Conference Session

Student Beliefs, Motivation and Self Efficacy

Collection

2014 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Courtney June Faber, Clemson University; Sarah Jane Grigg, Clemson University; Adam Kirn, Clemson University; Justine M. Chasmar; Lisa Benson, Clemson University

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

in the Department of Bioengineering. Her research interests include assessment of motivation, how motivation affects student learning, and student-centered active learning. She is also involved in projects that utilize Tablet PCs to enhance and assess learning, and in- corporating engineering into secondary science and math classrooms. Dr. Benson teaches introductory undergraduate engineering, biomechanics, and graduate engineering education courses. Her education includes a B.S. in Bioengineering from the University of Vermont, and M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Bio- engineering from Clemson University. Page

Conference Session

Thermodynamics, Fluids and Heat Transfer II

Collection

2014 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Amir Karimi, University of Texas, San Antonio; Randall D. Manteufel, University of Texas, San Antonio

Tagged Divisions

Mechanical Engineering

promote a deeperconceptual understanding of integration with an interpretation of the sign and magnitude of theboundary work transfer using a P-v diagram.Examples of Assignments for Enhancement of Student Depth of KnowledgeIn teaching the first course in thermodynamics for many years, authors have learned that thereare certain areas that students struggle throughout semester. We routinely assign specialproblems or mini projects every semester to help students to overcome their struggle withunderstanding of fundamental concepts. (13,14) One area of student difficulties is the evaluation ofthermodynamic properties in the compressed liquid region. Almost all thermodynamic textbooksprovide compressed liquid thermodynamics property tables only for

Conference Session

Materials Division Technical Session 1

Collection

2014 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Stephen J. Krause, Arizona State University; Dale R Baker, Arizona State University; Adam R Carberry, Arizona State University; Terry L. Alford, Arizona State University; Casey Jane Ankeny PhD, Arizona State University; Milo Koretsky, Oregon State University; Bill Jay Brooks, Oregon State University; Cindy Waters, North Carolina A&T State University; Brady J. Gibbons, Oregon State University; Sean Maass; Candace K. Chan, Arizona State University

Tagged Divisions

Materials

integrating technology into effective educational practices and in promoting the use of higher-level cognitive skills in engineering problem solving. His research interests particularly focus on what prevents students from being able to integrate and extend the knowledge developed in specific courses in the core curriculum to the more complex, authentic problems and projects they face as professionals. Dr. Koretsky is one of the founding members of the Center for Lifelong STEM Education Research at OSU.Dr. Bill Jay Brooks, Oregon State University Bill Brooks is a postdoctoral scholar in the School of Chemical, Biological, and Environmental Engineer- ing at Oregon State University. His Ph.D used written explanations to

Conference Session

Entrepreneurship & Engineering Innovation Research Technical Session 7

Collection

2014 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Philip M. Reeves, The Pennsylvania State University; Sarah E. Zappe, Pennsylvania State University, University Park; Elizabeth C. Kisenwether, Pennsylvania State University, University Park; D. Jake Follmer, The Pennsylvania State University; Jessica Menold, Pennsylvania State University, University Park

Tagged Divisions

Entrepreneurship & Engineering Innovation

Engineering Education at Penn State. She holds a doctoral degree in educational psychology emphasizing applied measurement and testing. In her position, Sarah is responsible for developing instructional support programs for faculty, providing evaluation support for educational proposals and projects, and working with faculty to publish educational research. Her research interests primarily involve creativity, innovation, and entrepreneurship education.Prof. Elizabeth C. Kisenwether, Pennsylvania State University, University Park Liz holds a B.S.E.E. from Penn State (1979), and M.S.E.E. degrees from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (1981) and The Johns Hopkins University (1988). She worked in the defense industry for

Conference Session

Measuring Impact: Libraries, Librarians, Instruction, and Institutions

Collection

2014 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Nestor L. Osorio, Northern Illinois University

