Conference Session

Tricks of the Trade I

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Jerry Samples, University of Pittsburgh -Johnstown

Tagged Divisions

New Engineering Educators

for Engineering Education, 2008 Leadership 104: the Teacher-Scholar CultureAbstractThe Carnegie Classification of colleges and universities presents a natural divide between thosethat are “teaching” focused and those that are “research” focused, with shades of gray sprinkledin between. This divide provides the basis for commentary such as, “we are a teaching school”or, “we are a research university” with no implied ties to the other function: scholarship orteaching.The teacher-scholar model is one implied in Boyer’s book Scholarship Reconsidered [1] wherescholarship is divided into four discrete types with the “scholarship of teaching” set forth as anacceptable form of scholarly enterprise. The model is further described as

Conference Session

Off the Beaten Path

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Edward Gehringer, North Carolina State University

Tagged Divisions

New Engineering Educators

assigned. It may be collected,but it counts for nothing, or almost nothing. Seemingly because of this, cheating on homeworkis often tolerated. But cheating on exams may be punished severely. Practices seem to varywidely among institutions, but the penalties are generally similar: zeros, failure in course,suspension from school.1. IntroductionInternational students now constitute a majority in most engineering programs. We as facultyare familiar with them as individuals. Although we discuss research and course material withthem, we rarely ask them about their expectations of the educational system, and if we do, it isonly after they have been here awhile and we have gotten to know them. Yet coming to Americais culture shock for almost all

Conference Session

Best of the NEE

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Edward Gehringer, North Carolina State University

Tagged Divisions

New Engineering Educators

educators in dealing withthese awkward situations. They tell us that it is best to be honest with students and admit yourmistakes. Students will recognize that you are human, and besides, errors and changingrequirements crop up on the job too, so learning how to handle them is good experience for reallife. Often a mistake in an assignment or lab can be turned into a learning experience. There aremany options in dealing with test questions that don’t work out for some reason. The weightingof questions can be adjusted in various ways, or homework assignments can be given to give thestudents a second chance to learn the material.1. IntroductionAs any new engineering educator knows, there are a lot of things that can go wrong in class. Alecture may

Conference Session

Mentoring & Development:Creating Successful NEEs

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Wendy James, Oklahoma State University; Karen High, Oklahoma State University

Tagged Divisions

New Engineering Educators

Conference Session

Tricks of the Trade I

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Aly Tawfik, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University; Janis Terpenny, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University; Richard Goff, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University

Tagged Divisions

New Engineering Educators

(represented in assignment, quiz and test scores) are discussed. Next, detailed description of fourexperienced modified activities, along with the rationale behind and the benefits gained fromthese modifications, are presented and analyzed. Furthermore, suggestions to improve two otheractivities that were not modified during the semester are similarly presented and analyzed. Next,conclusions are drawn with respect to the high influence of the fine details of the instructiondelivery process and the high impact an instructor has on the progress of the class. Finally, thepaper ends with several suggestions for possible future research.Workshops’ profilesTable 1 presents the gender demographic classification of the three workshops taught. Workshop1

Conference Session

Tricks of the Trade II

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

John Marshall, University of Southern Maine; June Marshall, St. Joseph's College

Tagged Divisions

New Engineering Educators

. Page 13.968.1© American Society for Engineering Education, 2008 Pedagogy: Review of Best PracticesThe purpose of this paper is to identify and describe teaching tools and techniques thatwill help new faculty as well as experienced faculty become more effective teachers.Based on a review of the literature related to “teaching excellence”, the followingexcerpts have been divided into two major sections. The focus of the first section is thelearning process, and the second section discusses innovative methods of teaching.Topics included in the “Learning” section include: 1) Focusing on Learning and NotTeaching; 2) Problem Based Learning; 3) Facilitating Group Learning (PromotingAccountability, Linking Assignments, and

Conference Session

Off the Beaten Path

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Gerald Sullivan, Virginia Military Institute; Jon-Michael Hardin, Virginia Military Institute

Tagged Divisions

New Engineering Educators

Conference Session

Mentoring & Development:Creating Successful NEEs

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

B. Elizabeth Jones, Tarleton State University; Denise Martinez, Tarleton State University

Tagged Divisions

New Engineering Educators

faculty members to help with day-to-day operational issues, whereas in otherdepartments the faculty are simply handed the keys to their offices. Standard operational issuessuch as how to write a syllabus, how to submit grades, where to find research opportunities, howto incorporate technology into the classroom, where to find office supplies, are often notaddressed by departmental administration. The establishment of an informal mentoring andnetworking group helps fill the gaps that exist for many new faculty, and the interdisciplinarynature of the group provides a broader view of university operations and expectations. Page 13.886.2Year 1: New

