, 2024Embracing a Fail-Forward Mindset: Enhancing Engineering Innovation through Reflective Failure Journaling 1. IntroductionIn the evolving landscape of engineering education, the imperative to nurture innovation andresilience among budding engineers has never been more critical [1]. As global challengesbecome more complex and multifaceted, engineering educators are called upon to devisepedagogical strategies that not only impart technical knowledge but also foster the soft skillsnecessary for students to thrive in unpredictable environments. This study introduces aninnovative educational approach employed in the "Innovation Through Making" course atWorcester Polytechnic Institute, designed to cultivate a 'fail-forward learn-fast
mindset. To achieve thisobjective during the first offering, this course utilized active learning techniques, personalreflection, and the development of an individualized career-impact roadmap by each student. Inorder to work in conjunction with programming available from existing career centers andacademic advising, this interdisciplinary course placed an emphasis on personal reflection andthe roles of innovation and technology commercialization in creating societal impact. This paperdescribes the logistics of developing and implementing this 1-credit hour course and providesdetails of the assignments used to assess student learning. This course can serve as an example toother institutions who seek to more fully empower their students to
integrating entrepreneurially minded experiential STEAMlearning into a second-year engineering course - Design & Manufacturing Processes I. A total ofsix students enrolled in the course. The project required students to develop engineeringactivities to highlight water pollution via the design, fabrication, and programming of softrobotic fish. During one semester, students formed teams to work on project tasks, includingsketching out a fish, designing a mold (fish) in Solidworks, 3D-Printing the mold, fabricating thefish (pouring silicone into the mold), testing the fabricated fish, programming the fish forblinking light and vibrations. A metacognitive photovoice reflection was used to assess theproject's impacts. The preliminary thematic analysis
mechanicalengineering course on Dynamics of Machines to (1) give students access to real-world learningexperiences and (2) explore and identify the ways in which an interdisciplinary design projectthat combines key components of EM, STEAM and bio-inspiration impacts students’ learning.The results include initial findings from a thematic analysis of the data collected usingphotovoice reflections. Adopted from the relevant studies in the literature in the context of EMcurricular activities, photovoice reflections combine pictorial and textual data and constitute aportion of the project’s conclusion section submitted by students. The paper then discusses futuresteps on the use of interdisciplinary design projects which provide real-world experientiallearning
. Amy received the 2019 KEEN Rising Star award from KEEN for her efforts in encouraging students in developing an entrepreneurial mindset. She is interested in curricu- lar and co-curricular experiences that broaden students’ perspectives and enhance students’ development, and the use of digital portfolios for students to showcase and reflect on their experiences. ©American Society for Engineering Education, 2023 A First Year Design Project that Encourages Motivation, Curiosity, Connections, and MakingAbstractThis paper describes a design project, the Mars in the Making project, that was developed toencourage more motivation, curiosity, and connections in first year
, students completed a photovoice reflection for one of the assignments(manufacturing lesson on corrosion and erosion) to reflect on the manufacturing survey. In thispaper, we present the survey assignment and photovoice reflection on corrosion and erosion,specifically, as it is traditionally considered a negative surface phenomenon. Thematic analysisof the photovoice reflections show that students are motivated to explore mechanisms forincreasing system value and identifying opportunities. Ultimately, findings suggest that the useof hands-on surveying assignments to compliment the traditional teaching methods used inmanufacturing classrooms can promote an entrepreneurial mindset when studying manufacturingcontent.1. Introduction Industry 4.0
-minute lesson to teach a small peer group about the content of an episode of the NPR How I BuiltThis podcast through a brief lecture, engaging activity, and a discussion or quiz as a means ofassessment. This activity exposes students to the paths that various innovators took in theirentrepreneurial journeys to demystify the process of innovation and provide inspiration throughstorytelling.The third primary assessment mechanism is an individual innovation map and synthesis. Theobjective of this assignment is to provide a formal means for students to reflect on potential nextsteps in their entrepreneurial journey after the course ends and synthesize their understanding ofthe entrepreneurial mindset and their role as an innovation leader. Students
into the students' experiences, helping to explain the quantitativefindings in greater depth. For instance, while the quantitative data might show a high level ofsatisfaction with the course's focus on entrepreneurial skills, the qualitative data providedstories and examples from students about how micro-moments and the multiphase projectfacilitated their understanding of real-world application of these skills. 3.4 Data CollectionData was collected through a combination of open-ended questions and Likert scale questions.Students were asked to reflect on their perceptions regarding the integration of entrepreneurialskills into their ET education and its potential impact on their future careers. This approachaimed to gauge the initial