Tagged Divisions

Engineering Libraries

and others), lists of subject related journals. Librarian's contact - LibGuide's space for the page's owner. Navigation help - gives directions about how to use the LibGuide. Related guides - Guides that offered additional information (subject guides, tutorial guides, etc.). Research ideas - lists of sources where students can find ideas for their projects. The catalog - the library's catalog and others such as WorldCat. Welcome - provides a welcome message to users.This classification scheme was applied to every single page, in this process, labels used forpresenting these materials, services and others, were collected. The labels in Table 1, 2, 11, and12 demonstrated a variety of terminology

Conference Session

Student Learning, Problem Solving, & Critical Thinking 2

Collection

2014 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Nathan M. Hicks, University of Florida; Amy Elizabeth Bumbaco, University of Florida; Elliot P. Douglas, University of Florida

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

.150,151Over time, students value these techniques124 and show growth of engineering maturity andepistemology,143 but tend to mirror the perceptions and values of their instructors.138,150Experiential reflection refers to instances in which students reflect on situations experienceddirectly, virtually, or vicariously, such as: games or simulations;144,151-153 problem based learning,project oriented learning, case studies, and combinations thereof;133,140,154,155 design basedlearning;132,156 service learning;141,157,158 internships;142 and development of programs andsoftware.159 Retrospectively analytical reflection seeks to determine relationships betweenpreviously obtained knowledge and experiences, including: creating diagrammaticrepresentations of

Conference Session

Understanding our Students & Ethical Development

Collection

2014 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Denise Wilson, University of Washington; Mee Joo Kim, University of Washington-Seattle; Rebecca A. Bates, Minnesota State University, Mankato; Elizabeth Burpee

Tagged Divisions

Engineering Ethics

report an increasing writtencommunication workload over time.33 If supervised properly, Wheeler and McDonald reportthat writing allows students to develop and use critical thinking skills.34 While engineeringprograms typically incorporate ill-defined problems for capstone projects—another recognized Page 24.674.4tool for developing critical thinking, writing for reflection will also help develop skills forproblem identification, analysis, metacognition and the formation of value judgements.30,35Snyder & Snyder suggest essay questions rather than simple recall to encourage criticalthinking.25In addition to promoting the development of

Conference Session

Methodological & Theoretical Contributions to Engineering Education 3

Collection

2014 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Christina Smith, Oregon State University; Alec Bowen, Oregon State University; Devlin Montfort, Oregon State University; Milo Koretsky, Oregon State University

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

Professor of Chemical Engineering at Oregon State University. He received his B.S. and M.S. degrees from UC San Diego and his Ph.D. from UC Berkeley, all in Chemical Engineering. He currently has research activity in areas related engineering education and is interested in integrating technology into effective educational practices and in promoting the use of higher-level cognitive skills in engineering problem solving. His research interests particularly focus on what prevents students from being able to integrate and extend the knowledge developed in specific courses in the core curriculum to the more complex, authentic problems and projects they face as professionals. Dr. Koretsky is one of the founding members of the

Conference Session

Computers in Education Division Poster Session

Collection

2014 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Daniel S. Brogan, Virginia Tech; Vinod K. Lohani, Virginia Tech; Randel L. Dymond, Virginia Tech

Tagged Divisions

Computers in Education

including the development of pre-test and post-test assessment questions. Additionally, he has a background in remote sensing, data analysis and signal processing from the University of New Hampshire.Dr. Vinod K Lohani, Virginia Tech Dr. Vinod K Lohani is a professor in the Engineering Education Department and an adjunct faculty in the Civil and Environmental Engineering at Virginia Tech. His research interests are in the areas of sustainability, computer-supported research and learning systems, hydrology, and water resources. In a major ($1M+, NSF) curriculum reform and engineering education research project from 2004 to 2009, he led a team of engineering and education faculty to reform engineering curriculum of an

