Conference Session

First-Year Programs: Metacognition, Self-Efficacy, and Motivation #1

Collection

2020 ASEE Virtual Annual Conference Content Access

Authors

Cara Mawson, Rowan University; Cheryl A. Bodnar, Rowan University; Scott Duplicate Streiner, Rowan University

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

had an average usefulness score of 3.65. Previous studieshave shown that engineering students are motivated by usefulness in situations where their workmay be useful to others or society in general[14], the usefulness of material to their careergoals[13,14] and usefulness to their future careers[13,14,22]​. ​Studies done on motivation suggestthat a direct explanation of the usefulness, or utility value, of an assignment will improve theperformance of a student who is motivated by usefulness[22]. In this case, any explicit detailprovided on the usefulness was done so by the instructors and is likely to vary.Table 4: Statistical Comparison of the Top Performing Students and Low PerformingStudents All Students

Conference Session

First-year Programs: Student Perceptions and Perspectives

Collection

2020 ASEE Virtual Annual Conference Content Access

Authors

Michael Elmore P.E., Binghamton University; Peter J. Partell, Binghamton University; Meghan Crist, Binghamton University

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First-Year Programs

Martin, IBM, General Electric, BAE Systems, and Celestica Corporation. He has 25 years of experience in these companies designing military and commercial power electronic circuits and as a systems engineer for airborne and land vehicle electrical systems. He is a licensed professional engineer. He also received a B.A in philosophy and a M.Ed. from the University of Vermont. Before becoming an engineer he was a high school mathematics teacher.Dr. Peter J. Partell, Binghamton University Peter J. Partell is an alumnus of Binghamton University and began his career as Associate Dean for Aca- demic Affairs and Administration in the Thomas J. Watson School of Engineering and Applied Science in 2008 after serving as

Conference Session

First-year Programs: Core Skills

Collection

2020 ASEE Virtual Annual Conference Content Access

Authors

Gustavo B. Menezes, California State University, Los Angeles; Paul S. Nerenberg, California State University, Los Angeles; Ni Li, Northwestern Polytechnical University; Emily L. Allen, California State University, Los Angeles

Tagged Topics

Diversity

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First-Year Programs

has also helped students achieve better performance in the Statics course, the firstfundamental course in civil and mechanical engineering programs.Institutional BackgroundCalifornia State University, Los Angeles (Cal State LA), one of 23 campuses of the CaliforniaState University (CSU) system, was ranked number one in the U.S. for the upward mobility of itsstudents, according to The Equality of Opportunity Project (2017) [11], and the College ofEngineering, Computer Science, and Technology (ECST) serves as a valuable gateway for youthfrom minority groups in East Los Angeles to enter STEM careers. In Fall 2018, the College ofECST had 3093 undergraduate students, with 62.3% Hispanic, 15.4% Asian and Pacificislanders, 5.3% White, 2.5% African

Conference Session

FPD7 -- Service Learning

Collection

2006 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Michael Thompson, Purdue University; William Oakes, Purdue University

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First-Year Programs

Hon. Engr. Problem SolvingNetwork Service- Engr. Problem Solving Optional Required learning Communication SeminarIDEAS Multicultural Engr. Problem Solving Required Required and Service- Chemistry learning SeminarScience BoundOverviewThe Purdue University Science Bound program 15 is an outreach program that mentors 8ththrough 12th grade students at Indianapolis Public Schools (IPS), encouraging them to enroll inclasses and pursue careers in science, engineering, technology, and math/science education.Those IPS students who complete the 5-year Science Bound program and gain acceptance

Conference Session

FPD V: Increasing Engagement and Motivation of First-year Students

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Angela Thompson P.E., University of Louisville; Patricia A. Ralston, University of Louisville; Jeffrey Lloyd Hieb, University of Louisville

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First-Year Programs

discipline. Students werereminded that at many points in their career, they may be part of multi-disciplinary teams and should beinformed about all the engineering disciplines regardless of their intended major.While similar to Nosich’s exercise, the “Analyze the Discipline” exercise is simpler. Nosich developsthe concept of the “Logic of a Discipline” in more detail and depth, emphasizing the need to find theinter-relationships and inter-dependence of the eight elements on one another within a discipline in orderto see the synergies within a discipline and to truly understand the “logic” of a discipline that constituteshow those within that discipline reason. Students may not achieve this level of synthesis with the“Analyze the Discipline