ideas, formed teams,worked to identify and address important elements and issues, and presented their project. Thispaper briefly describes the current and planned structure of the Palm GreenLab; describes theStartup Weekend; reports results from participant reflections; and outlines lessons learned andfuture directions. Projects included agricultural products, education software, and electionsoftware. During the weekend, participants completed a Strength - Improvement - Insight (SII)reflection. Strengths focused on teamwork and collaboration, entrepreneurial thinking, andcreativity and problem solving. Improvements focused on teamwork issues and the foodprovided. Insights focused on the value and challenges of teamwork.1. IntroductionPalm
maps and reflections will be used to assess student’sgrowth in EM connectedness. A description of each institution’s partnership development andimplementation is presented in this paper. We anticipate key results will include: 1) students’positive perception through engaged learning, 2) student growth in EM connectedness, 3)students’ increased appreciation of multiculturalism, 4) all modalities support growth in student’sEM and multiculturalism competencies, and 5) in-person international travel componentsdemonstrate a larger increase in multiculturalism competencies due to cultural immersion. Theteam is finalizing plans for these experiences in fall 2023 and will implement the experiencesand collect data in spring 2024
pathway toexplore and pressure test new ideas and ventures, understand systems, network and practicallybuild and foster resilient organizations and communities. Fellows receive stipends, training,mentoring and opportunities to field test their ideas and ventures over their entire college career.Fellowship outcomes are assessed through coded analysis of student reflections and applying theEntreComp entrepreneurial competency framework. This paper suggests that the fellowshipeffectively helps students develop and field test creative vision, cultivate greater self-awarenessand intrinsic motivation, take thoughtful risks, overcome challenges, and nurture teams andcollaborative environments while birthing impactful new ventures and bolstering their
industrial robots to perform many jobs and real-world applications that could beboth unsafe and unpleasant to people. The midterm project used to integrate (EM+ Bio +STEAM was given to the students focused on real-world problem-solving and experientiallearning opportunities. The students were required to finish this project within four weeks aspart of the integration of the new interdisciplinary project (crossing the realms ofentrepreneurially minded learning, STEAM, and bio-inspired design), students completed aphotovoice metacognitive reflection aimed to understand their perceived learning outcomes.Preliminary thematic analysis conducted on the metacognitive reflections showcases three corepatterns within the data. First, students generally
gatherfeedback from a real audience to support their design proposals. This supplied a goal andpurpose for the activity and was a leading factor in exploration. To support promoting the EM inthe activity, students focused on providing a solution to a real-world problem and proposing amarket-driven solution based on research and product analysis. Proposals were also required tointegrate Bio-inspired components in their designs and use media artworks to reflect purpose andaudience in the final product.Over six weeks, students were introduced to several system design components. A preliminaryanalysis of results indicated that the hands-on experience facilitated higher-order reasoning andallowed the students to think systematically about the feasibility and
Alignment Model,In this paper, the authors attempted to investigate current engineering entrepreneurship educationthrough the lens of Constructive Alignment. We want to understand if this framework can capturethe nuts and bolts of the abovementioned diverse entrepreneurship education program designs. Theauthors proposed a modified model for the existing constructive alignment model to reflect thefeedback we received from the field.2. Methodology2.1 Data SourceTo obtain a comprehensive view of Canadian entrepreneurship education, we accessed the list ofdesignated educational institutions from the Canadian Federal government’s web tool provided byEmployment and Social Development Canada. We limited the scope of the project to educationalinstitutions
competenciesacross a spectrum of engineering disciplines including mechanical, electrical, civil, chemical,and computer engineering. Such a holistic educational approach is intended to arm students withthe analytical and problem-solving prowess essential for the engineers of tomorrow [7-8].Building on a preceding work-in-progress study focused on results from the pilot course offering,this paper dives into two offerings of the course over a two-year period, focusing on competencygains assessed through Student Assessment of Learning Gains (SALG) instrument. The analysishopes to uncover advancements in competencies that are pivotal within both engineering andentrepreneurial mindset realms.This study reflects our findings from the initial two iterations of the
