Conference Session

Collaborative & New Efforts in Engineering Education

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Fanyu Zeng, Indiana Wesleyan University

Tagged Divisions

International

ofChinese students in the program as well as the curriculum and then look for a proper wayto integrate successful experiences from American higher education into the softwareengineering curriculum as a solution.This research was first carried out to review other researches to find out commoncharacteristics of Chinese students. A number of research publications summarize Page 13.15.2experiences to bring Chinese students into American engineering programs. Almost allthe researches share the same findings that Chinese students are hardworking 3 andperform well in science and technology, especially in mathematics, logic reasoning andother related disciplines.2

Conference Session

Technical Capacity Bldg for Developing Countries & Service Learning

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

William Jordan, Baylor University; Glenn Blalock, Baylor University; Walter Bradley, Baylor University; Cynthia Fry, Baylor University; Anne Grinols, Baylor University; Brian Thomas, Baylor University

Tagged Divisions

International

AC 2008-1421: USING TECHNICAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP AND SERVICELEARNING TO PROMOTE AN INTERNATIONAL PERSPECTIVE IN ANUNDERGRADUATE ENGINEERING PROGRAMWilliam Jordan, Baylor University WILLIAM JORDAN is the Mechanical Engineering Department Chair at Baylor University. He has B.S. and M.S. degrees in Metallurgical Engineering from the Colorado School of Mines, an M.A. degree in Theology from Denver Seminary, and a Ph.D. in mechanics and materials from Texas A & M University. He teaches materials related courses and does research concerning appropriate technology in developing countries. He also writes and does research in the areas of engineering ethics and engineering education.Glenn Blalock

Conference Session

Undergraduate Space Design and Project Courses

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Sven Bilen, Pennsylvania State University; Brian Schratz, Pennsylvania State University

Tagged Divisions

Aerospace

opportunities. The Lab alsocoordinates education and public outreach to inspire younger students to pursue careers inscience, technology, engineering, and math.As a development strategy, the SSPL focuses on fostering a collaborative and open environment Page 13.1253.2for its students. By providing a location for students to congregate between classes or to meetfor homework discussions, the Lab is a confluence of students from various majors, years,backgrounds, and experiences. In addition, multidisciplinary teams are encouraged rather thansingle-major groups. By bridging the otherwise disjoined diversity of students’ majors andideas, the Lab’s students

Conference Session

Unique Student Opportunities in BME

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Robert Linsenmeier, Northwestern University; Jean Alley, Vanderbilt University; Penny Hirsch, Northwestern University; Stacy Klein-Gardner; Julie Greenberg, Massachusetts Institute of Technology; Mark Bourgeois, Northwestern University

Tagged Divisions

Biomedical

AC 2008-884: A UNIQUE RESEARCH EXPERIENCE IN BIOENGINEERINGEDUCATION FOR UNDERGRADUATES IN THE VANTH REURobert Linsenmeier, Northwestern University Robert A. Linsenmeier has a joint appointment in Biomedical Engineering in the Robert R. McCormick School of Engineering and Applied Science, and in Neurobiology and Physiology in the Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences. He is the Associate Director of the VaNTH Engineering Research Center in Bioengineering Educational Technologies and a fellow of the American Institute of Medical and Biological Engineering and the Biomedical Engineering Society. His research interests are in the role of retinal oxygen transport and metabolism in both

Conference Session

Engineering Professional Development for K12 Teachers

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Brant Miller, University Of Minnesota; Tamara Moore, University Of Minnesota

Tagged Divisions

K-12 & Pre-College Engineering

Impacts of an Engineering Research Experience for Teachers on Classroom Integration of STEM Concepts in Grade 6-12 ScienceAbstractThe main objective of the South Dakota School of Mines and Technology (SDSM&T) ResearchExperience for Teachers (RET) Site: “Inspiring Educators in Rural America through Research”is to provide an authentic research experience to practicing middle and high school science, math,and technology teachers. It is our goal that from this research experience the teachers can takeback to their respective classrooms knowledge, and content which they will readily share withtheir students. After completing three summer sessions and subsequent workshops of our RETprogram, we feel very confident in endorsing this model of

