Conference Session

FPD7 -- Service Learning

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Bert Davy, Morgan State University; Indranil Goswami, Morgan State University; Jiang Li, Morgan State University; Gbekeloluwa Oguntimen, Morgan State University; Charles Oluokun, Morgan State University; Arcadio Sincero, Morgan State University

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

technicalbackgrounds taught the class and assisted with various aspects of the design project. All lectureswere focused on supporting the design project, which varied from alternative energy systems tohurricane resistant structures. The required class was primarily composed of freshmen in theDepartment of Civil Engineering. Typical student teams consisted of 5-6 members. Studentteams were guided to follow the process of translating project objectives into specific designtasks, creating a timeline for the project, choosing team leadership, designating specific roleswithin the team and executing the design. The teams were also encouraged to establish a formalproject monitoring system by defining a schedule of benchmark objectives. The 1 credit course, awith a

Conference Session

FPD5 -- Placement & Early Success

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Carol Gattis, University of Arkansas; Bryan Hill, University of Arkansas; Abraham Lachowsky, University of Arkansas

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

mentoring program was createdfor fall 2005 that, in its pilot year, had astounding results. Peer mentored students returned forthe spring semester in engineering at a significantly higher rate (94% vs. 78% for the non-mentored students). Peer mentored students were twice as likely as their non-mentoredcolleagues to have a first semester GPA greater than 2.5, and the average GPA of the peermentored students was 9% higher than that of their non-mentored cohort. Yet, the admissionprofile of the peer mentored group was equivalent to that of the non-mentored group. Fortystudents chose to participate in the peer mentoring pilot program.The success of this peer mentoring program can be attributed to several key factors, including:1) proper mentor

Conference Session

FPD8 -- Introductory Courses

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

George List, North Carolina State University

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

programming skills. Other disciplines adopted such courses more slowly.Consequently, the topic of this paper is not new.As Rasdorf 1 indicates, in the late 1970’s, civil engineering programs began to embrace the ideaof including computer programming classes in their undergraduate curricula. The argument was,in part, that “students must be prepared to use computer methods and applications as a part oftheir fundamental education. It is the responsibility of colleges and universities to incorporatecontemporary computing fundamentals into their academic curriculum to improve theprofessional qualifications of their engineering graduates. These graduates will in turn be able toprovide their increasingly important expertise to both the engineering

Conference Session

FPD8 -- Introductory Courses

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Steven Lehr, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University; Christopher Grant, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University-Prescott

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

project called introduction to structures. Students had toanalyze, describe, and then modify a C program that was coded for them. The otherproject was an individual programming project where the student had to come up with theproblem, solve it, and document the complete solution.Programming Project 1 – Modification of Existing Code BaseAfter teaching arrays and strings, we introduced the first programming project,introduction to structures. Students were given code that was very modular andreinforced all the concepts taught prior in the semester. The program read data from afile into an array of structures of the student type defined, and provided menus to add,delete, and sort the array of students. Each time the data in memory was modified

Conference Session

FPD10 -- Pre-Engineering and Bridge Programs

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Michele Grimm, Wayne State University

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

, 2007 An Engineering Bridge Program: Improving the Success Rate of Under-Prepared Students in EngineeringAbstractIn 2003, the College of Engineering at Wayne State recognized that a large proportion of itsstudents entered the engineering program with placement into beginning or intermediate algebra.This is, in part, a result of the University’s mission to be an institution of opportunity – providingaccess to all academically qualified students. Only a small group of these incoming studentsremained in the College of Engineering after 4 years. As a result, an Engineering BridgeProgram was developed with the dual objective of: 1) providing students with the

Conference Session

FPD3 -- Professional Issues for First-Year Courses

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Jennifer Light, University of Washington; Russell Korte, University Of Minnesota; Ken Yasuhara, University of Washington; Deborah Kilgore, University of Washington

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

address specific engineering problems devised first toelicit responses that reflect aspects of their engineering knowledge and skills, and second, toreveal how they apply this learning to engineering design practice. One of the problems given tostudents in the first year was a closed-ended question about the information they would need todesign a playground. Figure 1 contains the text of the question. You have been asked to design a playground. You have a limited amount of time and resources to gather information for your design. From the following list, please put a check mark next to the FIVE kinds of information you would MOST LIKELY NEED as you work on your design: - Availability of materials - Body proportions - Budget

