agency and creativity during the transition process.Our Solution: PatchWe present Patch1 , a free and open-source online coding environment built to help novice learnersbridge the gap between Scratch and Python. Figure 1 shows Patch’s editor. Built on the ScratchVM [17], Patch integrates Pyodide [18], a library that enables web-based Python execution, toallow learners to write Python code that directly interacts with the Scratch game engine. Patch isbuilt to mirror many of the successful aspects of Scratch’s programming environment that aren’tseen in a traditional text-based programming environment. We describe below how Patchaddresses the key transition challenges: Figure 1. The editor of the Patch coding
laboratories, automotive, energy,aerospace, and NASA. In the comments section of the survey, many reflected on the impact of their REUexperience, describing it as “a wonderful program that opened many doors to my career”; “incrediblyimpactful… many opportunities in networking and career development have been especially beneficial tome”; “REU was honestly one of the best parts of my undergrad for so many reasons…growing up shy andunconfident, the position helped me build confidence, interact with peers from other schools and helped mefeel much more confident when applying for first jobs in my career…”; “Honestly, I had a wonderfulexperience in the program and I wouldn’t have even been interested in research if I didn’t do this program!I’m in the
the groundwork for future functionalities.We are currently working on the second prototype, which is anticipated to be completed by theend of Summer 2025.Learning Innovation Thrust. To identify key concepts in CPS, the learning thrust is based onthe work of Meyer and Land's conceptualization of threshold concepts. The theory of thresholdconcepts originated in the context of a research project on teaching and learning in undergraduateeducation across disciplines in the United Kingdom [11]. It was developed more fully throughMeyer and Land’s later writings [12–14], in which they articulated the defining characteristics ofthreshold concepts — particularly that they transform learners' thinking within a discipline andshape how learners identify
traditional and ESL. It may be argued that a stronger focus on semantic andphonemic fluency could support the more typical research and teaching on written and oralcommunication.Potential intersections between spatial and communication skillsSpatial abilities are typically strong in engineering students who succeed, in other words recentengineering graduates are more likely to have strong or excellent spatial skill abilities comparedto their non-engineering peers. One potential reason for the perceived lack of communicationability among engineering students may be related to their strong spatial ability, where studentsmay have a great depth of knowledge about a particular “product,” but find it difficult totransform this knowledge into writing that
post surveys. ● Student Reflections: Open-ended reflection data was collected from student assignments, online discussions, and individual reflections. A specific prompt was chosen for this study: "How did this course develop your perspectives of value creation? Consider the following as you write your answer: In what ways have you grappled with the notion of value (political, economic, social, technological, legal, and environmental impact) in this course/project? How would you handle a situation where improving technological advancement might increase societal costs? What value did this course create/generate for you?"Data AnalysisBoth quantitative and qualitative data were analyzed. The quantitative
environmental engineering students. Major year-over-year changes made – against which experiences and outcomes were measured – includedthe instructors reducing group sizes and increasing the number of external mentors involved inthe class, altering project deliverable targets, and implementing more frequent external mentormeetings; the instructors doubling the frequency of peer evaluations and time sheet gradedfeedback to students and also setting aside dedicated in-class time for external mentors to marketthemselves and their companies; and the instructors adding general contractors (GCs) as externalmentors to the course, supplementing the civil and environmental designed-focused mentors inthe course.Measured outcomes from the changes in the senior
students to reflect on their overall experience with the project. Open-ended questions invited students to share what they found the most enjoyable and most challenging part about the project. They were also asked to provide suggestions for improving the project in future iterations. This section included questions to gauge whether students would recommend the project to their peers and whether it motivated them to pursue a career in STEM. The feedback collected in this section was essential for understanding the project's impact on student satisfaction.Results and DiscussionEvaluation of Students’ Improvement in Modeling and Coding Skills The AI-assisted ODE modeling project was designed to assess and
with guidance and feedback from theirproject sponsor, faculty advisor, and the capstone instructor. At the end of the spring term,project teams present their results, write a report, and participate in a poster session. B. CornerstoneAs discussed in the introduction, students frequently were unprepared for this complex teamproject, having had little to no team project experience. For this reason, we introduced thecornerstone project in 2018 to provide intermediate project experience before their senior year[2],[3]. The cornerstone sequence consists of two classes (ECE 211 and 212), preferably takenfall and winter terms of the sophomore year, but also offered in compressed form in summerterm for transfer students. These classes have two