what they learned and how it applies to the real-world. These qualitative data wereanalyzed using thematic analysis to detect patterns within the reflections. The results show that the bio-inspired projects engaged students by connecting theory, practice, and application when teachingmathematically intensive engineering subjects, while also instilling an entrepreneurial mindset amongstudents, enhancing their creativity by combining art and STEM, and sharpening their professional skills.The study concludes with details related to the instructor’s intervention and lessons learned so that otherengineering instructors can easily replicate in the classroom.1. Introduction1.1 Problem IdentificationFor engineering students, it is very important to
at the Civil andEnvironmental Engineering and Construction Management Department at a University in theUnited States. The study was a four-week assignment integrated into two senior-level courses: 1.the capstone project course in two semesters, 2. the pre-construction management course in onesemester. This study uses participatory action research (PAR) as a data collection instrument.PAR is a qualitative approach in which researchers work collaboratively with the participantsubject population to collect data, reflect and take action. Photovoice, commonly linked to PAR,is used to collect and explore qualitative data, give a unique depth of understanding to theresearch questions identified, and offer new insights and perspectives toward
of studentresponses and prompting the AI to summarize the the responses. After a few passes, similargroupings were combined, and we asked the AI to identify specific quotes that reflected thistheme.Only students 18 years and older participated. All procedures were approved by our IRB, and allparticipants completed a Statement of Informed Consent form before taking each of the surveys.Thirty-three to 40 students participated in each of the PHY120 surveys and 33 to 38 participatedin the EGR360 surveys.We also surveyed two additional populations at the mid-term and end of term. A parallel group offirst-year students not enrolled in PHY120, but taking a Calculus course instead (non-PHY120),and a group of four second-year students participating
student who may not otherwiseview themselves as an engineer—a curious person, an entrepreneur, a person with great ideasthat society needs, or a part of the university’s ecosystem—may be able to demonstrate theirpotential to themselves and to their community through their lived experiences viastory. Providing time for students to develop and tell their stories is a powerful way to validatethe vast experiences students bring with them to college. Likewise, faculty want to know theirstudents, and students want to know themselves. Our own work with story in this context wasinspired by the Kern Entrepreneurial Engineering Network (KEEN) on Stories project starting in2020 and reflects our interest in instilling an entrepreneurial mindset in our
. The self-assessment form can be found in Appendix A. In general, very few students are aware of ABETor of its student outcomes [11]. By having the students participate in the self-assessment processand reflect on their experiences, each student is able to identify outcomes which have not beenachieved and develop a plan to achieve all ABET outcomes prior to graduation. This proactiveself-assessment prompts students to identify weak points in their education and has the potentialto shape better student outcomes, filling all the ABET student outcomes and preparing studentsto be well-rounded engineers.[12]. The two senior semesters of IBL allow the students to directtheir learning and create their own learning experiences to address these
using active andcollaborative learning pedagogical approaches. For the course project, the first-year studentswere required to design a 65,000 ft2 community park on a brownfield site in Charleston, SC, witha $5,000,00 budget for site cleanup and redevelopment. A few assessments were implemented,including weekly summary reports, poster creation, presentations, peer evaluation on teamwork,reflection assignment, and a survey. This paper discusses the redesign of the course through thebackward design approach, the implementation of project-based learning, and the assessment ofactivities. Additionally, it provides insights into its implementations in other institutions.BackgroundEML has emerged as a relevant educational approach fostering an
& Viable Business Models, Multicultural, and Social Consciousness. This e-portfolio includes but is not limited to undergraduate research, projects, and high-impact experiences that can be leveraged to pursue future academic and professional careers. ombining e-portfolios with an interdisciplinary approach to education scenarios allows us toCperform the analysis of our cohort's growth in varied ways. Previous cohorts were tasked with the performance of a pre-and post-program survey as well as a traditional reflection essay[2]. Extrapolating on that idea and the engineers' inherent drive for innovation, in this 2023 cohort we elevated the research design by adding concept maps to assess student
