Conference Session

Cognitive and Motivational Issues in Student Performance I

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Kelli Higley, Pennsylvania State University; Thomas Litzinger, Pennsylvania State University; Peggy Van Meter, Pennsylvania State University; Christine B. Masters, Pennsylvania State University; Jonna Kulikowich, Pennsylvania State University

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

. Page 12.586.2Since Polya’s seminal work in mathematics,2 the utility of learning and using a sequence of stepsduring problem-solving has been widely accepted. Although several specific models exist, ageneric 4-step model captures most: (1) Represent the Problem, (2) Goal Setting and Planning,(3) Execute the Plan, and (4) Evaluate the Solution. In the first step, problem representation, thestudent must read the problem statement and discern the objective. There are instructionalinterventions for engineering education that are grounded in this theoretical model of problem-solving. For example, Gray et al.3 developed a systematic approach to solving Statics andDynamics problems. In this intervention, it is recommended that students be taught the

Conference Session

Physics Education Research (PER) Relevant for Engineering Education

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Sanjay Rebello, Kansas State University; Lili Cui, University of Maryland Baltimore County

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

adaptability corridor (See Figure 1) that balances both innovation andefficiency and thereby facilitates the development of adaptive expertise. Thus, this model oftransfer11 consolidates both traditional and contemporary views of transfer and serves as abuilding block for the theoretical framework in our studies. Figure 1: Horizontal & vertical transfer and the optimal adaptability corridorTransfer Studies from Calculus to PhysicsMost science and engineering majors are required to take calculus-based physics. Students areusually required to concurrently take both their first calculus and physics courses, or take at leastone calculus course prior to taking physics. While a few integrated curricula14,15 have beendeveloped and have been

Conference Session

Writing and Portfolios

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Jung Oh, Kansas State University-Salina; Judith Collins, Kansas State University-Salina

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

encompassinglibrary instruction, computer literacy, critical thinking, communication, ethics, and lifelonglearning. The Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL) defines informationliteracy as “the set of skills needed to find, retrieve, analyze, and use information”1 and presentsinformation literacy standards for science, engineering and technology.2 Information literacyenables learners to “master content and extent their investigations and become more self-directed, and assume greater control over their own learning”.3Lave and Wegner proposed that “situated learning” occurs within the context of a “community ofpractice”, a “set of relations among persons, activities, and world, over time and in relation withother overlapping communities”.4 They

Conference Session

Student Engagement and Motivation

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Linda Vanasupa, California Polytechnic State University; Trevor Harding, California Polytechnic State University; William Hughes, California Polytechnic State University

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

a developmental map, it may look something like Figure 1 (many of the modelelements are omitted from this diagram for clarity). This shows the students’developmental “space” as consisting of four developmental domains: cognitive, social,affective and psychomotor. In this diagram, we place the cognitive and psychomotor onthe left to indicate that these are left-brain associated. The social and affective domainsare placed on the right to indicate their right-brain association. Of course, developmentwithin any of these domains is intertwined with the other. For example, one cannotdevelop socially without the ability to think (cognitive) and feel (affective). However, thediagram serves as a way of viewing the learner’s developmental space

Conference Session

Faculty Attitudes and Perceptions

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Susan Lord, University of San Diego; Michelle Camacho, University of San Diego; Christina Aneshansley, University of San Diego

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

acontribution to the emerging discourses of engineering education as a “culture”.1. IntroductionSome researchers have suggested that engineering education may be described as a “culture” inwhich knowledge, beliefs and practices are shared.1, 2, 3, 4, 5 Less attention has been paid to thenuances within engineering education, the variability in the degree to which members accept orshare a base of knowledge, beliefs and practices. Quantitative methods can be used to testwhether cultural constructs are shared among some engineering educators. One anthropologicalresearch method, “cultural consensus analysis,”6 measures the extent to which group membersagree or disagree about beliefs or practices. Specifically, to what extent do individuals agree ordisagree

Conference Session

Student Engagement and Motivation

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Elizabeth Howard, Illinois Institute of Technology; Daniel Ferguson, Illinois Institute of Technology; Margaret Huyck, Illinois Institute of Technology

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

) completed 3 writtenassignments per semester that each contained one or two Reflective Thinking questions.Responses to these questions were coded into 3 levels of Reflective Thinking based on theReflective Judgment Model (RJM) developed by King and Kitchener.1 We also introducedseveral interventions during the Spring 2007 semester that were intended to promote ReflectiveThinking in our students, and comparisons between Reflective Thinking scores from the Fall2006 and Spring 2007 semesters suggest that these interventions may have made a difference,although the difference was statistically significant only for the third Reflection, for which therewas an average Reflective Thinking level of 1.26 for the Fall of 2006, compared to an averageReflective