Collection

2008 ASEE Midwest Section Conference

Authors

Dan Cernusca; Douglas R. Carroll

Integrating Online Instructional Tools in a Large Engineering Course: An Exploratory Study Dan Cernusca, Douglas R. Carroll Missouri University of Science and Technology - RollaAbstractDuring the past two years a Mechanics of Material course was offered with two enrollmentoptions for lectures: a) face-to- face attendance in classroom; and b) online participation, eitherlive or delayed (recorded) via streamed recorded lectures. Two online instructional tools wereintroduced to support the described format of this course. First tool, the Webex11 onlineconferencing tool was used for the synchronous online delivery of the lectures as alternative tothe face-to

Conference Session

Hands-on Materials Science and Engineering

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Mir Atiqullah, Southern Polytechnic State University

Tagged Divisions

Materials

AC 2008-1447: UNDERGRADUATE MATERIALS RESEARCH: TENSILEIMPACT TOUGHNESS OF POLYMERSMir Atiqullah, Southern Polytechnic State University Dr. Mir Atiqullah is an Associate Professor in the department of Mechanical Engineering Technology at Southern Polytechnic State University, Marietta, GA. He received his Ph.D. in mechanical engineering from Purdue University, West lafayette, Indiana in 1996. He has been teaching engineering and engineering technology since 1996 and has interest in design, materials, manufacturing, mechanics, optimmzation, biosensor, among others. He is a regular participant in ASEE conferences and active member of various divisions

Conference Session

Trends in Construction Engineering Education I

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Enno Koehn, Lamar University; James Koehn, Chadron State College

Tagged Divisions

Construction

in engineering in the United States. (1993). Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology, Inc. (ABET). Page 13.969.9 2) “Engineering criteria.” (2006). Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology, Inc. (ABET). http://www.abet.org/csc.3) Koehn, E. (1991). “An ethics and professional seminar in the civil engineering curriculum. “ J. Proft. Issues in Engrg. Educ. And Pract., ASCE. 117(2), 96-101.4) Koehn, E. (1995). “Interactive communication in civil engineering classrooms.” J. Proft. Issues in Engrg. Educ. And Pract., ASCE. 121(4), 260-261.5) Koehn, E. (1997). “Engineering perceptions of ABET

Conference Session

Innovation in Construction Engineering Education I

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Kun-jung Hsu, Leader University

Tagged Divisions

Construction

AC 2008-1635: THE DIAGRAMMATIC AND MATHEMATICAL APPROACH OFPROJECT TIME-COST TRADEOFFSKun-jung Hsu, Leader University Page 13.1217.1© American Society for Engineering Education, 2008 Title of the Paper: The Diagrammatic and Mathematical Approach of Project Time-cost TradeoffsAbstractA potential project management involving time used of a project can always be tradeoff byadditional resources input. Such a tradeoff may come from different options of the activity ofthe project which can be choice. The situation of “Pay more - Save Time” is common forproject management related decision problems. The available

Conference Session

Engineering Education in the Mid-East / Asia

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Aiman Kuzmar, Pennsylvania State University-Fayette; Abedalbasit Abedalhafiz, Faculty of Physical Education and Sports Sciences, Hashemite University,; Taima Alhiyari, Al-Balqaa Applied University

Tagged Divisions

International

. Students including those who are in the engineering fieldconstitute a major part of our societies. They also suffer from this lack of physical inactivity.Some universities like the Oregon State University have realized the importance of physicalactivities to the education process itself and mandate their students to take a certain number ofphysical education courses. It is interesting to note that a few universities within this group ofuniversities like Notre Dame University, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and KingFahd University of Petroleum and Minerals in Saudi Arabia, require passing a swimming testbefore graduation. Lake Fingers Community College in the State of New York does not evenexempt disabled students from taking the