Conference Session

FPD4 -- Hands-on & Real-World Studies

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Jonathan Rice, University of Maryland-Baltimore County; Taryn Bayles, University of Maryland-Baltimore County; Greg Russ, University of Maryland-Baltimore County; Julia Ross, University of Maryland-Baltimore County

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

rather than simply being required to attend a semester-long series oflectures and complete written work based on them.The addition of the design project and smaller discussion based learning also allows thecourse to fulfill additional goals on the UMBC Chemical and Biochemical DepartmentABET objectives and outcomes, known as the “5C’s.” According to the “5C’s,” studentsshould demonstrate, upon graduation, Competency in the discipline of chemicalengineering, Critical thinking ability to solve complex problems, the ability to work inCooperation with teammates, effective Communication skills, and Capacity for life-longlearning.1 Instead of only accomplishing goals within the competency in the engineeringdiscipline and critical thinking objectives

Conference Session

FPD11 -- Multidisciplinary Experiences

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

John-David Yoder, Ohio Northern University; Beverly Jaeger, Northeastern University; John K. Estell, Ohio Northern University

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

students to have improved technical communication skills hasbeen well documented, perhaps most clearly in the ABET criteria3. Teaching communication aspart of engineering curricula has been tried in many ways, a good overview of which is presentedin Ford and Riley4. Adding technical communication to the freshman curriculum was one of thecentral reasons for reforming the courses at ONU. Some of this work has resulted in previouspublications5,6. The first of these courses, Freshman Engineering 1, includes objectives related totechnical communication and exposing students to the engineering profession.As the model of a Scholar/Teacher was being discussed at the 2006 ASEE National ConferencePlenary Session2, Dr. Sheri Sheppard stated that the

Conference Session

FPD5 -- Placement & Early Success

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Joshua Peschel, Texas A&M University; Luciana Barroso, Texas A&M University; Anthony Cahill, Texas A&M University; James Morgan, Texas A&M University

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

currently exist that may be used to develop an online real- Page 12.232.2time quiz system. Among these technologies are: web databases, dynamic web pages, and real-time graphing software. However useful these individual components may be though, theproblem that most end users typically arrive at for instructional purposes is: how are thesedifferent components best combined to produce the desired instructional technology? In thisresearch effort, we address the following two questions: (1) What is the optimal way to assemble current web-based technologies for an online real- time quiz system? An optimal system design will include the least amount

Conference Session

FPD7 -- Service Learning

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Promiti Dutta, Columbia University; Alexander Haubold, Columbia University

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

AC 2007-1704: ENGINEERING DESIGN VIA TEAM-BASEDSERVICE-LEARNING PROJECTS: CASE SURVEY OF FIVE UNIQUE PROJECTGENRESPromiti Dutta, Columbia UniversityAlexander Haubold, Columbia University Page 12.623.1© American Society for Engineering Education, 2007 Engineering Design via Team-based Service-Learning Projects: Case Survey of Five Unique Project GenresAbstract:We examine the introduction of engineering design to first-year college students via realcommunity service-learning projects (CSLP) of five genres: (1) assistive devices, (2)civil/architectural designs, (3) educational tools, (4) information technology, and (5) urbandevelopment. Projects in each

Conference Session

FPD3 -- Professional Issues for First-Year Courses

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Karen High, Oklahoma State University; Rebecca Damron, Oklahoma State University

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

Page 12.253.4students have had a chance to get to know each other which make the teamwork easierand engages them early enough to use these experiences in later semester activities. Theairplane challenge is an activity that is done in a fifty minute class period. The studentsfirst are placed in multidisciplinary teams of three to four and asked to create a name forthe team after which they receive a handout containing the materials and instructions forthe challenge (Figure 1.)Figure 1 – Airplane Challenge Product/Process Airplane Design ChallengeGiven the following items: Toothpicks Ziploc bag Rubber bands Lunch bags Paper clips

Conference Session

FPD4 -- Hands-on & Real-World Studies

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Joseph Menicucci, Montana State University; James Duffy, Montana State University; Betsy Palmer, Montana State University

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

three key findingsof research on learners and learning outlined in the NRC publication are4: 1. Students come to the classroom with preconceptions about how the world works. If their initial understanding is not engaged, they may fail to grasp the new concepts and information that are taught, or they may learn them for purposes of a test but revert to their preconceptions outside of the classroom. 2. To develop competence in an area of inquiry, students must: a. have a deep foundation of factual knowledge, b. understand facts and ideas in a conceptual framework, and c. organize knowledge in ways that facilitate retrieval and application. 3. A metacognitive approach to instruction