Conference Session

Faculty Attitudes and Perceptions

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

John Mativo, The University of Georgia; Maura Borrego, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

solving3,4. Borrego(2007; Borrego et al., 2006) pointed out that engineering education should be a rigorous researchcommunity of practice5,6. Finally, Merill et al. (2006) proposed that engineering should belocated at the secondary level to equip high school students with the analytical skills needed toapproach to problem solving7.A more consistent view of engineering education seems warranted. In an effort to further refinethe focus of engineering education, the purpose of this survey research was to determine ASEEmembers’ current perceptions toward engineering education and examine differences based ongroup affiliations. Research questions included: 1. Do ASEE members differ towards critical issues in Engineering Education based on

Conference Session

Tools for Teaching

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

S. Scott Moor, Indiana University-Purdue University-Fort Wayne

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

methods thatengineering instructors should use. Three of these are 1) Establish the relevance of coursematerial and teach inductively, 2) Promote Active Learning in the Classroom and 3) UseCooperative Learning.1 Repeatedly studies have encouraged and shown the benefits of thesebasic approaches. Inductive learning, where the instruction works from a particular problem tobuild up to the generalities as opposed to the traditional approach of working the other wayaround, includes various problem based learning approaches and learning cycles such as theKolb cycle or VANITH’s legacy cycle.2-4 The benefits of various forms of active learning,where students become engaged in the material beyond simply taking notes, have shown manypositive benefits.5

Conference Session

Student Recruitment and Retention

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Jennifer VanAntwerp, Calvin College; Rachel Reed, Calvin College; Crystal Bruxvoort, Calvin College; Neil Carlson, Calvin College

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

forstudy: 1) Cultural influences, including family and friends 2) Recruitment activities to engineering, as experienced before entering college 3) Participation in engineering-related activities 4) Self-perception and self-efficacy 5) Motivations for studying engineering 6) Definitions of success, personally and academically 7) Perceptions of the learning environment.For each factor, a set of Likert scale survey stems was developed. In addition, demographic datawere included. The stems were reviewed by an expert panel in accordance with best practice inthe field of educational psychology, and the resulting instrument was pilot-tested with 224engineering undergraduates. Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA

Conference Session

Physics Education Research (PER) Relevant for Engineering Education

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

David Meltzer, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

chemistry courses. In this paper I willcompare the initial knowledge (before instruction) of students enrolled in this course with thepost-instruction knowledge of students finishing the introductory calculus-based general physicscourse. Both courses were taught at a large Midwestern state university, where the introductorycourse is populated primarily by engineering majors. (A substantial portion of the workpresented here has been published in other venues,1 but it has not yet been collected together andpresented as an integral whole.)Assessment Data: First-Law ConceptsWe1 and others2 have recently reported results which indicate that students finishing introductoryuniversity physics courses emerge with significant learning difficulties related to

Conference Session

Faculty Attitudes and Perceptions

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Cathy Burack, Brandeis University; John Duffy, University of Massachusetts Lowell; Alan Melchior, Brandeis University; Eric Morgan, University of Massachusetts Lowell

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

benefits. Thereare many other definitions in the literature, for example, service-learning is the integration ofacademic subject matter with service to the community in credit-bearing courses, with keyelements including reciprocity, reflection, coaching, and community voice in projects (Jacoby,1996)1. Service-learning (S-L) has been shown to be effective in a large number of cognitiveand affective measures, including critical thinking and tolerance for diversity, and leads to betterknowledge of course subject matter in such classic studies as Eyler and Giles (1999)2 and Astinet al. (2000)3.Service-learning in engineering has been a little slower to take hold. There were just a fewfaculty, courses, and institutions using S-L a decade ago (Tsang

Conference Session

ERM Potpourri

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

James Trevelyan, University of Western Australia; Sabbia Tilli, University of Western Australia

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

were in extremely short supply: obtaining engineering employment has not been aseasy for a long time. In June 2007, 140 respondents said they were working, two were seekingwork, and the remaining respondents were pursuing further studies or travelling. In subsequentsurveys the proportion working has increased slightly with a few changing jobs. At the thirdsurvey (September 2007) novices were working an average of 49 hours per week with anaverage of 7 hours unpaid overtime and 4 hours of work-related social activities each week.The framework study provided 85 engineering practice descriptors which can be grouped intocategories as follows: 1. Managing self and personal career development (8 descriptors) 2. Coordination, working with other