Conference Session

Beyond Individual Ethics: Engineering in Context

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Byron Newberry, Baylor University; William Lawson, Texas Tech University; Kathy Austin, Texas Tech University; Greta Gorsuch, Texas Tech University; Thomas Darwin, University of Texas at Austin

Tagged Divisions

Liberal Education

AC 2008-2589: DESIGN OF WEB-BASED PROFESSIONAL ETHICS MODULESTO ALLEVIATE ACCULTURATION BARRIERS FOR INTERNATIONALGRADUATE STUDENTS IN ENGINEERINGByron Newberry, Baylor University Byron Newberry, P.E., Ph.D. Associate Professor of Mechanical Engineering Baylor UniversityWilliam Lawson, Texas Tech University William D. Lawson, P.E., Ph.D. Senior Research Associate, National Institute for Engineering Ethics & Assistant Professor Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering Texas Tech UniversityKathy Austin, Texas Tech University Katherine A. Austin, Ph.D. Assistant Vice President, Information Technology Division, Texas Tech UniversityGreta Gorsuch, Texas Tech University Greta J

Collection

2008 ASEE Midwest Section Conference

Authors

Shannon G. Davis; Bryan W. Hill; Carol S. Gattis; Bradley M. Dearing; Edgar C. Clausen

UASPP: Helping Middle School Teachers Devise Their Own Hands-on Engineering and Science Activities Shannon G. Davis1, Bryan W. Hill1, Carol S. Gattis1, Bradley M. Dearing3 and Edgar C. Clausen2 College of Engineering /Ralph E. Martin Department of Chemical Engineering2 1 University of Arkansas Technology Department3, Illinois State University High SchoolAbstractThe University of Arkansas Science Partnership Program (UASPP) focuses on the professionalgrowth of 6th, 7th and 8th grade science teachers through summer institutes and follow-upactivities. Teachers are teamed with

Conference Session

Interdisciplinary Graduate Programs

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Lyubov Kurkalova, North Carolina A&T State University; Keith Schimmel, North Carolina A&T State University; Stephen Johnston, North Carolina A&T State University

Tagged Divisions

Graduate Studies

Professor of Chemical Engineering, Director of the Energy and Environmental Ph.D. program, and Director of Education and Outreach for the NOAA Interdisciplinary Scientific Environmental Technology Cooperative Science Center at North Carolina A&T State University. He received a B.S. degree in Chemical Engineering from Purdue University. He also holds M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Chemical Engineering from Northwestern University.Stephen Johnston, North Carolina A&T State University Stephen Johnston is retired after more than thirty years working with the Research Triangle Institute (RTI), his last position being Director of RTI’s Public Utility Economics program. He received a B.S

Conference Session

Engineering Professional Development for K-12 Teac

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Stephen Krause, Arizona State University; Robert Culbertson, Arizona State University; Marilyn Carlson, Arizona State University

Tagged Divisions

K-12 & Pre-College Engineering

fundamental knowledge of students in introductory materials engineering classes. Most recently, he has been working on Project Pathways, an NSF supported Math Science Partnership, in developing modules for a courses on Connecting Mathematics with Physics and Chemistry and also a course on Engineering Capstone Design.Robert Culbertson, Arizona State University Robert J Culbertson Robert Culbertson is Associate Professor in the Department of Physics and Astronomy and Associate Director of the Center for Research in Education on Science, Mathematics, Engineering, and Technology (CRESMET) at Arizona State University. He is a member of the Leadership Team in the Math-Science Partnership project, and he

Conference Session

Interdisciplinary Graduate Programs

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Maura Borrego, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University; Lynita Newswander, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University

Tagged Divisions

Graduate Studies

disincentive for interdisciplinary graduateeducation.I. IntroductionInterdisciplinary approaches are necessary for attacking the most critical technological andsocio-technological challenges facing the nation and the world today1-3. Students and theirtraining programs are recognized as central to increasing interdisciplinary research capacity.NSF’s strategic plan states, “Future generations of the U.S. science and engineering workforcewill need to collaborate across national boundaries and cultural backgrounds, as well as acrossdisciplines”3. IGERT, NSF’s $385 million investment in innovative graduate programs, “isintended to catalyze a cultural change in graduate education, for students, faculty, andinstitutions, by establishing innovative new models