Conference Session

Engineering Student Experiences

Collection

2014 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Denise Wilson, University of Washington; James J. Pembridge, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical Univ., Daytona Beach; Caitlin H. Wasilewski, Seattle Pacific University

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

research projects , and holding part-timejobs on campus lead to increased retention and the likelihood of interaction with fellow students,faculty, and staff whereas off-campus activities and decentralized activities such as off-campusjobs decrease this involvement 43. The proximity to campus also is negatively correlated withcritical interactions. Students who drive to campus have less interaction with faculty (especiallyseniors) and do not take advantage of co-curricular activities, community service, andinternships. Therefore, students who tend to have a centralized community tend to see gains inpersonal and social competence associated with ethical development, appreciation for diversity,understanding of self, and citizenship 44.MethodsA

Collection

2014 ASEE Zone 1 Conference

Authors

Kai Hu

this progress. Manufacturers set up a disposal center for theRFID technology and its possibilities for various users, rather purpose of environmental protection, and through establishedthan focusing on cost-effectiveness. RFID technology is a disassembly center, manufacturers can recycle products fromtime-consuming project which requires a long-term vision. By

Conference Session

Beyond Students: Issues of Underrepresentation among Parents and Professionals

Collection

2014 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Carlotta A. Berry, Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology; Monica Farmer Cox, Purdue University, West Lafayette; Joyce B. Main, Purdue University, West Lafayette

Tagged Divisions

Minorities in Engineering

mathematics from Spelman College, a M.S. in industrial engineering from the University of Alabama, and a Ph.D. in Leadership and Policy Studies from Peabody College of Vanderbilt Univer- sity. Her teaching interests relate to the professional development of graduate engineering students and to leadership, policy, and change in STEM education. Primary research projects explore the preparation of graduate students for diverse careers and the development of reliable and valid engineering education assessment tools. She is a NSF Faculty Early Career (CAREER) and Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE) recipient.Dr. Joyce B. Main, Purdue University, West Lafayette Joyce B. Main is an Assistant

Conference Session

Issues in ET Education II

Collection

2014 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Leigh Sharma, Southern Polytechnic State University; Christina R. Scherrer, Southern Polytechnic State University

Tagged Divisions

Engineering Technology

question from student perception standpoint. Webelieve investigating real-life performance, instead of student perceptions of their motivation,enhances the ecological validity of our project and decreases the potential for socially desirableresponding. Although there are many possible indicators of motivation (e.g., including grades onlow-point value assignments, attendance and punctuality, rates of non-instructional cellphone/laptop use during class), for this study, we focus on the grades obtained on low point-valueassignments. We believe these assignments may be particularly unmotivating for many studentsbecause they may be seen as a nuisance, given they are such a small component of an overall classgrade, and thus may be easy to dismiss. Our

Conference Session

Innovations in Pedagogy

Collection

2014 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

William H. Guilford, University of Virginia; Michael B. Lawrence, University of Virginia

Tagged Divisions

Biomedical

scores andscores received when serving as a discussant. Right: There is a weak positive trend toward increased scores whenserving as a discussant and overall class participation.Retention and recallWe conducted a 12-month post-test of the students from the inaugural class to determine whetherlearning in the Socratic format improves retention and recall. Twenty multiple-choice questionswere selected from across the semester and re-issued to students using the same online quizprotocol that we used during the semester (QuestionPress). This study was reviewed andexempted by our Social and Behavioral Sciences Institutional Review Board (project 2013-0384-00).Average retention and recall measured mid-semester was 75±4% on the same questions used inthe

Conference Session

ME Laboratories and Undergraduate Research

Collection

2014 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Sriram Sundararajan, Iowa State University; James Dautremont