Conference Session

Student Engagement and Motivation

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Jonathan Stolk, Franklin W. Olin College of Engineering; John Geddes, Franklin W. Olin College of Engineering; Mark Somerville, Franklin W. Olin College of Engineering; Robert Martello, Franklin W. Olin College of Engineering

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

are active, constructive participants in thelearning process. In the self-regulated learning experiences described by the frameworks,learners “set goals for their learning and then attempt to monitor, regulate, and control theircognition, motivation, and behavior, guided and constrained by their goals and the contextualfeatures in the environment.” The Pintrich model (Table I) describes four phases of self-directedlearning: (1) forethought, planning, activation, (2) monitoring, (3) control, and (4) reaction,reflection. Within each of these phases, Pintrich illustrates four possible areas for learner self-regulation: cognition, motivation, behavior, and context. Depending on the learning experience,students may simultaneously engage in more

Conference Session

Institutional and Curricular Reform

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

David Goldberg, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign; Andreas Cangellaris, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign; Michael Loui, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign; Raymond Price, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign; Bruce Litchfield, Univ Of Illinois-Urbana Champaign

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

discussed above gives us thenecessary clues to help overcome these difficulties. Without data, it is difficult for goodengineers to feel comfortable with change, but without an arena to experiment and actually makechanges, it is impossible to collect the data necessary to move ahead. With this in mind, in thesummer of 2007,14 an interdepartmental collaborative pilot unit was proposed at the Universityof Illinois at Urbana-Champaign to make it possible to collect data on proposed curriculumchanges. The pilot unit was called iFoundry or the Illinois Foundry for Technology Vision andLeadership, and the proposal contained a number of key elements: 1. Create a collaborative interdepartmental pilot unit among key undergraduate curricula to

Conference Session

Professional Skills and the Workplace

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Betty Harper, Pennsylvania State University, University Park; Patrick Terenzini, Pennsylvania State University

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

morescholarly activities, and engineering education is a case-in-point. The post-WWII and Sputnikeras saw a massive influx of federal support for research in higher education, increased hiring ofresearch-oriented faculty members, and curriculum revisions that reflected faculty members'interests. By 2000, engineering education looked more like that in a traditional science than in aprofession.3 Government, business, and professional societies pressed for engineering educationreforms in order to sustain America's technological and economic leadership. Consistent with Finkelstein et al.,1 one explanation for the failure of engineeringprograms to provide graduates with important professional skills is that most engineeringstudents are taught by

Conference Session

Problem Solving and Misconceptions

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

John Jackman, Iowa State University; Sarah Ryan, Iowa State University; Craig Ogilvie, Iowa State University; Dale Niederhauser, Iowa State University

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

reasoning and argumentation activities that result in support for a specificformulation. Empirical evidence from our work in ill-structured STEM problem solving indicatethat more research is needed to understand the nature of problem formulation and what thecognitive challenges are for STEM students. Students work in teams to solve ill structuredproblems in the Problem Solving Learning Portal (PSLP). In this study we examine the use ofscaffolding in the problem formulation stage in the context of an Engineering Economy coursehaving students from multiple engineering disciplines.IntroductionCorrect problem formulation is critical at the onset of problem solving because the solutionprocess follows directly from the formulation.1 The ability to

Conference Session

SPECIAL SESSION: Describing the Engineering Student Learning Experience Based on CAEE Findings: Part 2

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Russell Korte, The University of Texas-Tyler; Sheri Sheppard, Stanford University; William Jordan, CRL-Stanford University

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

experiences to their education.1. IntroductionMany in industry and academia judge the preparation of new engineers for work to be less thanadequate. Efforts to improve the curricula and practices of engineering education include morecollaborative and socially based pedagogies (e.g., design thinking, problem-based learning, andcooperative learning), as well as more experiences based in the workplace, e.g., ABET’sprofessional skills and the attributes of the Engineer of 20204, 5, 6.These efforts haverecommended significant revisions to engineering curricula by expanding the content ofengineering from its traditional focus on the application of math and science to broader, sociallyand design-based curricula. These discussions tend to focus on

Conference Session

Institutional and Curricular Reform

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Jeffrey Froyd, Texas A&M University; Charles Henderson, Western Michigan University; Jean Layne, Texas A&M University; Andrea Beach, Western Michigan University; Noah Finkelstein, University of Colorado; R. Sam Larson, Kaiser Permanente Colorado