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

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First-Year Programs

and guest speakersfrom industry presented information on leadership and professionalism. Program directorspresented on topics including public speaking and presentation skills, managing a person’sdigital presence, and resume writing. Guest speakers from industry shared their academic andprofessional experiences and were some of the most popular presentations. Topics of guestspeakers included an introduction to intellectual property law, on being an entrepreneur in thetechnology industry, and looking back at a 20+ year career of being a female professionalengineer. Each semester’s seminar series included a common reading experience and discussion.These readings and discussions were a bridge that took students from learning about a facet

Conference Session

FPD 10: Teamwork

Collection

2014 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Elizabeth A Adams, Arizona State University; Claire L. A. Dancz, Arizona State University; Thomas P Seager, Arizona State University; Amy E. Landis, Arizona State University

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First-Year Programs

Environment. She began her career as an Assistant Professor at the University of Pittsburgh, after having obtained her PhD in 2007 from the University of Illinois at Chicago under the supervision of Dr. Thomas L. Theis. Dr. Landis’ research focuses on Sustainable Renewable Biomaterials and she is highly engaged in Inno- vations in Engineering Education. Learn more at http://faculty.engineering.asu.edu/landis/ Page 24.717.1 c American Society for Engineering Education, 2014 Improving learning productivity and teamwork skills in freshman engineering students through conative

Conference Session

FPD 6: Course Content and Educational Strategies

Collection

2014 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Victoria E. Goodrich, University of Notre Dame; Everaldo Marques de Aguiar Jr., University of Notre Dame; G. Alex Ambrose, University of Notre Dame; Leo H. McWilliams, University of Notre Dame; Jay B. Brockman, University of Notre Dame; Nitesh Chawla, University of Notre Dame

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First-Year Programs

nature of these projects, where all students from a projectgroup had the same evidence available to use in their ePortfolio at the time of the reflection.Reflective assignments that focused on out of classroom events had more distinguishablemarkers for retention. We believe these assignments contained better markers due to thereflection requirements. For the Engineering Exploration assignments, students were asked toinclude personalized reasons for attending events and the growth they experienced because of it.These types of reflections led more naturally to student responses that included their doubts,interests, and career aspirations.With many universities experiencing a rise in class sizes, reading multiple reflections from everystudent in a

Conference Session

FPD VIII: Crossing Bridges and Easing Transitions into the First Year

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Amber Kemppainen, Michigan Technological University; Gretchen L. Hein, Michigan Technological University; Ruth Archer, Michigan Technological University; Meral Jackson, Michigan Technological University; Mary A. Fraley, Michigan Technological University; Crystal Lynn Payment, Michigan Technological University

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First-Year Programs

. The Engineering Scholars Program (ESP) is a weeklong investigation ofengineering careers in areas such as mechanical, computer, environmental, electrical, chemical,biomedical, civil, geological, materials, and related disciplines. This program is a highlycompetitive scholarship program which provides a chance for traditionally underrepresented highschool freshmen, sophomores, and juniors the opportunity to investigate careers in engineeringand science. In 2011, 90% of the program’s 140 participants could not have attended without ascholarship. Of the participants, 27% were female, 17% African American, and 18% of othernon-Caucasian ethnic identities. The Women in Engineering (WIE) program is similar to theESP, but oriented toward female high

Conference Session

FPD XI: Assessing First-Year Programs, Experiences, and Communities

Collection

2011 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Patricia R. Backer, San Jose State University; Emily L. Allen, San Jose State University; Janet Sundrud, San Jose State University

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First-Year Programs

Page 22.255.7engineering students: Engineering Student Success Center and MESA (Mathematics,Engineering, and Science Achievement) Engineering Program.The Charles W. Davidson College of Engineering Student Success Center (ESSC) includes aninfrastructure that provides academic, career, co-curricular, and advising programs forengineering students. It is an inclusive environment that fosters collaboration and responsibilityamong students, staff, and faculty. The mission of the ESSC is to empower engineering studentsfrom application to graduation, to support their academic and personal growth, and to engagethem as lifetime members of the college learning community.The ESSC’s main goal is to support engineering students and the college learning