become mathematically impossible to pass the course and subsequentlywithdraw. However, the structure of SBG provides a student in a similarly grim situation aglimmer of hope that he or she can radically change his or her behavior and finish the course witha passing grade. This comeback rarely comes to fruition due to the substantial number ofstandards the student must master on the remaining assessments. While we tell our studentsplainly that this type of comeback is highly improbable, some portion remain undeterred.The second noteworthy trend that we observe is a pronounced improvement of SBG students inthe follow-up math course compared to their peers in WAG courses. Particularly, the percentageof students earning a grade of A or B is
management and split into three sprints, eachserving as a milestone in the iterative design process. These sprints were planned to align withkey project phases: prototype development and showcases, midterm project submissions, andfinal presentations with accompanying design reports. Together, these activities accounted for75% of the final grade. Each showcase and in-class presentations provided students withopportunities to present their work to peers, instructors, and experts (Office of Sustainability andinvited guests) fostering a collaborative environment with constructive feedback. andprofessional insights and guidance at every stage. The remaining 25% of the final grade wasallocated to students’ reflections, retrospectives, and final design
, students collaborated on mini projects that involved hypothesis testing andexperimental design/optimization. To elevate the learning with all course activities, students weregiven an official laboratory notebook to organize their notes and collect data. Students wereasked to write the answer to the following questions in their laboratory notebooks followingevery research encounter: - Why should anyone care about this research? Why is it important? - What are the researchers trying to do? What methods are they using to solve the research problem? What is new and exciting about this approach? - Does this kind of research spark my interest? Why or why not?To ensure students finished the program with the wherewithal to find
from a [nonprofit group about] my expertise …. And they said, Oh, we could use your skills here and here. And I was like, Okay, let's do it. And at that point, when I started working on it I didn't even know there was this existing field [of community engagement]. … I slowly started learning more about [community engagement]. And then I found peers, and I felt like I was in a space where people knew the value of this research. The people who are fighting for this discipline and defining this discipline, and that got me even more motivated to keep going and working on that. Knowing there are opportunities where I could actually use my technical skills to serve the community. …and I would talk to students in class about what I
shared belief in agroup’s ability to succeed [21]. It is important for teacher educators to understand howinteractions with students and peers can influence elementary PSTs’ teaching self-efficacy. PSTscan interact with K-6 students during traditional field placements and also in non-traditionalsettings like afterschool clubs where they are likely to find highly motivated students.Afterschool programs can also afford PSTs the opportunity to collaborate with peers in teamsunder the close supervision of their instructors. Teaching a small number of highly engagedstudents in a low-stress, collaborative, and supportive environment can result in masteryexperiences that strengthen their self-efficacy [22-23]. This study explores how PSTs’ self
to providing hands-on learning experiences that enhance engineering education. As a student leader, I actively promote collaborative initiatives that empower my peers to engage in meaningful projects, fostering a deeper understanding of engineering principles and their impact on society.Dr. Redahegn Sileshi, University of North Georgia, Gainesville Dr. Redahegn Sileshi, University of North Georgia, Gainesville, GA. Dr. Redahegn Sileshi is an associate professor of engineering at University of North Georgia, Gainesville. His research experiences and interests are in the areas of water quality analysis and stormwater management, largely focusing on small and large-scale infiltration studies. He has done extensive
graduatelevel engineering students. The course met for 50 minuets three times a week for a 16-weekperiod. The course used the Kotler and Lee 7 th edition Social Marketing; Behavior Change forSocial Good book to guide students through the 10 steps of social marketing. 10 Along withreadings and class lectures a semester long group project with small deliverables throughout thesemester was utilized. The link between the 10-steps and the semester long project can be seen inTable 1. The course also utilized class discussions, quizzes, peer to peer teaching (i.e. smallgroups of students from the class were responsible for teaching a given topic), online modulesfrom the Pan American Health Organization,11 and guest presentations from social
