Conference Session

1553 FPD3 - Computer & Programming Tools in First Year Instruction

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Jess Everett, Rowan University; John Chen, Rowan University; Stephanie Farrell, Rowan University; Jennifer Kadlowec, Rowan University

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

, lending more evidence to the efficacy of the clickers.Caldwell13 generally agrees with previous survey results that found clicker use in the classroomleads to improved student attitude, attendance, retention, and, perhaps, exam scores and studentlearning. She points out that the vast majority of the evidence that exists was not collectedsystematically enough to draw scientific conclusions, and it is possible that the alteration of theteaching methodology due to clicker use or even a ‘Hawthorne effect’ may be responsible for thepositive findings. Caldwell points to three possible explanations for positive effects of clickers:(1) Increased active participation in class, (2) elimination of the ‘house of cards’ effect, in whichstudents build poor new

Conference Session

FPD6 - First Year Curricula Development

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Kerry Meyers, University of Notre Dame; John Uhran, University of Notre Dame; Catherine Pieronek, University of Notre Dame; Dan Budny, University of Pittsburgh; John Ventura, Christian Brothers University; Patricia Ralston, University of Louisville; John K. Estell, Ohio Northern University; Constance Slaboch, University of Notre Dame; Brenda Hart, University of Louisville; Rebecca Ladewski, University of Notre Dame

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

thegoals of this complex first-year experience. This paper elaborates upon three specific discussionpoints that have emerged from these summer workshops, including: (1) the relationship betweenpersistence in engineering and the first year experience; (2) how to prepare first-year students to“stay the course”; and (3) trends in first year engineering program design. Finally, this paperwill discuss the attendance at and feedback received from the workshops so that otheruniversities can consider this as an opportunity to host their own regional first-year engineeringworkshop.Background & IntroductionMany of today’s engineering educators recognize the need to develop a first-year engineeringcurriculum that takes into consideration the diverse

Conference Session

FPD9 - First Year Learning & Assessment

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Jim Chamberlain, Clemson University; Lisa Benson, Clemson University

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

student. In this case the objectof study is not the phenomenon per se, but the relationship between the subject and thephenomenon. Figure 1 shows how there are a number of different ways that students maythink of themselves in engineering, using categories. Page 13.643.5 What about engineering as a Can I imagine curriculum? myself as an engineer? How important are

Conference Session

FPD5 - Teaming and Peer Performance

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Jon Carson, Pennsylvania State University - Wilkes-Barre

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

a typical semester. Eachproject used the skills developed during the semester with the final project as the most complexwith a formal report, full set of drawings, web page, presentation, and a physical model asproject deliverables.The subject matter of the projects has been dependent on the student mix, current events, andavailable materials. Topics have included; 1. Energy applications such as evaluation of the cost of photovoltaic solar collectors, calculation of an individual’s carbon footprint, and comparison of gasoline costs. 2. Design of a handicapped assessable residential bathroom. 3. Creating a scale model of the I35W bridge center span for testing on a universal testing machine. 4. Autonomous controlled

Conference Session

FPD9 - First Year Learning & Assessment

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Gary Halada, State University of New York at Stony Brook

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

of extraneous factors on student responses.Background:Engineering coursework has historically suffered from a perception of being rather uninteresting,mathematically weighty, and dominated by memorization of equations and rote theories. Thisperception has resulted in difficulties in recruiting underrepresented groups to the engineeringfield (and retaining them), and in motivating students and maintaining high retention rates ingeneral, especially through the first two years of engineering education. This is especially truewhen course activities are not designed to enhance self-efficacy (defined as a student’s ability tobelieve that he or she can play a leading role in building his or her own learning gains)1. In fact,belief in self has been

Conference Session

FPD6 - First Year Curricula Development

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Jon Sticklen, Michigan State University; Mark Urban-Lurain, Michigan State University

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

standard manner for ouruniversity. One paper form was used for student ratings of TAs. Students identified their labsection on the form. The form consisted of five specific questions (coded on a 5-point Likertscale from Strongly Agree to Strongly Disagree) and one general rating question: 1. The teaching assistant was available and willing to help the student. 2. The teaching assistant was prepared for class sessions and enthusiastic about teaching the course section. 3. The teaching assistant organized and explained the materials for this section well and generally displayed a high level of competency in the subject matter of the course. 4. The teaching assistant

Conference Session

FPD6 - First Year Curricula Development

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Laura Ruhala, University of Southern Indiana; Richard Ruhala, University of Southern Indiana; Eric Sprouls, University of Southern Indiana