Conference Session

FPD 6: Transitions and Student Success, Part II

Collection

2013 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Valerie C. Lundy-Wagner, New York University; Noah Salzman, Purdue University, West Lafayette; Matthew W. Ohland, Purdue University, West Lafayette

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First-Year Programs

the challenges that result from attending high povertyschools (e.g., lower likelihood of college prep math/science curriculum and exposure toengineering as a career option), but less frequently examines these students’ experiences inundergraduate engineering programs. Further confirming the importance of SES in engineeringeducation are findings that indicated that SES reduces the effect of ethnicity/race in predictingengineering access, persistence, and completion8,34. Page 23.1031.3Qualitative research can shed more light onto the mechanisms that promote/prevent successfulnavigation of college using social class theory, but this type of

Conference Session

FPD5 - Teaming and Peer Performance

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Arlisa Labrie Richardson, Arizona State University

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

Services in the NASA Center for Success in Math & Science at Estrella Mountain Community College, she utilizes her academic preparation and extensive engineering background to prepare students for successful careers in the science, technology, engineering and mathematics fields through student internships and summer research experiences. Page 13.1289.1© American Society for Engineering Education, 2008 Tinkering Self-Efficacy and Team Interaction on Freshman Engineering Design TeamsIntroductionIn the book Talking about Leaving, Seymour and Hewitt interviewed hundreds of

Conference Session

First-year Programs Division Technical Session 11: Curricular and Program Innovations

Collection

2015 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Elisabeth A. Chapman, Clarkson University; Elisabeth Maria Wultsch, Clarkson University; Jan DeWaters, Clarkson University; John C. Moosbrugger, Clarkson University; Peter R Turner, Clarkson University; Michael W. Ramsdell, Physics Dept. Clarkson University; Robert Prout Jaspersohn, Clarkson University

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First-Year Programs

Conference Session

First-year Programs: Virtual Instruction in the First Year 1

Collection

2021 ASEE Virtual Annual Conference Content Access

Authors

Haritha Malladi, University of Delaware; Amy Trauth, University of Delaware; Joshua A. Enszer, University of Delaware; Marcia Gail Headley, University of Delaware; Jenni Buckley, University of Delaware

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First-Year Programs

c Society for Engineering Education, 2021 Transforming A Large Lecture FYE Course Structure into Virtual Collaborative LearningIntroductionFirst Year Experience (FYE) engineering courses at large, research-focused universities present aunique challenge from a curricular and administrative perspective. Prior research indicates thatFYE engineering courses should be interdisciplinary and highly interactive, whilesimultaneously presenting enough technical and career-specific content within each engineeringdiscipline to facilitate students’ choices of majors [1]–[5]. These course characteristics are mosteffectively supported by student-centered pedagogical approaches, such as project-based learning(PBL) [6

Conference Session

First-Year Programs: Wednesday Potpourri

Collection

2017 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Natasha Perova-Mello, Oregon State University; Sean P. Brophy, Purdue University, West Lafayette (College of Engineering)

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

on projects, and project management skills to monitor project progress. Students are then given multiple in-class design challenges and out-of-class projects to provide them with opportunities to act on these skills and reflect on their process to improve for the next design activity. The first year engineering course is worth 3.5 credits each semester and has 3 2-hour sessions. Class sessions use a studio model of instruction and encourage peer instruction in teams for every class session. The "context" for the course is to prepare students for their academic and professional engineering careers. This means developing skills in innovative design, computational modeling/analysis, project management and teaming. Engineering students

Conference Session

First-Year Programs: Monday Potpourri

Collection

2017 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Hector Enrique Rodriguez-Simmonds, Purdue University - Engineering Education; Nelson S. Pearson, University of Nevada, Reno; Jacqueline Ann Rohde, Clemson University; Kyle Patrick Vealey, West Chester University of Pennsylvania; Adam Kirn, University of Nevada, Reno; Allison Godwin, Purdue University, West Lafayette (College of Engineering)