Conference Session

FPD12 -- Novel Approaches to First Year Programs

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Cecelia Wigal, University of Tennessee-Chattanooga; Ignatius Fomunung, University of Tennessee-Chattanooga; Edwin Foster, University of Tennessee-Chattanooga; Ronald Goulet, University of Tennessee-Chattanooga

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

Discipline Design (3 hrs) (3 hrs) Senior Junior – Interdisciplinary Design and Industrial Partners (3 hrs) Sophomore – Design and small mechanical/structural applications (1 hr) Freshman – Introduction to Design (3 hrs)Figure 1.0: The Design Curriculum at UTCThe goal of the design curriculum is to graduate students who understand and can apply thesteps of the design process to various interdisciplinary and discipline-based applications. Thefirst step toward meeting this goal is to

Conference Session

FPD3 -- Professional Issues for First-Year Courses

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Andrew Lau, Pennsylvania State University

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

in developing professional and personal integrity. Once we becomemore aware, the next step is to develop our moral imagination.Moral imagination is “an ability to imaginatively discern various possibilities for acting in agiven situation and to envision the potential help and harm that are likely to result from a givenaction.”1 The main skill required is creativity – being able to imagine many possibilities andtheir effects. There is clear parallel with the engineering design process and like thetechnological creativity required in design, moral imagination can be developed and enhanced.The process of being morally imaginative has been described as:2 1. Disengaging from and becoming aware of one’s situation, understanding the mental

Conference Session

FPD4 -- Hands-on & Real-World Studies

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

David Ye, Polytechnic University; Ilya Brutman, Polytechnic University; Gunter Georgi, Polytechnic University; Lorcan Folan, Polytechnic University

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

surface under water, aswell as when running submerged in between. The construction cost for material for theunderwater test field was kept below $1000.Many students are familiar with LEGO robotics on dry land. AUVs present many newchallenges: waterproofing conventional LEGO components, buoyancy, balance, and 3-D motion.Since completion of various tasks contributes different point values, the final total point value isa measure of how well the AUV has performed. This is the basis for a lively design competitionbetween Freshman Engineering teams.1 IntroductionPolytechnic University’s Introduction to Engineering and Design course consists of lectures (1hr/wk), laboratory work (3 hrs/wk), and recitations (2 hrs/wk) for an academic

Conference Session

FPD9 -- Teaching Methods & Technology

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

John K. Estell, Ohio Northern University; Beverly Jaeger, Northeastern University; Richard Whalen, SUSAN FREEMAN, and BEVERLY JAEGER are members of; Susan Freeman, Northeastern University; John-David Yoder, Ohio Northern University

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

from both Ohio Northern University (ONU) and NortheasternUniversity (NU). The assessment tool maps responses to what the students perceive they learnabout the design process steps and also assesses if the students learn engineering principles andteamwork the way the instructors intend for them. Suggestions for expanding on or modifyingthe activity for the purposes of engineering education and practical application will also bepresented and all materials for implementing the Tower of Straws will be made available toeducators in the appendices.1. Background on the Tower of Straws AssignmentThe Tower of Straws assignment has had a history of use in K-12 education. There are a varietyof names offered to the exercise, as well as different sets of

Conference Session

FPD6 -- Early Intervention & Retention Programs

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Catherine Pieronek, University of Notre Dame

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

observations about what AP credit can indicate about individual students and groupsof students, and with some suggestions for the role of AP credit in engineering education.Introduction“AP can change your life. Through college-level AP courses, you enter a universe of knowledgethat might otherwise remain unexplored in high school; through AP Exams, you have theopportunity to earn credit or advanced standing at most of the nation’s colleges anduniversities.”1 So begins the pitch on the College Board’s web site, extolling the benefits ofAdvanced Placement (AP) courses, exams and credit. Yet several recent studies reported in theChronicle of Higher Education and elsewhere have questioned this very premise, asking whatAP courses actually reveal about a

Conference Session

FPD8 -- Introductory Courses

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Robert Pieri, North Dakota State University; Ghodrat Karami, North Dakota State University

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

simulation capabilities of Computer AidedDesign and Drafting (CADD) as well as the analysis capabilities of Finite Element Modeling(FEM).Overview/BackgroundIn the midst of today's global technical challenges with respect to the environment, energy,healthcare and general quality of life, the pivotal role of engineering education to prepare thenext generation of problem solvers goes with out question. However, as pointed out in recentpublications, 1, 2 the topics, methods and audience of this enterprise requires ongoing assessmentand revision to ensure relevance, efficacy and accessibility for local and global consumers. Inkeeping with this concept, the authors believe that the fundamental discipline of classicalmechanics with respect to the current