Conference Session

Survivor: The First Few Years

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Adrienne Minerick, Mississippi State University

Tagged Divisions

New Engineering Educators

Research Experiences for Undergraduates(REU) program [1]. The goal of this program is to support active research participation by undergraduate studentswith the long-term goal of encouraging more students to pursue advanced degrees and to increase participation ofgroups traditionally underrepresented in science and engineering. One key attribute of such a program is that theREU projects must involve students in meaningful ways – i.e. the undergraduates may not be simply lab technicians.It is viewed favorably if the REU Sites include professional development training including ethics. Also, involvingparticipants from diverse schools across the country (especially those from primarily undergraduate institutions) aswell as inclusion of an

Conference Session

Mentoring & Development:Creating Successful NEEs

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Micah Hale, University of Arkansas; Seamus Freyne, Manhattan College; Stephan Durham, University of Colorado at Denver

Tagged Divisions

New Engineering Educators

Conference Session

Tricks of the Trade II

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Adam Chalmers, United States Military Academy; Eric Crispino, United States Military Academy; Joseph Hanus, United States Military Academy

Tagged Divisions

New Engineering Educators

the very fiber of a US Army officer, and is emphasized atthe institutional level at the US Military Academy, and within the Department of C&ME.4 Ourend of course reviews provide results that prove cadets see USMA faculty as positive rolemodels, and that engineering faculty in the department earn higher marks for professionalism andact as better positive role models than instructors from other departments. Again, we feel that wemeet the requirements as Positive Role Models for our students as required by the BOKCommittee. Term 08-1 Course Feedback CE364 Mechanics of Materials, Fall

Conference Session

Off the Beaten Path

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Seth Norberg, United States Military Academy

Tagged Divisions

New Engineering Educators

). The first question asked how “effective” they found that type of break rangingfrom 1-5 (one being the lowest score and five being highest). The second question askedhow “enjoyable they found that type of break. Four free text questions followed asking“which type of break did you find the most effective”; “which type of break did you findthe least effective”; “comment on the overall attempt of introducing commercial breaks”;and “give any suggestions for future commercial breaks”.First IterationFall semester of 2006 (AY07-1), the author had two sections of Thermal-Fluid Systems I(ME311). Based on the plan introduced earlier, during the majority of the lessons, sometype of commercial break was conducted. During an early lesson in the semester

Conference Session

Tricks of the Trade I

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Adrian Ieta, Murray State University; Thomas Doyle, McMaster University; Arthur Pallone

Tagged Divisions

New Engineering Educators

selected four questions of particular interest: "the course as a wholewas...?"; "the course content was...?"; "the instructor's contribution to the coursewas...?"; "the instructor's effectiveness in teaching the subject matter was...?". Apreliminary survey asked students to identify their specific judgment process related tothe scores they assign to these questions. Student responses were analyzed andaggregated into categories. The results of our analysis are likely to be of interest to newfaculty trying to improve their teaching evaluation scores. However, they may be usefulto others involved in education, as the practical factors suggested by students may notalways be obvious.1. IntroductionStudents routinely evaluate their instructors

Conference Session

Best of the NEE

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Beverly Jaeger, Northeastern University; Margaret Bates, Northeastern University; Brittany Damon, Northeastern University; Alison Reppy

Tagged Divisions

New Engineering Educators

in the process. In the ideal curriculum, learners would passthrough these three stages: (1) new learners initially engage collectively in active learning to grasp newconcepts; (2) as these learners progress, they take in additional information through more conventionallearning while exploring some of their individual creativity and capabilities, and finally (3) theycollectively come back together in committing to be involved in their own learning.Psychological and Educational ElementsPedagogy and Andragogy. The concept that adult learning (andragogy) is different from that of children(pedagogy) has been around for a number of years. Martin Knowles, a champion of andragogy and adulteducation believed that adults typically are self-directed

Conference Session

Tricks of the Trade I

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

David Benson, Kettering University

Tagged Divisions

New Engineering Educators

. Developinglecture notes, acquiring sense of campus culture, creating evaluation tools and the grading andassessing students are just a few of these challenges. However, one of the most difficultchallenges facing the new faculty member is remaining responsive to their students. With all ofthe demands on an instructor’s time and attention, it is hard to hear and make time to understandstudent frustrations. It is even harder to make midstream adjustments to one’s instructional plan.For the students, however, the mismatch between the instructor and student, such as instructionthat is above their level of ability, can lead to disastrous levels of frustration and conflict in theclassroom. Reform in education[1-5] and studies in cognition[6,7] reinforce