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Diversity

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First-Year Programs

attitudes towards becoming engineers, their problem solving processes, and cultural fit. His education includes a B.S. in Biomedical Engineering from Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology, a M.S. in Bioengineering and Ph.D. in Engineer- ing and Science Education from Clemson University.Dr. Allison Godwin, Purdue University, West Lafayette (College of Engineering) Allison Godwin, Ph.D. is an Assistant Professor of Engineering Education at Purdue University. Her research focuses what factors influence diverse students to choose engineering and stay in engineering through their careers and how different experiences within the practice and culture of engineering foster or hinder belongingness and identity development. Dr

Conference Session

The Best of First Year Programs: Best Paper Session

Collection

2019 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Janet Y. Tsai, University of Colorado, Boulder; Beth A. Myers, University of Colorado Boulder; Jacquelyn F. Sullivan, University of Colorado Boulder; Kenneth M. Anderson, University of Colorado Boulder

Tagged Topics

Diversity

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First-Year Programs

system for that project. Prof. Anderson was a participant in the first cohort of the NCWIT Pacesetters program, a program de- signed to recruit more women to the field of computer science and encourage them to pursue their careers in technology. As part of his Pacesetters efforts, Prof. Anderson led the charge to create a new BA in CS degree at CU that allows students in Arts and Sciences to earn a degree in computer science. This new degree program was first offered in Fall 2013 and had 240 students enroll during its first semester and now has more than 1200 majors five years later. He also organizes and hosts the annual NCWIT Colorado Aspirations in Computing Award for the past seven years. This award recognizes the

Conference Session

First-year Programs Division: Design

Collection

2018 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Richard Whalen, Northeastern University; Susan F. Freeman, Northeastern University; Jennifer Ocif Love, Northeastern University; Kathryn Schulte Grahame, Northeastern University; Joshua L. Hertz, Northeastern University

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Diversity

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First-Year Programs

experience engineering as an evolving, creative, and interdisciplinary career that impacts global society and daily life. 2. Provide students with the opportunity to develop process-driven problem solving skills that recognize multiple alternatives and apply critical thinking to identify an effective solution. 3. Provide students with the opportunity to integrate math & science in an engineering context. 4. Create motivated & passionate engineering students by challenging them with authentic engineering problems across multiple disciplines. 5. Instill in our students the professional, personal & academic behaviors and common competencies needed to move to the next stage of their

Conference Session

First-year Programs Division: Best Papers

Collection

2018 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Jordan Orion James, University of New Mexico; Vanessa Svihla, University of New Mexico; Chen Qiu M.Sc., University of New Mexico; Christopher Riley

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Diversity

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First-Year Programs

RET Grant and a USDA NIFA grant, and is currently co-PI on three NSF-funded projects in engineering and computer science education, including a Revolutioniz- ing Engineering Departments project and a CAREER project, FRAME. She was selected as a National Academy of Education / Spencer Postdoctoral Fellow. Dr. Svihla studies learning in authentic, real world conditions; this includes a two-strand research program focused on (1) authentic assessment, often aided by interactive technology, and (2) design learning, in which she studies engineers designing devices, sci- entists designing investigations, teachers designing learning experiences and students designing to learn.Chen Qiu M.Sc., University of New Mexico Chen

Conference Session

Mentoring First Year Students

Collection

2010 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Dan Budny, University of Pittsburgh; Alaine Allen, University of Pittsburgh; Jeremy Tartt, University of Pittsburgh

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

fly, run, walk, or drive home. There will be days where thestudent feels they cannot stand one more day in the residence halls, in the large lecture, with theirroommate, with their professors and teaching assistants, or their load of courses. These personaltransitions can consume a first year student’s thoughts if they are unable to seriously focus on Page 15.343.3why the university experience is important to their career goals. Insights from mentors can bevery helpful. There may be what appear to be insurmountable personal changes during the firstyear, and research on student persistence supports the importance of linking students