on studentteams in engineering education into contact with the research on Black male experiences inengineering education. For example, while a key asset to Black men is their ability to draw onsame-gender support networks and friendships, Cross and Paretti (2020) observed that theirexperiences on student teams involved limited opportunities to develop friendships amongtheir peers. Additionally, while the positive expectations of mentors and professors could serveas a “self-fulfilling prophecy” (Burrell et al., 2015) students in Cross and Paretti’s study usedproactive efforts to dispel stereotypes among their peers in order to prevent negative self-fulfilling prophecies.To situate our proposed research among the broader scholarship on Black
course, the summative assesses student performanceat the end of the instructional period. The formative assessments include: 1. Pre-test questions at the first lecture about students’ biology background to gauge their prior knowledge about course topics. 2. In-class exercises and conceptual questions to continually gauge students’ understanding and progress throughout each lecture and allow them to practice skills 3. Peer Teaching: Students explain their understanding or perspective on a topic to a classmate, helping both the teacher and learner to assess comprehension. Additionally, graduate students in the course and ME department deliver guest lectures. 4. Teachers observe students during activities and take notes
student success.Given this flexibility, educators may prioritize group formation methods based on convenience,student preference, or heterogeneity. For instance, randomly-selected groups can streamlinelogistics when simplicity is important, whereas allowing students to self-select partners mayenhance motivation and group cohesion in settings where peer relationships are valued.Alternatively, tools like CATME can be employed when the goal is to create groups of studentswith similar past academic performance or accommodate scheduling constraints. The resultshighlight the potential for focusing on other factors, such as group dynamics or instructionalmethods, to enhance the effectiveness of collaborative learning. However, this study's findingsare
research [1], [9]. Unlike earlier interventions that took place in controlled labenvironments, our ecological approach is implemented directly within the courses that haveknown demographic disparities in academic outcomes. The intervention materials, such asstudent narratives or “stories” of struggle, are created and tailored based on focus groups madeup of students who have previously taken the course [2]. Rather than being delivered by externalresearchers, our ecological belonging intervention approach is led by the course instructors. Thisallows instructors to connect more meaningfully with students and engage in open discussionsabout challenges and how to overcome them. Instructors also facilitate peer conversations tofoster a sense of
). Each student had at least two tours to choose from, as well asopportunity to explore the campus on their own.A mini-resource and graduate fair was also held during the poster-presentation sessions. Both C6and CPSLO students could visit with representatives from Cal Poly STEM-related programs aswell as from graduate programs at Cal Poly and other partner universities.Equally as important, C6 students, faculty and staff were given time to network with those fromother campuses. To encourage these interactions, each C6 student/faculty/staff member wasprovided with a name badge having the C6 logo and the logo of their particular college. Inaddition to their first name, students were also asked to write their major on their badge toencourage
afternoon[5]. Other studies show that morning classes are more likely toexceed their later peers in academic performance [6].This indicates a potential correlation between class timing and academic outcomes. For example,one study examined this with third-year Bachelor of Science in Information Technology studentsand concluded that when class met, especially in the morning, impacted student performance[7,8]. There were additional variables, such as gender, major, Instructor, and term, that acted ascontributing variables[9]. This current study builds upon these findings to further examine class time impacts on studentengagement for two second-year engineering courses.Research MethodsThis study analyzes data from multiple semesters of two second year
studentschoosing alternate paths by encouraging students to pursue STEM-focused careers andcoursework [5]. Most literature has shown that summer STEM camps have positive impacts onbolstering interest levels in STEM whether a student has had any predisposition towards STEMcareers or not [1], [5], [6], [7]. STEM summer camps also provide students with the opportunityto interact with their peers both socially and intellectually. The interactions on a universitycampus can give students an opportunity to experience what a college experience will be if theychoose to attend college post-high school. This makes the interactions with staff, faculty, collegestudent counselors, and others on campus important. All these interactions can build self-confidence and