Conference Session

Off the Beaten Path

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Rebecca Bates, Minnesota State University-Mankato; Denise Wilson, University of Washington

Tagged Divisions

New Engineering Educators

Education Conference: San Diego, California.2 McKinney, D. & Denton, L.F. (2005). Affective assessment of team skills in agile CS1 labs: the good, the bad,and the ugly. SIGCSE Bulletin, vol. 37, no. 1, March 2005, pp. 465-469.3 Hansen, Stuart & Eddy, Erica (2007). Engagement and frustration in programming projects. SIGCSE Bulletin, Page 13.324.7vol. 39, no. 1, March 2007, pp. 271-275.4 Gungor, Almer, Eryilmaz, Ali, & Fakioglu, Turgut (2007). The relationship of freshmen’s physics achievementand their related affective characteristics. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, vol. 44, no. 8, pp. 1036-1056.5 Denton, Leo F

Conference Session

Tricks of the Trade II

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Reginald Rogers, University of Michigan

Tagged Divisions

New Engineering Educators

noone application is the best, each one can be tailored to meet the needs of the instructor andstudents. These applications are also not the only possibilities. Other applications that theinstructor finds meaningful can be interwoven into that particular classroom setting.Table 1 – Electronic applications with advantages and disadvantages Application Advantages Disadvantages • Messages can get lost in • Allows for thorough spam box responses in one message • High dependency on instead of multiple

Conference Session

Been There/Done That: Advice for NEEs

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Gene Harding, Purdue University; Benedict Kazora, Purdue University; Robert Smethers, Purdue University

Tagged Divisions

New Engineering Educators

Conference Session

Survivor: The First Few Years

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Elizabeth Creamer, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University; Tonya Saddler, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University; Margaret Layne, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University

Tagged Divisions

New Engineering Educators

females; 7 males) all hired as untenured faculty in the fall of 2003. Due to fiscal restraints, this is the entire pool of new faculty members hired in engineering at a single research-intensive university at that time. All but two of the participants have a spouse or partner. The relative gender balance is unprecedented and reflects institutional initiatives and top-level leadership at the time. The population includes non-native Americans, but is otherwise is not ethnically diverse. Table 1 provides information about the gender, rank, discipline, and prior experiences as a faculty member for each of participants. Table 1. Key characteristics of the participants at entryParticipant Rank

Conference Session

Best of the NEE

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Norman Fortenberry, National Academy of Engineering; Tylisha Baber, Michigan State University

Tagged Divisions

New Engineering Educators

best evaluated using multiple measurement techniquesand criteria. In general, there are six key steps in the development of a highly reproducibleinstructional evaluation system: 1. Determine the purpose of the evaluation; 2. Define the aspects/dimensions of teaching to be evaluated; 3. Identify valid sources of data or evidence for each aspect of teaching being evaluated; 4. Specify the criteria, or measuring instrument, by which the aspects will be judged; 5. Analysis and interpretation of data by skilled, trained personnel; and 6. Set weights, or scoring mechanism, for each aspect of teaching being evaluated.The first five of these steps are examined in this paper; the sixth step is left for future

Conference Session

Survivor: The First Few Years

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Ryan Beasley, Texas A&M University; Ana Elisa Goulart, Texas A&M University; Wei Zhan, Texas A&M University

Tagged Divisions

New Engineering Educators

to avoid similar problems in the future.Considerations of group composition, group size, and what topics to discuss are examined.I. IntroductionTraditionally, Assistant Professors begin their career with a minimum of preparation for certainaspects of the job. For example, many new faculty members are straight out of graduate schoolwithout experience developing research directions or preparing classes. According to work byBoice, new faculty generally take 4-5 years to build necessary experience before starting to meetthe standards set by their institutions.1 Such lengthy adjustment periods have a negative impacton faculty performance and thus on the probability of tenure. Common actions new faculty take to improve their performance include

Conference Session

Been There/Done That: Advice for NEEs

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Craig Somerton, Michigan State University; Laura Genik, Michigan State University

Tagged Divisions

New Engineering Educators

professional members to serve in that capacity without afaculty requirement.Many parent organizations of student organizations have useful advisor manuals. Twogood examples are the SWE Faculty Advisor Brochure [1] and the ASME StudentSection Operations Manual [2]. Also, most universities provide some guidance to facultyadvisors through their student services office. Common themes emerge from theseguides about the faculty advisor’s role. We represent these themes as follows: • Serve as the link between the student organization and the university • Guide the organization in its efforts to achieve its goals and mission • Enthusiastically support the organization’s activities • By example set a standard of professional behavior for the