Collection

2008 Pacific Southwest Section Meeting

Authors

Paul Blowers; Greg Ogden; Kim Ogden

A Toolbox for Integrating Information Literacy into Engineering Courses: Helping Students Help Themselves Paul Blowers (blowers@engr.arizona.edu), Greg Ogden (gogden@engr.arizona.edu), and Kim Ogden (ogden@erc.arizona.edu) Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering PO Box 210011 The University of Arizona Tucson, AZ 85721-0011 The world has seemed to leap into the information age over the last decade with the rapidexpansion of internet based search tools. However, the access students have to the wide array ofgeneral and scientific information

Conference Session

LabVIEW and Mindstorms Based Experiments

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Joel Dillon, United States Military Academy; Jose Salinas, United States Military Academy

Tagged Divisions

Division Experimentation & Lab-Oriented Studies

any program which intendsto enhance the quality of its engineering design curriculum, particularly in coursesoffered to non-engineering majors. Page 13.618.3IntroductionStudents at the United States Military Academy (USMA) must demonstrate proficiencyin six key domains in order to graduate: ‚ Engineering and Technology ‚ Math and Science ‚ Information Technology ‚ History ‚ Culture ‚ Human BehaviorThe goal of exposing students to each of these areas is to create well-rounded graduateswho appreciate not only history, culture, and the social sciences, but also math andengineering as well. Unfortunately, achieving this goal is

Conference Session

Re-Imagining the Higher Ed Classroom -- Tablet PCs

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Vinod Lohani, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University; Ricky Castles, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University; Aditya Johri, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University; Dewey Spangler, Virginia Western Community College; David Kibler, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University

Tagged Divisions

Computers in Education

degree in computer engineering, also from Virginia Tech. He is also currently in pursuit of a second MS degree in industrial and systems engineering. Mr. Castles research interests include educational modeling and knowledge representation.Aditya Johri, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University Dr. Johri is an assistant professor in the Department of Engineering Education at Virginia Tech. He obtained a PhD in learning science and technology design from Stanford in 2007. Some areas of his research include geographically distributed & virtual work, and design and examination of socio?technical infrastructure for learning.Dewey Spangler, Virginia Western Community College Dewey

Conference Session

Unique Student Opportunities in BME

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Robert Malkin, Duke University

Tagged Divisions

Biomedical

is not meeting their technology needs, students interviewfaculty and staff and try to determine what technology would help them. In some cases, thestudents fabricate a solution on the spot. In other cases, students return to the US to developsolutions or EWH posts the problems on the EWH website (www.ewh.org) for anyone to attemptto solve. Several universities across the US allow their students to solve posted problems fortheir senior design classes. EWH is also developing a new design competition that may addressthese problems as well.Lessons LearnedHospital SelectionWhen EWH first began the program, it was assumed that it would be difficult to find hospitalswilling to accept engineers. We reasoned that they were students with limited

Collection

2008 ASEE Midwest Section Conference

Authors

Shaibal Mukherjee; Pallabi Mukherjee

researchhas led to better vaccinations against infectious diseases such as smallpox, tuberculosis, polio,diphtheria, cholera, and typhoid4. Life expectancy in the United States increased from 47.3years5 in 1900 to 77 years6 in 1999. Medical research and technology, including advances inbiomedical research, is believed to be an important element of the increased life expectancy4.According to a study by Scott et al.7, the enhancement of returns on investment (ROI) forpublicly funded research and development (R&D) range from 20% to 67% depending upon thearea7 (engineering, agriculture and pharmaceuticals, etc.). A recent study on “social rates ofreturn”8 indicates that graduates from a single university in the United States established