Tagged Divisions

Mechanical Engineering

students. The experience suggests that anin-lab support person is important and the ability for that individual to communicate with theremote student groups via an audio-visual interface can enhance the student experience. Inaddition to the above, future development of this project includes provision of a means to controlthe PTZ camera, adding an audio feed to give students additional feedback when useful (e.g.fluid flow labs) and developing pre-labs for students to better understand the equipment beingused. We are also considering various means to allow students to conference among separatelocations in and out of lab. Our plan is to refine the remote setups and redeploy for the comingyear and also develop/adapt laboratory experiences in our other

Conference Session

Engineering and Public Policy Division Technical Session 2

Collection

2014 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Don E. Malzahn, Wichita State University; Lawrence E. Whitman, Wichita State University; Ali Ghobahi Katamjani, Wichita State University

Tagged Divisions

Engineering and Public Policy

Page 24.465.13equivalent or are all degrees of the same value? Obviously there are more inputs into the systemof higher education than number of faculty and there are likely other outputs. This is a verysimple structural model.References[1] Massy, W.F., “Initiatives for Containing the Cost of Higher Education,” Stretching the Higher Education Dollar, American Enterprise Institute: Special Report 1, 2013.[2] Duderstadt, J. J., Engineering for a Changing World, The Millennium Project, The University of Michigan, Available at: http://milproj.dc.unich.edu, 2008.[3] College Board Advocacy and Policy Center, Trends in College Pricing , Trends in Higher Education Series, Available at: http://trends.collegeboard.org, 2012.[4] Gabriele

Conference Session

Engineering & Our Global Society

Collection

2014 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

wenjuan wang, Beihang University ; Ming Li, Beihang University; Brent K Jesiek, Purdue University, West Lafayette; Qin Zhu, Purdue University; Jian Yuan, Beihang University; Qing Lei, Beihang University

Tagged Divisions

Liberal Education/Engineering & Society

a modern profession,per Western standards. Confucian liberal learning remains a promising resource that could helpdevelop personal and professional integrity among Chinese engineering students and practicingprofessionals, including in terms of both “micro-ethical” and “macro-ethical” considerations.20At the micro level, Confucianism provides guidelines for how to appropriately deal with human Page 24.474.9relations, including the relations between engineers and other stakeholders. At the macro level, aConfucian outlook offers processes and standards to evaluate the sociopolitical ramifications ofengineering projects in terms of their roles in

Conference Session

Innovative Use of Technology and the Internet in Engineering Education

Collection

2014 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Chirag Variawa, University of Toronto; Susan McCahan, University of Toronto

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

betweenparticipants and computer-assigned scores is much lower; slightly less than 0.7.Currently a group of senior-year students from computer engineering are developing a web-based project based on the modified TF-IDF algorithm. The goal is to make this projectaccessible to people from around the world, so that they can submit their exams for calculation.This is in response to questions asked during ASEE-2013 where instructors wanted access to thissoftware for their own courses. The users of this platform will have their documents categorizedand added to the existing repository, and in return receive a scored wordlist based on themodified TF-IDF algorithm

Conference Session

Cooperative & Experiential Education Division Technical Session 1

Collection

2014 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Manuel D. Rossetti, University of Arkansas; Kim LaScola Needy, University of Arkansas; Edgar C. Clausen, University of Arkansas; Carol Schubert Gattis, University of Arkansas; Micah Hale, University of Arkansas

Tagged Divisions

Cooperative & Experiential Education

to encourage and enable academically talented but financially needy studentsto complete STEM degrees and enter the workforce. The SIIRE project addresses NSF’sprogrammatic goal by integrating external (industry supported) intern or co-op experiences ofstudents with ongoing on-campus engineering research activities to provide a guided pathway toa graduate engineering degree. The requested scholarship funds defray student educational costsduring their sophomore, junior, and senior years of undergraduate study and during 1.5 years oftheir graduate studies.The SIIRE program addresses the following objectives:1. To provide underrepresented and financially needy undergraduate students with information on the benefits and opportunities associated