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

State were most closely studied due to their successful developmentof breadth and depth in their respective multi-disciplinary curricula.Emphases are offered in civil, electrical or mechanical engineering through the engineeringelectives courses shown in Figure 1. The students select their emphasis during their second yearin the four-year program. As an example of the breadth of the program, students with anemphasis in electrical engineering must take a fluid mechanics class, while civil engineers take aclass in circuits. Input from our Engineering Advisory Board, consisting of engineers fromregional companies, indicates that the employers of our graduates value this breadth ofmpqyngfig"kp"vjg"gornq{ggu"vjcv"vjg{"jktg"ykvj"dcejgnqtÓu"fgitggu0

Conference Session

FPD8 - Early Intervention & Retention

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Robin Hensel, West Virginia University; J. Ryan Sigler, West Virginia University; Andrew Lowery, West Virginia University

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

Math Intervention to Enhance Engineering RetentionAbstractSince difficulty or failure in calculus is one reason students leave engineering during theirfreshman year, improving student performance and retention in Calculus 1 is expected to have apositive affect on freshman engineering retention. By identifying those engineering studentswho are having difficulty in calculus early in the semester, targeted interventions can beprovided to help them successfully complete the course. For those who still withdraw midwaythrough the semester, a one-credit mid-semester calculus preparation course can help them betterprepare for their second attempt.Supported by funding through a four-year NSF Grant, the WVU College of Engineering andMineral Resources

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

can be undertaken.The Freshman Engineering CurriculumIn 1998 the College of Engineering and Science moved to an integrated engineering curriculumbased on the educational practices of the National Science Foundation Educational Coalitions16.Along with our freshman engineering course sequence, our freshman integrated curriculumincludes differential and integral calculus courses, basic chemistry lecture and laboratorycourses, and a calculus-based physics course, as summarized in Table 1; students also typicallyenroll in several non-technical courses during the freshman year. The freshman integratedcourses are taken in “blocks” so that classes of 40 students share the same sections of eachmathematics, science and engineering course during each

Conference Session

FPD7 - Global Warming & Sustainability for First-Year Students

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Blair Rowley, Wright State University; Kumar Yelamarthi, Central Michigan University; Thomas Bazzoli, Wright State University

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

, wind, and hydrogen fuel cells asenergy sources and a writing across the curriculum assignment on global warming.The paper includes the revised structure of the lectures and labs, how the video is integrated, andthe response of the students through their writing across the curriculum assignment. Details onthe pre and post perception survey has been submitted as a separate paper.IntroductionThe emphasis for this effort came about because the common freshman book chosen at ouruniversity for the 2007-2008 academic year had its focus on global warming. This was formerVice President Al Gore’s “An Inconvenient Truth”. [1] The book has a compelling presentationof data related to the causes and effects of global warming. There is also a companion DVD

Conference Session

FPD10 - Freshman Engineering Introduction to Design

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Michael Swanbom; David Hall, Louisiana Tech University; Kelly Crittenden, Louisiana Tech University

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

centrifugal pump project, as depicted in Figure 1, is the first major project in the freshmancurriculum and is designed to provide a vehicle with which to show the practical importance oftools used in engineering. Engineering software tools covered in the first course in the freshmansequence are solid modeling (with Solid Edge®), spreadsheets (with Excel®), and computeralgebra (with Mathcad®). All three of these software programs are required for the completionof the centrifugal pump project. Engineering fundamentals covered in the first course in thefreshman sequence include basic circuits, linear regression, and conservation of energy. Thetesting phase of the pump project requires that students apply knowledge of each of these threeengineering

Conference Session

FPD8 - Early Intervention & Retention

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Joyce Lee, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign; Jacob Marszalek, University of Missouri-Kansas City; Annel Medina, California Polytechnic State University; Susan Linnemeyer, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

increased student diversityas one of the major goals within its strategic plan (Adesida, 2007; University of Illinois atUrbana-Champaign Strategic Plan, 2007). However, the percentages of students who areAfrican American and Latino/a in the College of Engineering at the University of Illinois atUrbana-Champaign have remained consistently low in comparison to the other top engineeringschools in the nation and the national average as illustrated in Figures 1 and 2 below(Engineering and technology enrollments, 2005). Page 13.1104.4Figure 1. Percentage of African Americans in B.S. Programs at Top Engineering Schools in theNation (Engineering and