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

AC 2008-2311: CENTRIFUGAL PUMP DESIGN, FABRICATION ANDCHARACTERIZATION: A PROJECT-DRIVEN FRESHMAN EXPERIENCEMike Swanbom, Louisiana Tech University Dr. Mike Swanbom received his B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from LeTourneau University in 2002, and his M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Mechanical Engineering from Louisiana Tech University in 2007. His interests include Trenchless Technology and Robotics. He is active in developing online educational tools for instruction of engineering fundamentals. He has been closely involved with the development of innovative project-based curriculum at the freshman and sophomore levels at Louisiana Tech University.David Hall, Louisiana Tech University David Hall

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

satellite data to geodesy and calibration of global satellite data.John Merrill, Ohio State University Dr. Merrill is the Director for the First-Year Engineering Program at The Ohio State University College of Engineering. His current responsibilities include operations, faculty recruiting, curriculum management, student retention, and program assessment. He also works with the Associate Dean for Undergraduate Education & Student Services in the establishment of outcome-based assessment processes for program improvement and accreditation. Dr. Merrill received his PhD in Instructional Design and Technology from The Ohio State University in 1985, and has an extensive background in public

Conference Session

Engineering Student Involvement in K12 Programs

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Lynn Albers, North Carolina State University; Althea Smith, North Carolina State University; Kate Caldwell, North Carolina State University; Jessica McCoy, North Carolina State University; Laura Bottomley, North Carolina State University; Elizabeth Parry, North Carolina State University

Tagged Divisions

K-12 & Pre-College Engineering

and operation of the RAMP-UP program. We also provide thedetails for each of the OST Clubs, which include Energy Club, Math Club and FAME. Inthe section titled, “Impact of RAMP-UP OST Clubs,” we report the quantitative results ofthe surveys collected from students, teachers, Fellows and graduate Fellows.Description of RAMP-UP and OST ClubsRAMP-UP Structure and OperationRAMP-UP, a partnership between North Carolina State University, Shaw University, andNorth Carolina’s Wake County Public School System, is a five-year program funded bygrants from the National Science and GE Foundations. The 2007-2008 program consistsof two principal investigators, one engineering project coordinator, two graduate Fellows,18 Fellows in science, technology

Collection

2008 Spring ASEE Middle Atlantic Section Conference

Authors

Robin K. Burk

, theAcademy currently offers majors in a number of engineering, mathematics, science and humanitiesdisciplines. Students who do not major in an engineering, math or science discipline must complete asequence of 3 courses in one of the seven engineering disciplines for which majors are offered.In their senior year, students complete an integrative experience to synthesize knowledge and skillsnurtured in the core and their majors programs. These experiences “present students with professionallyrelevant situations that include political, social, economic, and technological issues and challenge studentsto anticipate and respond effectively to uncertainty and change.”6 For engineering majors, the experiencetypically consists of a year-long capstone

Conference Session

Global Engineering in an Interconnected World

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Byoung-Kyu Dan, Korea University; Seung-Won Jung, Korea University; Junh-Yung Kim, Korea University; Tae-Shick Wang, Korea University; Aldo Morales, Pennsylvania State University-Harrisburg; Sung-Jea Ko, Korea University

Tagged Divisions

International

embedded video-codingalgorithm with spatial, temporal, and PSNR-scalable bitstreams.I. IntroductionTechnical research enterprise has become increasingly more complex and globallycomprehensive. This circumstance requires collaboration among different researchteams, often involving other countries. As a result of this observation a Memorandum ofUnderstanding between the School of Electronics and Computer Engineering, KoreaUniversity, and the School of Science, Engineering and Technology, Penn StateHarrisburg was signed, in July 2005, stating that: “Whenever possible, to collaborate onthe common research interests of Electronics, Computer and Telecommunicationtechnologies.The two institutions agree on the following terms: • To encourage the

Conference Session

Case Studies & Engineering Education Around the Globe

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Adnan Zahed; Abdullah Bafail; Reda Abdulaal; Ali Al-Bahi