instruction on AI, exploring its origins, benefits, andbasic principles of generative AI. Throughout the course, they participated in hands-on activities:analyzing and correcting errors in AI-generated solutions, creating practice problems andsolutions for exam preparation using AI, and employing AI for real-time problem-solvingguidance during lessons. Additionally, they used AI for note-taking (verified by instructors) andincorporated AI into technical writing assignments. In contrast, the control group receivedstandard course instruction without this structured AI intervention; AI use was neither encouragednor prohibited for them.Pre- and post-course surveys were administered including both quantitative components using a7-point Likert scale (Table
design courses, provide students with more instruction to allow them toacclimate to undergraduate level study.Universities have various ways of conducting cornerstones. For example, The Ohio StateUniversity's Fundamentals of Engineering [2] course assigns all first-year students to a ten-weekproject. Students are required to meet with faculty members and graduate teaching assistantsoffering academic and professional development opportunities for students. This open structure tothe courses allows students to experience the iterative nature of design firsthand. Cornerstonecourses also allow students to familiarize themselves with their peers and faculty members,creating a sense of belonging. The introduction to design and familiarity among peers
and fewer of those who complete are women or minorities [5]. Studies [6] [7] observedthat the URMs are disadvantaged in STEM. On average, these URMs are 16 times less likely tobe ready for credit-bearing STEM coursework in college than their majority peers. TheCommittee on STEM Education of the National Science and Technology Council in its 2018report [8] identified goals to “increase diversity, equity, and inclusion in STEM”, and “preparethe STEM workforce for the future” for the US to be the global leader in STEM literacy,innovation, and employment. Rendón et al. [10] reported several perceived challenges thatprecluded the success of Latinx (gender neutral term) STEM students, which are the same asobserved by several other social scientists
purpose of engaging in this custom is for students to honortheir heritage and strengthen their connection to the African diaspora. The word “Ase” was also used toaffirm and praise students for correct answers to questions. Familial African terms were used, withinstructors addressed as “Mama” or “Baba” and peers referred to as “brother” or “sister”, reflecting theAfrican cultural values of communal respect and familial bonds (Wilson et al., 1995). Swahili phrases like“Asante sana” (thank you) and “Karibu” (you’re welcome) further immersed students in African languageand culture. The day ended with a communal closing exercise called, “Community”, a reflective practicerooted in African traditions of communal discussion, where all perspectives are
in duplicate detection, which may producesub 100% results [16]. Screening abstracts for relevant papers using GenAI performed betterwith Cohen’s Kappa of 0.87 for human-machine versus 0.82 for human-human as reported inliterature [15]. The results for the data extraction by NotebookLM®, needs further improvementfor most fields extracted, however, it was useful to capture the aims, population and outcome(and some other fields but not all fields of interest), which helped in further shortlisting thepapers at full-text read stage. In fact, GenAI performed better with Cohen’s Kappa of 0.82 forhuman-machine vs 0.77 for human-human as reported in literature [15]. Since writing,NotebookLM® has undergone some upgrades and this may improve the
concentration in social statistics from the University of Washington. Erin also holds an MA and BA in Russian and Eastern European studies, and an AA in liberal arts and sciences.Kam H Yee, University of WashingtonBrenda N Martinez, University of Washington ©American Society for Engineering Education, 2025Abstract:Sometimes projects settle into a status quo of doing the same things because that iswhat has always been done. In this presentation, we’ll talk about the process oftransitioning a NASA-funded WA Space Grant to develop more meaningfulactivities/interventions for students and to improve the evaluation of the project. Theproject is writing a renewal grant now and has been collaborating with an evaluator
. Some institutions have banned AI for intelligent systems could foster intellectual sluggishness,homework, while others debate integrating it into discouraging independent thinking and problem-solvinglessons, prompting calls for stricter regulations on skills. A clear example is the growing reliance onacademic misconduct. Another concern is that over- calculators, with many individuals struggling to performreliance on AI may weaken students' writing and critical even basic mathematical operations withoutthinking skills, potentially affecting education quality technological assistance. With the advancement of AIand learning outcomes. Some universities have classified
University). Complimenting my pedagogical research is an interest in bioprocess engineering, environmental engineering, environmental risk management, and I have authored >40 peer reviewed publications in these fields. I’m also active in developing workforce development initiatives, specifically within the biopharmaceutical manufacturing space. Beyond academia, I have 7+ years of international consulting experience working with the U.K. government, European Union, and the United Nations.Dr. Anne Marguerite McAlister, University of Virginia Dr. Anne M. McAlister is an Assistant Professor in the First Year Engineering Center at the University of Virginia. She has her PhD in Education and MS in Systems Engineering from the