Conference Session

FPD4 - Teaching Methods for First Year Students

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Sean Brophy, Purdue University

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

instructors and researchers at the university. Therefore, students learn to developprogramming and algorithm design skills as part of the course. The large cohort of students isdivided into four sections; one of the sections is taught by the author. Students attend twolectures a week prior to going to a 2 hour lab. The lectures provide an introduction to newconcepts that are applied and expended on later in the lab. Students develop their problemsolving skills of open-ended, ill structured problems through an experimental curricular approachfor STEM (Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics) learning called Model ElicitingActivities (MEA)1. An MEA presents a complex challenge that requires the development of amathematical model as part of the

Conference Session

FPD10 - Freshman Engineering Introduction to Design

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Silas Bernardoni, University of Wisconsin- Madison; Amit Nimunkar, University of Wisconsin - Madison; John Murphy, University of Wisconsin- Madison; Sandra Courter, University of Wisconsin - Madison

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

this course, students should have: [1] 1. An elementary knowledge of the disciplines in engineering, especially the undergraduate programs and extracurricular opportunities available at the our university; 2. A basic understanding of/and experience in the steps and techniques of engineering design; 3. Awareness of some ethical, social, political, and economic influences on and impacts of engineering design; 4. Emerging skills in written and/or oral communication related to engineering design; Page 13.1108.2 5. Introductory skills in teamwork with peers; 6. Preliminary development of habits of mind that engineering

Conference Session

FPD2 - First-Year Advising and Transition

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Craig Gunn, Michigan State University

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

Conference Session

FPD2 - First-Year Advising and Transition

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Lisa Romkey, University of Toronto

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

“I would have liked more detail about the program content (e.g. course material) prior to starting” Nothing “No preparation would have helped, only the experience teaches you” Gone through a private school, AP or IB “Gone to an elite private school, i.e. Upper Canada College”Other suggestions from the students included learning skills in time management, independentlearning, and specific preparation for the new style in teaching at the university.Students were asked about the most challenging components of learning in their program. Theirchoices, in order of most to least frequently selected, were: 1) Nature of assessment type 2) Changes in non-academic life 3) Independent learning 4

Conference Session

FPD10 - Freshman Engineering Introduction to Design

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Phil Schlosser, Ohio State University; Michael Parke, Ohio State University; John Merrill, Ohio State University

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

culminates with competitions among teams, concluding with an oral presentation byeach team on lessons learned and recommended design and construction improvements. Thispaper emphasizes how students who have little or no prior engineering experience conceptualizeand represent a complex design problem and how they use both theoretical models and actualtest data to make informed design decisions.IntroductionIn 2001, the College of Engineering at The Ohio State University introduced significant changesinto the curriculum for all first-year engineering students, with the addition of hands-onlaboratory projects and team-based design and build projects1,2. The motivations for doing so atthe first-year level were threefold: (1) to achieve significant

Conference Session

1553 FPD3 - Computer & Programming Tools in First Year Instruction

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

W. David Harding, University of New Haven; Samuel Daniels, University of New Haven

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

project scheduling with Outlook are discussed.IntroductionIn 2004 the EAS109 Project Planning & Development course was developed and implemented toprovide early exposure to project management skills essential to all engineering students. Thecourse was organized around two major projects to keep student interest while developing keytechnical skills.1 Initially, Microsoft Excel (Excel) was used to organize and schedule the teamactivities and projects for the course. Surprisingly, the students lacked even the most basicorganizational skills which was noted in the repeated out of class team meeting and organizationproblems. Student prioritization was clearly askew with the academic demands. Variousattempts to remedy the organizational problems

Conference Session

FPD2 - First-Year Advising and Transition

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Ida Ngambeki, Purdue University; Odesma Dalrymple, Purdue University; Demetra Evangelou, Purdue University

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

students’responses, and using these factors to further classify the students’ responses. Further work withthese data will include independent analysis by several researchers, after which results will becompared, and triangulation with a combination of various data sources, i.e. interviews, surveydata, and narratives will be used to ensure the reliability of the results.Results and DiscussionOf the 974 participants in the study, 814 were male, 153 were female, and 7 did not indicate theirgender. The racial distribution of the study is displayed in Figure 1 below. 88% of therespondents had college graduates in their family and 57% had engineers in their family. 70% ofthose responding to the survey had already chosen an engineering professional school

Conference Session

The Ever-Changing Course

Collection

2009 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Gretchen Hein, Michigan Technological University; Jean Kampe, Michigan Technological University; Amber Kemppainen, Michigan Technological University