Conference Session

Service Learning and Societal Issues in the First Year

Collection

2010 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

John K. Estell, Ohio Northern University; Kenneth Reid, Ohio Northern University; Jed Marquart, Ohio Northern University

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

careers in the future." • "My most rewarding aspect throughout the quarter would have to be between the interactions with my fellow students, seeing our prototype actually prove its concept, and using knowledge from the year to accomplish our goals. After two quarters of limited student involvement, finally getting to work in a group setting for more than a week was extremely rewarding to me." • "I have learned how surprisingly hard it is to work as a team to come to a solution." • "Another way that the course has helped me grow is by forcing me to become a better leader by getting a group of four people to work together effectively on one goal." • "This project also helped better my understanding of

Conference Session

FPD 7: Beyond Course Content

Collection

2014 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Angela R Bielefeldt, University of Colorado, Boulder; Nathan E. Canney PE, Seattle University

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

the importance of It is important to incorporate societaldevelopment: including social aspects in the engineering constraints into engineering decisions.36analyze process, including community feedback, a broad range of stakeholders, etc.Professional The responsibility or obligation that an It is important to use my engineeringconnectedness engineer or the engineering profession may abilities to provide a useful service to the have to help solve social problems or help community. othersCosts/benefits A recognition of the costs and benefits I would be willing to have a career that associated with engaging in

Conference Session

First-Year Programs: Unique Projects and Pedagogies

Collection

2021 ASEE Virtual Annual Conference Content Access

Authors

Haritha Malladi, University of Delaware; Mary Roth P.E., Lafayette College

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

7 Iterative design improvement 8 Metacognition, academic career planning, introduction to sustainability 9 Life cycle thinking, phases of LCA, project scope Project 2 10 Functional unit, system diagrams and boundaries 11 Quantitative skills, estimations, and data acquisition for LCA Projects 1 & 2 12 Inventory analysis, interpretations, prototype testing THANKSGIVING BREAK 13 Professional communication, featured industry product development Conclusion 14 Project showcase, wrap upFigure 2. Fall 2020 course schedule for the introduction to engineering course at University

Conference Session

First-Year Programs: Virtual Instruction in the First Year II

Collection

2021 ASEE Virtual Annual Conference Content Access

Authors

Jaya Dofe, California State University, Fullerton; Sudarshan T. Kurwadkar, California State University, Fullerton

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Diversity

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First-Year Programs

New Hampshire in 2018.Dr. Sudarshan T. Kurwadkar, California State University, Fullerton Dr. Sudarshan Kurwadkar is a Professor in the Civil and Environmental Engineering Department at California State University, Fullerton. He is a licensed Professional Engineer and a Board-Certified En- vironmental Engineer. During his academic career, he has received numerous awards, scholarships, and fellowships. He won the Teaching Excellence Award, 2018 Excellence in Scholarly and Creative Activ- ities Award, Faculty Advisor of Distinction 2020, 2019 ASCE Outstanding Faculty Advisor in the State of California, and 2020 L. Donald Shield Award for Excellence in Scholarly and Creative Activities. He was awarded numerous summer

Conference Session

First-year Programs: Virtual Instruction in the First Year 1

Collection

2021 ASEE Virtual Annual Conference Content Access

Authors

Huihui Qi, University of California, San Diego; Carolyn L. Sandoval, University of California, San Diego; He Liu; Matthew Robin Kohanfars, University of California, San Diego; Edward I Lan, University of California, San Diego; Cristian H. Tharin; Tania K. Morimoto, University of California, San Diego

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First-Year Programs

sustainability, Life Cycle Assessment, decision making for optimal design, and Computer-Aided Design and Engineering Education.Dr. Carolyn L. Sandoval, University of California, San Diego Dr. Sandoval is the Associate Director of the Teaching + Learning Commons at the University of Cali- fornia, San Diego. She earned a PhD in Adult Education-Human Resource Development. Her research interests include adult learning and development, faculty development, qualitative methods of inquiry, and social justice education.Mr. He LiuMr. Matthew Robin Kohanfars, University of California, San Diego I am a mechanical engineering master’s student that is focused on encouraging students to seek engineer- ing careers by developing entertaining