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

. After the introduction, the paper will be organized in thefollowing sections: (1) goals for change, (2) barriers to change, (3) foci for change, and (4)strategies for change.Intr oductionAs an engineering faculty member, you may be in the midst of working on a curricularinnovation or contemplating making a curricular innovation. In either case, you may be thinkingthat the curricular innovation on which you are working (or hope to be working) will eventuallybe broadly adopted across your department, college, or institution. However, issues that you facewhen developing your curricular innovation are almost entirely different from issues that youface when contemplating broader adoption of your curriculum. Curriculum developmentintegrates subject

Conference Session

Problem Solving and Misconceptions

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Mica Hutchison, Northwestern University; Ann McKenna, Northwestern University

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

Conference Session

Fostering and Assessing Effective Teaming

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Alan Cheville, Oklahoma State University; James Duvall, Oklahoma State University

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

students in teamwork. Evaluating students’ ability to function onmultidisciplinary teams is a required element of ABET accreditation 1. Design experiences inwhich students work on teams are common at many schools, particularly in capstone designcourses. In fact capstone courses are the primary mechanism used by many universities forintegrating teamwork into the engineering curriculum. In a 2005 survey 64% of capstonecourses included teamwork 2. The importance of teamwork in the development of engineeringstudents is echoed by engineering employers. A recent survey asked employers of newengineering graduates to rate desirable characteristics; the three questions on teamwork wererated among the most important student attributes 3.Another reason there

Conference Session

Physics Education Research (PER) Relevant for Engineering Education

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

David Maloney, Indiana University Purdue University, Fort Wayne (Eng)

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

1 Given Familiar Given Page 13.1092.2 2 Given Unfamiliar Given 3 Incomplete Familiar Given 4 Incomplete Unfamiliar Given 5 Given Familiar Open 6 Given Unfamiliar Open 7 Incomplete Familiar Open 8 Incomplete Unfamiliar

Conference Session

SPECIAL SESSION: Describing the Engineering Student Learning Experience Based on CAEE Findings: Part 2

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Holly Matusovich; Ruth Streveler, Purdue University; Heidi Loshbaugh, Colorado School of Mines; Ronald Miller, Colorado School of Mines; Barbara Olds, Colorado School of Mines

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

thesecharacteristics that they define as important to success? Results show success beliefs do changeover the four years. First-year students give generic responses that are not specific toengineering. By the third and fourth year, students who have interned have: 1) more specific,concrete beliefs about success that are grounded in personal, authentic experiences, and 2) canmore accurately assess their abilities citing specific evidence. Additionally, the data demonstratethat students who lack confidence in skills they perceive to be important to successful engineerscan still have a positive expectancy of success in engineering. The results generally supportEccles’ model with one modification.IntroductionEngineering students have been described as “dogged”. 1

Conference Session

SPECIAL SESSION: Describing the Engineering Student Learning Experience Based on CAEE Findings: Part 2

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Debbie Chachra, Franklin W. Olin College of Engineering; Deborah Kilgore, University of Washington; Heidi Loshbaugh, Colorado School of Mines; Janice McCain, Howard University; Helen Chen, Stanford University

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

sample of the students at the four institutions (n=842). These studentshad not previously taken the longitudinal survey and represented a comparable sample ofstudents from these institutions. Data analysis for each of the methods is ongoing.I: Survey Questions on Group IdentificationA series of questions (items) designed to assess group identification with engineers andengineering students was administered to the longitudinal cohort of students twice, once in thefirst year and then again in the sophomore year. Four constructs comprised a number of items; afull list is given in Table 1. Three of the constructs used to explore specific dimensions ofengineering identity are based on constructs found in the Multidimensional Inventory of Black

Conference Session

Faculty Attitudes and Perceptions

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Bugrahan Yalvac, Texas A&M University; Lisa Brooks, Texas A&M University; Christine Ehlig-Economides, Texas A&M University

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

Culture; 444 Harrington Tower; College Station, TX 77843; Telephone: (+1) 979.8621713; e-mail:yalvac@tamu.eduLisa Brooks, Texas A&M University Lisa Brooks is a graduate student of Science Education at Texas A&M University. She holds an M.Ag. degree in Entomology from Texas A&M University and a B.S. degree in Animal Science from Rutgers University. She specializes in research focusing on the design of learning environment that support transfer of learning to practical situations. Address: Texas A&M University; Teaching, Learning, and Culture; 343 Harrington Tower; College Station, TX 77843; Telephone: (+1) 979.696.5034;e-mail: lisaabrooks@tamu.eduChristine Ehlig-Economides