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

-credit,but the material covered is the same. The 4-credit course goes at a slightly faster pace ascompared to the 5-credit class. The breakdown of the ACT/SAT scores and corresponding mathplacement is shown in Table 1. Table 1: Math placement by ACT/SAT scores for first-year students at Michigan Technological University1 Test Score Range Course ACT SAT Pre-Calculus 19-25 500-590 5-credit Calculus 1 26-28 600-640 4-credit Calculus 1 29+ 650+ Engineering students who are calculus ready are enrolled in the traditional track for first

Conference Session

Retention Tools and Programs

Collection

2009 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Daina Briedis, Michigan State University; Neeraj Buch, Michigan State University; Jan Collins-Eaglin, Michigan State University; Nathaniel Ehrlich, Michigan State University; Denise Fleming, Michigan State University; Timothy Hinds, Michigan State University; Jon Sticklen, Michigan State University; Mark Urban-Lurain, Michigan State University; Thomas Wolff, Michigan State University

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

undergraduate programs, thereby increasing retention. Thesecomponents are shown on Figure 1. They are • A peer-assisted learning program for key core courses taken by early engineering students; this is similar to a nationally known program called “Supplemental Instruction.” It has been given an acronym PAL (Peer Assisted Learning) on our campus. • Content cross-linkages among key technical core courses taken by early engineering students. This is an effort to provide relevance to the basic mathematics and science courses required for admission to the college. • Formative course diagnostics and linked capability-building exercises that

Conference Session

Projects and Problems in First-Year Courses

Collection

2009 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Vinod Lohani, Virginia Tech; Ganesh Balasubramanian, Virginia Tech; Ishwar Puri, Virginia Tech; Scott Case, Virginia Tech; Roop Mahajan, Virginia Tech

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

within ESM DepartmentThe ESM department has 23 faculty members and 123 undergraduate students from sophomoreto senior levels. The relatively small size of this department makes it an excellent venue forexamining the effectiveness of the instructional options like the nanotechnology option proposedin this paper. Figure 1 shows a list of experiences/courses students will undergo as part of theproposed nanotechnology option within the ESM department. All engineering freshmen areintroduced to basic fundamentals of nanotechnology to begin the spiral curriculum experiences.In addition to repeating basic nanotechnology concepts, students will be introduced to thesocietal and ethical aspects of this emerging technology at the next level of learning

Conference Session

Potpourri

Collection

2009 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Jean Nocito-Gobel, University of New Haven; Amy Thompson, University of New Haven; Carl Barratt, University of New Haven; Michael Collura, University of New Haven

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

Page 14.59.32020. The sequence of courses in the curriculum is illustrated in Figure 1. Figure 1: Multidisciplinary Engineering Foundation SpiralStudents develop a conceptual understanding of engineering basics in the series of EAS coursesshown in Figure 1 which stress practical applications of these principles. Topics in these coursesinclude electrical circuits, fluid mechanics, heat transfer, material balances, properties ofmaterials, structural mechanics and thermodynamics. Each of the foundation courses includes amix of these topics, presented in a variety of disciplinary contexts. By the second semester ofthe sophomore year, each EAS course addresses a single engineering foundation area. A solidbackground is developed by

Conference Session

Learning as a Community

Collection

2009 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Sondra Miller, Boise State University; Pat Pyke, Boise State University; Amy Moll, Boise State University; Melissa Wintrow, Boise State University; Cheryl Schrader, Boise State University; Janet Callahan, Boise State University

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

by the commonvalues of academic success, civic engagement, intellectual curiosity, and the pursuit of lifelonglearning.Students from all cultural and socioeconomic backgrounds interested in a RC community mustcomplete an additional step in their application to University Housing. Application to participatein a RC community does not guarantee admission. Students must submit (1) a resume outliningpast work experience, volunteer and extra-curricular activities, and (2) an essay explaining theirinterest and commitment to the RC program. Academic record is not a consideration in theresident selections process, so there is no bias toward students with the highest academicpotential. The ERC admission process also does not specifically focus on at

Conference Session

Potpourri

Collection

2009 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Ronald Welch, University of Texas, Tyler