Conference Session

First-Year Programs: Recruiting and Retention

Collection

2021 ASEE Virtual Annual Conference Content Access

Authors

Charmane V. Caldwell, Florida A&M University-Florida State University College of Engineering; Roxanne Hughes, National High Magnetic Field Laboratory

Tagged Topics

Diversity

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

andstudent affairs, and adequate resources), as well as a supportive academic (e.g., common courses,faculty advising, academically supportive climate) and co-curricular (e.g., study groups, socialactivities, career workshops) environment. The pinnacle of the best practices is an integration ofthese various layers and an assessment plan that allows practitioners to make changes.There are two types of research that has been conducted on LLCs: those that compare acrossmultiple programs and those that focus on one particular program. Research comparing LLCsacross programs have shown that they can have a positive impact on first-generation participants'transitions to college [2]; increased sense of belonging in their college [3]; and increasedopenness to

Conference Session

First-Year Programs: Monday 5-Minute Work-in-Progress Postcard Session

Collection

2017 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Emma Tevaarwerk DeCosta, Northwestern University; J. Alex Birdwell, Northwestern University; Ken Gentry, Northwestern University; Richard Wayne Freeman P.E., Northwestern University; Alan R. Wolff, Northwestern University

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First-Year Programs

academicadvisers who are tasked with advising the incoming class as well as teaching (Freeman,2016). These advisers work with incoming engineering students, starting the summer beforethey arrive, and continuing through their first year. The advisers utilize the Advising-as-Teaching model and collaborate on advising and mentoring students, facilitated by having co-located offices in a suite. Advisers work with each student to collaboratively determine thestudent’s educational goals and develop a path for her to achieve those goals.Each adviser’s primary objectives are to: • Each assist ~100 first-year students with their major selection and academic planning, then serve as a resource throughout their undergraduate careers; • Teach three courses

Conference Session

FPD4 - Teaching Methods for First Year Students

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

David Hall, Louisiana Tech University; Stan Cronk, Louisiana Tech University; Patricia Brackin, Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology; Mark Barker, Louisiana Tech University; Kelly Crittenden, Louisiana Tech University

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

Laboratory Improvement grant allowed us to extend the curriculum to all 280 freshman engineering students taking ENGR 120 in the fall of 2007. Approximately 400 freshman students have enrolled in the course sequences based on the Living with the Lab curriculum during the current 2007-2008 academic year. During efforts to develop a formal assessment plan to determine the effectiveness of the new courses, we realized that we needed a set of guideposts to help us determine if our strategies were effective not only in teaching students, but also in preparing them for their engineering careers. We realized that the work sponsored by the National Academy of Engineering to identify attributes of “The Engineer of 2020”17 aligned closely with our efforts

Conference Session

Exploring Retention

Collection

2009 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Richard Cassady, University of Arkansas; Sean Mulvenon, University of Arkansas

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

to CoE students are Biological Engineering, Chemical Engineering, Civil Engineering, Computer Engineering, Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, Industrial Engineering, and Mechanical Engineering); ≠ providing FEP students with academic, career, and personal advising in a proactive manner; ≠ fostering a sense of community among FEP students, other CoE students, the CoE faculty, and the balance of the UofA community.The FEP is executed via two sub-programs – the Freshman Engineering Academic Program(FEAP) and the Freshman Engineering Student Services Program (FESSP). These sub-programsare executed by a faculty Director, two full-time professional staff members, one full-timeinstructor, volunteer

Conference Session

Beyond the Engineering Classroom

Collection

2009 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Gary Bailey, North Carolina A&T State University; Cindy Waters, North Carolina A&T State University

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

course to the undergraduate Engineering curriculum. Generaleducation is often devalued by students as irrelevant and a waste of time. Students wantmajor specific education, both because of their personal interests, and because of theperceived urgency to further their job and career goals. Major departments often wantlarger budgets which can result from high hours-requirements for their majors. Suchdesires can result in a correlative desire to take hours from general education in order tosecure a larger share of the total possible hours for major hours. In addition, facultymembers in major departments often deprecate general education as ‘soft,”unsophisticated, and intellectually and academically impoverished. We argue here for thepositive value