Conference Session

SPECIAL SESSION: Describing the Engineering Student Learning Experience Based on CAEE Findings: Part 2

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Kristyn Jackson, Stanford University; Tori Bailey, Stanford University; Sheri Sheppard, Stanford University; Helen Chen, Stanford University

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

into a dual degree program appears to be growing; in mechanicalengineering at this School, the number of students has grown to twenty percent. The School’sdual degree requirements are shown in Table 1. Table 1. Academic Requirements to enter The School’s Dual Degree Program • Applicants must have earned a minimum of 120 units toward graduation (UTG) as shown on the undergraduate unofficial transcript. This includes allowable Advanced Placement (AP) and transfer credit. • Applicants must submit their application and, if admitted, respond to the offer of admission no later than the quarter prior to the expected completion of their undergraduate degree. This is normally the Winter Quarter prior to Spring Quarter

Conference Session

Student Recruitment and Retention

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Yvonne Ng, College of St. Catherine

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

—succeeded despite the fact that most studentsenrolling in the courses had no intention of majoring in CS. How were so manywomen motivated to take more CS courses during a time when many CSprograms across the nation lost students—especially women—starting with theintroductory course?To answer this question, a survey was sent out to students/alumnae with a 55%response rate (20/36). Qualitative analysis was used to determine the themes thatemerged. Strategies for instruction and evaluation were then identified for 1)encouraging students to continue in their CS education and 2) improving theiremployability.Although many participants took the first CS course because of a requirement,four main strategies motivated them to take more CS courses:1) Creating

Conference Session

Emerging Issues in Engineering Education Research and Pedagogy

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Maura Borrego, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University; Lynita Newswander, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

toprepare engineering graduate students for academic and professional life, particularly ininterdisciplinary settings. A journal club is a group of graduate students and faculty memberswhich meets regularly to discuss recent journal articles in a specified area of research. Memberstake turns selecting articles and leading critical discussion of the work. Journal clubs are onemethod for preparing graduate students for professional life on a number of levels: (1) theyfamiliarize the student to the latest research, methods, and publication trends, (2) they facilitatedialogue and critique among students and professors at all levels of experience, and (3) theyallow a space for consideration of interdisciplinary concepts that might not be satisfied

Conference Session

Assessment

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Olga Pierrakos, James Madison University; Maura Borrego, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University; Jenny Lo, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

group 1-2. Their five-year study on undergraduate research in STEMdisciplines focused on four liberal arts colleges with a long history of undergraduate researchprograms. The work presented a comparative analysis of faculty and administrator interviews(N=80) with student interviews (N=76) and provides findings of the role of undergraduateresearch in encouraging intellectual, personal and professional development of undergraduatestudent researchers. Although the work of Seymour et al. revealed findings pertaining to attitudes Page 13.231.2toward graduate school and research, as well as confidence levels and other gains in skills, thenumber of

Conference Session

Writing and Portfolios

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Anne Nichols, Texas A&M University

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

process of a CPR assignment begins with the writing of an essay based on guidingquestions and selected resources. For this course, the essays were submitted and evaluated withTurnitin prior to submission to the CPR web site. Turnitin is a web-based tool for plagiarismprevention and is licensed for use at Texas A&M. Turnitin allows the instructor to see theoriginality reports on the writing for each student, and the instructor has the option of allowingthe students to view their report in order to correct and revise. The report identifies matchingtext and phrases to specific sources with a web link, and shows the percentage of the report thatmatches each source, as in Figure 1, for example. A high match rate suggests copied work andthat the

Conference Session

Problem Solving and Misconceptions

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Matthew Verleger, Purdue University; Heidi Diefes-Dux, Purdue University

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

Fall 2007 implementation of Model-Eliciting Activities(MEAs) to demonstrate the impact of the iterative process of feedback and revision on thequality of student products. They will also discuss some of the future research questionsresulting from the iterative process used with MEAs.IntroductionModel Eliciting Activities (MEAs) are realistic, open-ended, client driven problems designed tofoster students’ mathematical modeling abilities. Built around the models and modelingperspective established by Lesh and Doerr [1], MEAs are carefully developed around six guidingprinciples. The development process is described in greater detail by Moore and Diefes-Dux [2].The product students generate from an MEA is a memo directed to the client describing