Conference Session

Curriculum Development and Assessment in Chemical Engineering

Collection

2014 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Debra M. Gilbuena, Oregon State University; Christina Smith, Oregon State University; Bill Jay Brooks, Oregon State University; Milo Koretsky, Oregon State University

Tagged Divisions

Chemical Engineering

educational practices and in promoting the use of higher-level cognitive skills in engineering problem solving. His research interests particularly focus on what prevents students from being able to integrate and extend the knowledge developed in specific courses in the core curriculum to the more complex, authentic problems and projects they face as professionals. Dr. Koretsky is one of the founding members of the Center for Lifelong STEM Education Research at OSU. Page 24.556.1 c American Society for Engineering Education, 2014 Examining Diffusion Networks and Identifying Opinion

Conference Session

Student Learning, Problem Solving, & Critical Thinking 1

Collection

2014 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Oluwatosin Alabi, Purdue University, West Lafayette; Alejandra J. Magana, Purdue University, West Lafayette; R. Edwin Garcia, Purdue University, West Lafayette

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

techniques used by the battery industrythrough leaning the theoretical and practical aspects of battery fabrication. The instructional teamdesigned this course to build students’ conceptual understanding by integrating the usevisualization and graphical artifacts, like the ones depicted in figure two, and engaging thestudents in the use of modeling and computational analysis to complete class projects andhomework assignments.In addition, the instructor focused on teaching students how to model and analyze batterysystems using analytical and computational techniques used by practitioners and research expertsin battery systems design. The computation tool used in the course was the Virtual Kinetics ofMaterials Laboratory (VKML). The VKML tool is an

Conference Session

Topics in Computing and Information Technologies

Collection

2014 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Gholam Ali Shaykhian, NASA; Mohd Abdelgadir Khairi, Najran University

Tagged Divisions

Computing & Information Technology

one entity, this way analytical usage will be easy,project risk reduces, data governance relieved, and the scope and ROI will be limited.However, the technology focus will not solve all business problems which leadcompanies to pursue CDM option [12].Limitation factor: FDM Compensate for SQL limitations at the data source byprocessing parts of a distributed request at the MDM federated server (Godinez et. al.,2010). Confounding factors such as legal constraints limit MDM across geopolitical Page 24.593.4boundaries [3][5][6] do not allow CDM. Another limitation to use CDM is master datalocking in Line of Business (LOB) packaged application.A technology

Conference Session

Student Learning, Problem Solving, & Critical Thinking 2

Collection

2014 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Ben D Radhakrishnan, National University

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

, Page 24.140.7 6playing and demonstrating a game that is relevant to the subject matter and supports courselearning outcomes. In this SCL practice the course team project will be quantified anddemonstrated through a game that the team will design, create, play and demonstrate. Teams aregiven full freedom (empowered) to create/innovate and even to adopt any existing game to suit theproject under study. This SCL has been successfully implemented in more than one course in theMS Sustainability Management program. This particular SCL is perhaps one of the most advancedSCL used in the graduate classes since real world problems need to be well

Conference Session

NSF Grantees’ Poster Session

Collection

2014 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Michael Johnson, Texas A&M University; Xiaobo Peng, Prairie View A&M University; Bugrahan Yalvac, Texas A&M University; Elif Ozturk; Ke Liu, Prairie View A&M University

Tagged Topics

NSF Grantees Poster Session

Tagged Divisions

Division Experimentation & Lab-Oriented Studies

paucity of activities in the curriculum that promoteadaptive expertise 9. There is also a documented lack of opportunity for self-learning in mostengineering curricula 12. This work is part of a larger collaborative research project that examinesthe role of contextual exercises on development of adaptive expertise. This particular study aimsto examine the effects of the introduction of a series of contextual exercises on students’performance in a CAD modeling assessment as well as manifestation of adaptive expertise in anadditional modeling exercise. The role of contextual exercise on CAD modeling procedure isalso examined. The paper is organized as follows. The methods are introduced in the nextsection. This is followed by the results from the