studies or of augmenting quantitativemethods with qualitative ones in the future. Examination of individual questions in the surveyinstrument hint at improvements in the ability to view problems holistically, consider others’thinking and manage anxiety. Changes in specific GSE and nAch questions may reflect arealization of the challenges presented by the entrepreneurship clients’ more realistic designproblems and by understanding the thinking of others. Factors such as age, presence of a closefamily member with engineering experience, and prior work in engineering significantly affectone or more regressions of nAch, GSE, and ToA values. Lower Initial (p = 0.026) and FinalnAch (p = 0.032) appear for students with prior work in engineering. Those
engage with whatresearch is, how it affects society, how entrepreneurial mindset affects the process of doingresearch, and what they might gain by becoming involved with UGR. The activities paired witheach video are as follows:What Is Research? This video is paired with two activities, a “Minute Paper Reflection” and an“Interview with Researchers”. The purpose of the minute paper activity is to have students reflecton their conception of research in order to expose students to research as a career path and toaddress misconceptions about research. The activity begins with an open discussion among thestudents about their understanding of research. The instructor then directs students to watch the“What is Research?” video. Students will complete a
instruments, such as theFive-Dimensional Curiosity Scale (5DCS) [12], are useful in characterizing curiosity“personalities” using indirect assessment methods, they rely on personal reflection and self-reported abilities that introduce potential inaccuracy and/or misrepresentation of one’s trueability to demonstrate curiosity. Instruments to directly measure curiosity are needed in parallelwith indirect methods to fully capture curiosity through demonstration, yet few such directassessments exist.BackgroundEmployers are increasingly expecting new engineers to come to the workplace with anentrepreneurial skillset, which includes curiosity [13]. Engineers with an EntrepreneurialMindset (EM) have been shown to have skills that are valuable to employers
their artistic processes and described how they make new work using thisprocess. During the second segment, which lasted 45-60 minutes, the students attending theworkshop experimented with one or more of the artistic processes introduced by the artist togenerate concepts or create artifacts. During the third and last segment, which lasted about 15minutes, the workshop participants presented and shared their work with the rest of the workshopparticipants. Upon the conclusion of the workshops, participants were invited to respond to asurvey to reflect on their experiences of the workshops. They were also asked whether theywould want to participate in a follow-up interview to probe deeper into their responses to thereflection prompts.To date, four
attractive to underrepresented groups in engineering.The purpose of this paper is to describe the course and assess its effectiveness both in terms ofimplementation and in terms of student learning. Specifically, this paper will: (1) describe thecourse objectives, course topics, and course assignments, (2) describe what has worked well andidentify areas for improvement, (3) provide recommendations for other faculty interested inimplementing a similar course or incorporating these themes into already-existing courses, and(4) summarize students’ perceptions of and learning within the course. To evaluate studentlearning and feedback on the course, a final reflection assignment, as well as comments withinteaching evaluation surveys, both completed by
students feel valued and respected. This includes active learning style classroom activities to foster open and respectful discussions [16 - 18], encouraging active participation from all students, and being mindful of cultural sensitivity and bias in engineering classrooms. • Curriculum Development: Ensuring that the course curriculum is inclusive and reflects the diverse perspectives and experiences of all students [19] through incorporating diverse case studies, examples, and readings into course materials including lectures and design challenges. • Student Recruitment: Active recruitment of a diverse student body to participate in the course, including students from underrepresented groups in
interface is illustrated in Figure 3, where it is possible tosee some of the taxonomy ratings related to adoption of the resource such as ease ofimplementation or type of instrument. Figure 3. Example of the type of filtered data in the database.ResultsThe final taxonomy used for the intake form and the website is given in Table 2. The taxonomyrepresents the final organizational structure of assessment tools for EM that we developed andthe structure is reflected in the web-based tool currently under development.Table 2. Taxonomy for the organization of assessment tools for EM. Taxonomy Options Description Category Scale Classroom, Classroom is focused on
to create something unique or interesting, and whileexecution was not always perfect, the attempts were rewarded for showing effort beyond theassignment requirements. Evaluating the concept and inspiration behind the design aimed toassess how contemplative students were during the assignment. The engineering team alsosought to recognize participants who invested more time into the assignment than others, as thisoften reflected in the quality of the drawing. The rubric categories were chosen based on theengineering team’s past experiences having their artistic work graded by art professionals andlooking at how their previous teachers assessed overall creativity and perceived effort in theirwork. Each category was rated as a 0, 1, or 2. After