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

understand where current engineering has developedfrom while getting a feel for the type of people who have made contributions to societyand who many times are just like them. Next toys were introduced – Lego, K’Nex, andstrobe lights - to spark creativity and capture their attention while having fun during datacollection. This paper will address the changes to the course and how it has improvedretention.IntroductionThe freshman engineering course (ENGR 1200 Engineering Methods1) at The Universityof Texas at Tyler received a major overhaul during the summer of 2006. The originalcourse outline is shown in Appendix 1. The new Chair of the Department of CivilEngineering who was to arrive in January 2007 was asked by the Dean to adjust thecourse to

Conference Session

Retention Tools and Programs

Collection

2009 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Amber Kemppainen, Michigan Technological University; Amy Hamlin, Michigan Technological University

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

) have the option of enrolling into a specific major(biomedical, chemical, civil, computer, electrical, environmental, geological, materials, ormechanical) or enrolling into the university as a general engineering student. The abbreviationsused to describe the various majors can be found in Table 1. Regardless of major choice, allentering engineering students are enrolled into a cohort schedule that includes calculus, physics,and engineering classes.Table 1.Engineering Program AbbreviationsEBE = Biomedical Engineering EEN = Environmental EngineeringECE = Civil Engineering EGE = Geological EngineeringECM = Chemical Engineering EGN = General Engineering/Engineering UndecidedECP = Computer Engineering

Conference Session

Goal Specific First-Year Courses

Collection

2009 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

James Lewis, University of Louisville; Jeffrey Hieb, University of Louisville; David Wheatley, University of Louisville

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

thinking: (1) the difficulty fordifferent individuals (instructors), in different disciplines, to describe and discuss criticalthinking and have a third party (students) readily correlate and consolidate those discussions, (2)clearly stating expectations about what constitutes good critical thinking, (3) objectivelyassessing the quality of someone’s (student) critical thinking (as opposed to ―I know it when Isee it‖).A model of critical thinking, by providing a common vocabulary and conceptual constructs canhelp address these challenges. The Paul-Elder model of critical thinking4 is the model adoptedby the University of Louisville for the i2a initiative. The model was chosen because it has aformal structure and is a discipline neutral model. There

Conference Session

The Ever-Changing Course

Collection

2009 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Kathleen Harper, Denison University; Richard Freuler, Ohio State University; Stuart Brand, Ohio State University; Craig Morin, Ohio State University; Patrick Wensing, Ohio State University; John Demel, Ohio State University

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

, functions, pointers, characters and strings,formatted input and output, file handling, and objects and classes. Parts of the C/C++ laboratoryexercises require the students to read data from a file and analyze the data. Two of theseexercises also are analyzed using MATLAB so that the students can see the comparison. Thecurrent C/C++ and MATLAB texts are by Deitel and Deitel3 and Gilat4, respectively.Laboratory ComponentThree of the laboratory exercises were 1) firing a model rocket engine and taking thrust data inreal time, 2) riding an instrumented bicycle and taking strain gage data, and 3) using a fallingball viscometer setup and taking position and time data. As noted above, the students used theirown C/C++ or MATLAB programs to analyze data

Conference Session

Retention Tools and Programs

Collection

2009 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Jon Sticklen, Michigan State University; Thomas Wolff, Michigan State University; Wolfgang Bauer, Michigan State University; Daina Briedis, Michigan State University; Neeraj Buch, Michigan State University; Nathaniel Ehrlich, Michigan State University; John Courtney, Michigan State University; Ruth Heckman, Lansing Community College; Denise Fleming, Michigan State University; Louise Paquette, Lansing Community College; Renee Mickelson, Lansing Community College; Mark Urban-Lurain; Clifford Weil, Michigan State University

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

, and end with our current status. This report will set the stage forthree companion papers, and for a series of future reports. The three companion papers describeour subproject applying “supplemental instruction,” a second subproject connecting our facultymore effectively to our early engineering students, and a third paper describing the methodologyfor research analysis that we will employ.1. Motivation: Importance of increasing STEM numbersTo sustain US leadership in science and technology we must increase the number ofundergraduate degrees in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). Anestimate from The Information Technology Association of America indicates that by 2015, adoubling in the number of STEM degrees will be

Conference Session

Learning as a Community

Collection

2009 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Timothy Hinds, Michigan State University; Thomas Wolff, Michigan State University; Neeraj Buch, Michigan State University; Amanda Idema, Michigan State University; Cynthia Helman, Michigan State University

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

experience. Enrollments for the various programsare given in Table 1 below. Summary details of each program are given following the table. Program Number of Freshmen Total Academic Scholars 229 432 Lyman Briggs 625 1826 BROAD 100 100 Honors College 465 2660 James Madison 333 1259 RCAH 108 116 RISE 32