capstone course, and it will further compare the outcomes of the international servicelearning frameworks to the standard senior design projects.IntroductionMany Engineering programs are becoming interested in including an international servicelearning project into the school’s curriculum [1-6, 8, 9, 12-20]. There are many components in atypical international service learning experience that can benefit both the students and the school.[7, 10] One of the first and well documented benefits comes from the value project
communication must be thoughtfully designed tohelp readers make meaning of data. Such visual design for readers requires our students tobecome metacognitive of their own experience as consumers of visual communication. Yet oftenengineering students are not prompted to think about or design visual data communication untilthey must present their own data, typically as part of a senior capstone project. Our students’ lackof experience leaves them without a solid foundation for critical thought about figures, and thuswith scant preparation to learn from the experience of creating and refining them. If capstonesare to be an opportunity to learn about visual communication rather than simply perform it,students are in need of a swift means to gain perspective
engineering solutions in global, economic, environmental, and societal context.Interdisciplinary project coursesProject-based learning opportunities can help students develop better communication and teamcooperation skills, gain experience with divergent and convergent thinking modes that fosterengineering intuition, and enhance student ability to apply experiences and skills form onecontext to another6. According to Howe and Wilbarger9, engineering capstone design coursesthat included interdepartmental or multidisciplinary teams increased from 21% in 1994 to about35% in 2005. Lattuca et al.10 examined 40 engineering schools, collecting data from graduates,faculty members, program chairs, deans, and employers, and concluded that relative to
designed tobegin development of skills in the first semester (CvEEN 1000), broaden and deepen them in thefifth or sixth semester (CvEEN 3100), and culminate the development in the eighth semester(CvEEN 4910).In each of the three courses, a learn-by-doing paradigm is implemented. The culminating course,CvEEN 4910, is similar to many senior-level capstone design courses now common throughoutthe nation. A centralized design project with external contacts (clients) and authentic designconstraints drives the learning experiences. Primary student products include an EngineeringProposal, Engineering Feasibility Study, and a Preliminary Engineering Report. The 3100 and1000 courses are critical in developing the professional skills that the students are
learned were: (1) design definitions vary across disciplines anddepartments need to explicitly develop design guidelines across all programs offered, (2)significant efficiency can be gained by developing one set of Program Education Objectives andOutcomes encompassing all programs offered, and (3) capstone design classes will need muchattention to detail if a single class is for multiple degree programsIntroductionOver the last several decades, and in response to a variety of drivers, departments of civilengineering at universities across the United States have expanded and many now supportmultiple degrees. Over the same time period, ABET’s Engineering Criteria 2000 introducedoutcomes-based assessment to the accreditation process for engineering
purpose is apparent. Accordingly, four classes areimplementing the current version of the writing guide (available once the pilot is complete,anticipated for June 2015, at http://www.d.umn.edu/civileng/writing_guide) during the Spring2015 semester: two required junior-level classes, the senior capstone design course, and onegraduate elective. The authors will seek informal feedback throughout the semester and formalfeedback at the end of the semester in each of the four classes from students enrolled in thosecourses. Additionally, the authors will seek feedback from members of the department’sIndustrial Advisory Board (IAB) and from local practicing engineers who frequently volunteer asmentors in introduction to civil engineering projects
Paper ID #12608Students Writing for Professional Practice: A Model for Collaboration amongFaculty, Practitioners and Writing SpecialistsProf. Susan Conrad, Portland State University Susan Conrad, Ph.D., is a Professor of Applied Linguistics and head of the Civil Engineering Writing Project. She has written numerous articles and books about English grammar, discourse, and corpus linguistics.Dr. William A Kitch P.E., California State Polytechnic University, Pomona Dr. Kitch is a Professor of Civil Engineering at Cal Poly Pomona. Before starting his academic career he spent 24 years as a practicing engineer in both the
a specialty in building design and construction with over 10 years of industry experience on private and public projects and 2 years of teaching experience at the university level. Page 26.1019.1 c American Society for Engineering Education, 2015 Intra (Sub)-Disciplinary Integration in Civil Engineering Education: An Approach to Integrate the Various Civil Engineering Sub-Disciplines with the Use of a Design Studio LabAbstractTypically, Civil Engineering education
professional activities have included projects in East Africa, Central America, the Middle East, Alaska’s North Slope, and throughout the ”lower 48 states.” His current activities at Texas A&M cover a wide spectrum from K-12 outreach and recruiting to undergraduate curriculum design to retention, monitoring, and post-graduation engagement.Dr. Debra A Fowler, Texas A&M University Dr. Debra Fowler serves the Associate Director of the Center for Teaching Excellence at Texas A&M Uni- versity. Following 16 years working in industry she completed a Ph.D. is in Interdisciplinary Engineering with a specific focus on engineering education from Texas A&M University. Her research areas of focus are faculty perspectives
sustainability is not neglected by simply being part of a large list of choices. • Lowered the threshold on project management. The first proposed CEPC required students to “apply principles of project management” which would have met the level specified by the BOK2. The CEPCTC considered that examples of project management opportunities in the undergraduate program include design teams for course assignments, capstone design projects, and undergraduate research. These opportunities exist in all of the sub-disciplines of civil engineering. The comments generated from constituents and the survey of the department heads demonstrated that many thought a course in project management would be required and
included:3. an ability to design a system, component or process to meet desired needs8. the broad education necessary to understand the impact of solutions in a global and societalcontext10. a knowledge of contemporary issues13. an understanding of the elements of project management, construction and assetmanagement14. an understanding of business and public policy and administration fundamentals15. an understanding of the leader and leadership principles and attitudesAn analysis of these outcomes reveals that, while some understanding of various aspects of thehumanities and social sciences are needed to meet the outcome, there are no direct outcomes inthe humanities and social sciences.Humanities and Social Sciences in BOK2Building on BOK1, those
Paper ID #13026Assessing the Ethical Development of Students in an Undergraduate Civil En-gineering Course using a Standardized InstrumentDr. Donald D. Carpenter, Lawrence Technological University Donald D. Carpenter, PhD, PE, LEED AP is Professor of Civil Engineering at Lawrence Technological University where he teaches courses on ethics/professionalism and water resources. Dr. Carpenter has served as the University Director of Assessment and the founding Director of the Center for Teaching and Learning. He conducts funded pedagogical research and development projects, has published numerous engineering education papers
% participated in college servicebreak trip; 36% participated in service learning and another one-third performed communityservice as part of a class. Service to others is part of the departmental culture. The departmentprovides student many opportunities for service including a Civil Engineering specific servicelearning course, service-related capstone design projects, and service extracurricular groups.Again, the values of these women most likely play a very strong role in their participation, andthis department affords these women many opportunities to do so.Conclusions and Applicability to Other ProgramsThe analyses of the incoming student survey, focus group discussions, and senior exit surveyindicate that the overall culture of a program is