Conference Session

FPD2 - First-Year Advising and Transition

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Jean Kampe, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University; Whitney Edmister, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University; Christi Boone, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University; Bevlee Watford, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

team-based major design project was assigned (see Workshops for Week 1 in Table A1). In assigningcourse grades, there are two benchmarks that must be met to earn a non-F grade. The first is a60% or better individual grade on the team design project, and the second is earning 60% ormore of the available points for computer programming efforts. Additionally, an EngE2984course grade of C- or better is needed to meet the pre-requisite to continue to the nextengineering course(s); this is true for all freshman program courses. The main reason for offering this five-credit course is to move GE transfer students intotheir degree-granting departments as quickly as possible, so changing the course to a summeroffering was an obvious outcome from

Conference Session

1553 FPD3 - Computer & Programming Tools in First Year Instruction

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

David Illig, Clarkson University; John Hrynuk, Clarkson University; Matthew Pennington, Clarkson University; John P. Dempsey, Clarkson University

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

suggestions on improvements to the course. The data from these three sources will beused to indicate the relative success of the revisions to lecture materials and laboratoryexperiments. These data have also shown further areas in which ES100 could be improved, andsome of the adjustments implemented for the Spring 2008 offering of the course will bediscussed.1. Introduction and Course FormatThe revisions to Clarkson’s ES100 course were made possible by a CCLI A&I grant from NSF.1This proposal’s intent was to promote a hands-on learning environment across the engineeringcurriculum, build self-confidence, promote teamwork and communication skills, and broaden therange of teaching styles to meet the needs of a diverse student population.1 The

Conference Session

FPD9 - First Year Learning & Assessment

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Eric Johnson, Valparaiso University; Doug Tougaw, Valparaiso University; Kenneth Leitch, Valparaiso University; Barbara Engerer, Valparaiso University

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

and the learning objectives underlyingeach is an essential first step to designing a first-semester engineering course.Traditionally, some first-year engineering courses have been similar to “freshman orientation”courses in other disciplines, which focus on skills such as time management, exam preparation,and, balancing work and social life.1 Such courses do not explicitly focus on engineering topics,but they provide engineering students with skills that will be valuable to them throughout theiracademic and professional careers.Another traditional approach for first-year engineering courses is to provide students with anoverview of the different engineering disciplines, helping them to select their major. Courses atuniversities such as

Conference Session

1553 FPD3 - Computer & Programming Tools in First Year Instruction

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

John Robertson, Arizona State University; Sarah Roux, Arizona State University; Vivek Ramanathan, Arizona State University; Mark Rager, Arizona State University

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

paper presents a combined student-faculty appraisal of analternative approach that covers these issues within the context of systems projects as the core ofa 3-credit freshman class. The outcomes affirmed that a freshman group could analyze complexsystems and that it is a good way to stimulate interest in electronics as a career.A new approach to electronic systemsIt is all too easy to take the steady evolution of electronics technology for granted. The 43-year-old rhythm of Moore’s Law 1 continues to provide products with greater functionality at vastlylower cost and better reliability. It is the drumbeat of technology development that leads to morecomplex systems at affordable cost and thus to increased productivity and wider applications

Conference Session

FPD10 - Freshman Engineering Introduction to Design

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Susan Montgomery, University of Michigan; Rodney Johnson, University of Michigan

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

intervention as needed.In this paper, we provide details on the teaching of our course, and share insights that shouldhelp others planning to teach a similar course in the future.Course overviewThe outcomes that all students in the “Introduction to Engineering” course are expected toachieve are outlined in Table 1 and shown in more detail in the Appendix.It is worth noting that most of these outcomes do not lend themselves well to a purely cognitiveapproach—that is one that focuses on transferring knowledge from instructor to student. In fact,it is sometimes difficult to specify exactly what the “knowledge” component of design,teamwork or communication should be. Instead, we focus on developing students’ skill andconfidence as practitioners in these

Conference Session

FPD6 - First Year Curricula Development

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Gregory Wight, Norwich University; R. Danner Friend, Norwich University; Jacques Beneat, Norwich University; William Barry, Norwich University