Tagged Divisions

International

13.996.1linguistic and cultural barriers are evaluated.IntroductionFor a long time, engineering institutions in the United States adopted the evaluation criteria ofthe Accreditation Board of Engineering and Technology (ABET) as a well established process toensure the quality of their engineering programs. Seventy years after its establishment, ABETcurrently accredits some 2,700 programs at over 550 colleges and universities nationwide.In a major shift influenced by pressures from industry and global competition, ABET introducedthe Engineering Criteria 2000 (EC2000)1, which addressed the effectiveness of engineeringeducation programs by focusing on assessment and evaluation process that assures theachievement of educational objectives and outcomes. Since it

Conference Session

Gender & Minority Issues in K-12 Engineering

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

LaRuth McAfee, Case Western Reserve University

Tagged Divisions

K-12 & Pre-College Engineering

AC 2008-627: A STUDY ON THE EFFECTIVENESS OF AN INNOVATIVERESEARCH PROGRAM FOR URBAN HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTSLaRuth McAfee, Case Western Reserve University Page 13.117.1© American Society for Engineering Education, 2008 A Study on the Effectiveness of an Innovative Research Program for Urban High School StudentsAbstractIn the United States certain ethnic groups are underrepresented in science, technology,engineering, and math (STEM) fields. National Science Foundation and Census Bureau datashow that, while the population of Blacks and Hispanics in the United States is 12% and 13%,respectively, in STEM undergraduate programs these groups only account for

Conference Session

Innovations in Manufacturing Education

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Jianbiao Pan, California Polytechnic State University; James Harris, California Polytechnic State University; Albert Liddicoat, California Polytechnic State University; Dominic Dalbello, Allan Hancock College

Tagged Divisions

Manufacturing

AC 2008-1165: A PROJECT-BASED ELECTRONICS MANUFACTURINGLABORATORY COURSE FOR LOWER-DIVISION ENGINEERING STUDENTSJianbiao Pan, California Polytechnic State University Dr. Jianbiao (John) Pan is an assistant professor in the Department of Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering at Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo, CA. After completing a PhD at Lehigh University in Industrial Engineering in 2000, he joined the optoelectronics center at Lucent Technologies/Agere Systems as a member of technical staff. He received a M.E degree in Manufacturing Engineering from Tsinghua University, Beijing, China, and a B.E. degree in Mechatronics from Xidian University, Xian, China. Dr. Pan's research interests include

Conference Session

K-12 Engineering and Pre-College Outreach Poster Session

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

John Marshall, University of Southern Maine

Tagged Divisions

K-12 & Pre-College Engineering

students to industrialtechnology and engineering technology career paths.This presentation will identify specific outcomes that resulted from an extremely cost-efficient program. The success and simplicity of the program encourages it’scontinuance with existing high schools and even growth into a greater geographical area.Institutions seeking higher student enrollments in technical degree paths may wish toconsider replicating this simple and exciting programmable logic controller module. Thisstrong recruiting tool has provided us a pipeline of talented new students into theuniversity program.Working Towards a Diverse PopulationAttracting a diverse student population has traditional been a difficult task for theUniversity of Southern Maine. Based

Conference Session

Writing and Portfolios

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Warren Hull, Louisiana State University; Warren Waggenspack, Louisiana State University; Lillian B Bowles, Louisiana State University; Jennifer Farrell, Louisiana State University; David Bowles, Louisiana State University

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

Page 13.709.2techniques.Although informal writing’s importance in the writing process has been well-accepted byEnglish faculty, its adoption has met significant resistance from engineering faculty members,who quite often view this as a burdensome addition to an already demanding academic program.However, the need for implementing such a process gained considerable momentum when it wasacknowledged that the teaching of communication skills was crucial to preparing students forprofessional engineering careers. This need was formalized when the Engineering AccreditationCommission of the Accreditations Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET) put forthcriteria in the Engineering Criteria 2000, specifically criterion 3 under “Program Outcomes