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

. The ABET criterion 3 outcomes are a driving force inmaking sure the course outcomes are appropriate.Freshman Engineering courses have undergone significant evolution in the past few decades. Inrecent years great emphasis has been placed upon broadening the freshman engineeringexperience and improving retention in engineering programs. Several programs have madesignificant changes in recent years to address these issues. 1, 2, 3, 4, 9 Many programs are lessskills-based instruction and more project-based instruction with an emphasis on problem solvingand engineering design. 1, 6,7,8 The United States Air Force Academy, as well as otherinstitutions, have taken a multidisciplinary approach in the first year by making the course opento or required

Conference Session

FPD9 - First Year Learning & Assessment

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Richard Whalen, Northeastern University; Susan Freeman, Northeastern University; Beverly Jaeger, Susan Freeman and Beverly Jaeger are members of Northeastern University's

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

rating system, providing the necessary quantitative analysis to determine the rank of learn(potential to convey concepts) and like (level of engagement) for each of the learning modes. As noted, theresearch focused on a first-year design course and results revealed a wide array of learning and engagementlevel combinations for the activities used in the course. Each mode was profiled with a learn-likedesignation using a correlation metric. It was not surprising that many of the learning modes in the highlearn/high like quadrant touch upon multiple learning styles and those in the low learn/low like quadrantaddressed only a limited scope of the students’ learning styles. The options suggested for handling thelow/low modes were to (1) eliminate the

Conference Session

FPD1 - Early Success and Retention

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Amy Bell, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University; Moshe Kam, Drexel University; Joan Carletta, University of Akron; Douglas Gorham, IEEE

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

and managementof the RWEP program. EA is comprised of full-time IEEE staff members and IEEE volunteermembers working together on IEEE’s education programs.The RWEP program employs a two-step, peer-reviewed (double-blind) process for soliciting andawarding the projects. First, abstracts are solicited and reviewed. Selected abstracts are theninvited for proposal submission. Next, proposals are reviewed. Finally, selected proposals areawarded and authors are invited to submit the full project implementation.The abstract submission is a one-page document that includes the following. 1. Project title. 2. Introduction to the technical problem addressed by the project. 3. Impact of the problem’s solution on society

Conference Session

FPD2 - First-Year Advising and Transition

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Kate Baxter, University of Southern California; Louise Yates, University of Southern California

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

Conference Session

FPD5 - Teaming and Peer Performance

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Claribel Bonilla, University of San Diego; Leonard Perry, University of San Diego

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

function on multi-disciplinaryteams". Recognizing the importance of teams in industry, engineering education has begun tofocus more effort on this desired student outcome.1, 2, 3 Experts also agree on the importance ofinvolving undergraduates in teamwork.4, 5, 6 Seat and Lord observed that while industry seldomcomplains about the technical skills of engineering graduates, industrial employers and educatorsare often concerned with performance skills such as interpersonal, communication, and teaming.7The key to a successful team is the ability of each team member to develop their team skillsduring the life of the team activity or project. The well known Tuckman model provides stagesfor team transformation (forming, storming, norming, performing

Conference Session

FPD4 - Teaching Methods for First Year Students

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

J. Roger Parsons, University of Tennessee-Knoxville; Rachel McCord, University of Tennessee-Knoxville; J. Elaine Seat, University of Tennessee-Knoxville; Thomas Scott, University of Tennessee-Knoxville

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

sensitivity to applying collaborative learning techniques. This curriculum waspiloted for two years (1997-8) and then fully implemented with all first year engineeringstudents beginning in 1999. This curriculum accommodated students who were notcalculus ready, although to begin the first course, students had to qualify for pre-calculus,one semester behind the “showcase” starting point. Page 13.314.4Basic demographic data, entering high school grade point averages, math component ofACT, and number of males and females, for our two student groups are shown in Table 1.Other than this change in approach to first year engineering education, there were nochanges

Conference Session

FPD9 - First Year Learning & Assessment

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Joe Guarino, Boise State University; Janet Callahan, Boise State University; Seung Youn Chyung, Boise State University; Randi Walters, Boise State University; Bill Clement, Boise State University

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

simulationsused in this project are illustrated in Figures 1 through 5. All of the simulations, with theexception of the Materials Science simulation, were interactive. The simulations were embeddedinto the engineering modules of Materials Science, Mechanical Engineering, Vectors, CivilEngineering, and Electrical Engineering. A sixth engineering module (Matrices) was included inthe course, but had no simulation. Student use of the simulations took place in a computer lab inthe constant presence of a professor. The professor interacted with each student, providingguided feedback on their use of the computer simulations and their overall progress in meetingthe objectives of each engineering module