Conference Session

Improving Laboratory Education in Chemical Engineering

Collection

2014 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Jacqueline Gartner Ph.D., Washington State University; David Finkel; Bernard J. Van Wie, Washington State University; Olusola Adesope, Washington State University-Pullman

Tagged Divisions

Chemical Engineering

Education and Community Service: Themes for the Future of Engineering Education. Journal of Engineering Education, 2006. 95(1): p. 7-11.3 Yadav, A., G.M. Shaver, and P. Meckl, Lessons Learned: Implementing the Case Teaching Method in a Mechanical Engineering Course. Journal of Engineering Education, 2010. 99(1): p. 55-69.4 Clark, W.M., D. DiBiasio, and A.G. Dixon. An Integrated, Project-Based, Sprial Curriculum for the First Year of Chemical Engineering. in FIE. 1998. ASEE.5 Lee, C.S., N.J. McNeill, E.P. Douglas, M.E. Koro-Lyungberg, and D.J. Therriault, Indispensable Resource? A Phenomenological Study of Textbook Use in Engineering Problem Solving. JEE, 2013. 102(2): p. 269-288

Conference Session

Computing in the First Year

Collection

2014 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Meagan Eleanor Ita, Ohio State University ; Krista M. Kecskemety, Ohio State University; Katlyn Elizabeth Ashley, Ohio State University; Brooke Morin, Ohio State University

Tagged Divisions

Computers in Education

% of Grade Preparation Assignments 10% Application Assignments 20% Laboratory Assignments 21% Journals 3% Design Project 5% Extra Weekly Assignments 3% BONUS Quizzes 6% Midterm Exams 20% Final Exam 15%There were 13 total class sections of this course made up by 11 standard sections, 1 advancedprogramming section, and 1

Conference Session

ME Curriculum and Assessment

Collection

2014 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Howard N. Shapiro, Iowa State University; Gloria Starns, Iowa State University

Tagged Divisions

Mechanical Engineering

. Online student groups that performed well (B- or higher) also had multiple members inthe group who attended on-line office hours regularly.The workload for the course included two take-home exams, five homework assignments, and afinal project. Given that the course spanned a 6 week period, significant effort was required by thestudents in order to submit assignments by their due dates. Considerable latitude was given on theexams and homework assignments; collaboration was allowed within and across groups. Studentswere allowed and encouraged to post questions to other students and/or the instructor when theywere unable to determine a consistent answer to a problem or to apply concepts. Of the eightteams in the class, four distance education teams

Conference Session

FPD 1: The Path to Engineering

Collection

2014 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Shelley Lorimer, Grant MacEwan University; Jeffrey A. Davis, Grant MacEwan University

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

Paper ID #9596Consistency in Assessment of Pre-Engineering SkillsDr. Shelley Lorimer P.Eng., Grant MacEwan University Dr. Shelley Lorimer, P.Eng. is Chair of the Bachelor of Science in Engineering Transfer Program (BSEN) at Grant MacEwan University in Edmonton, Alberta. She teaches undergraduate courses in statics and dynamics, as well as courses in engineering professionalism. She is currently participating in a research project with Alberta Innovates – Technology Futures in the oil sands and hydrocarbon recovery group doing reservoir simulation of enhanced oil recovery processes. She has a Ph.D. in numerical modeling

Conference Session

The Nature of Innovation and Entrepreneurship Session 4

Collection

2014 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Sarah E. Zappe, Pennsylvania State University, University Park

Tagged Divisions

Entrepreneurship & Engineering Innovation

Paper ID #8627Creative Go-Getters: Antecedents of Entrepreneurial Activities in Engineer-ing UndergraduatesDr. Sarah E Zappe, Pennsylvania State University, University Park Dr. Sarah Zappe is Research Associate and Director of Assessment and Instructional Support in the Leonhard Center for the Enhancement of Engineering Education at Penn State. She holds a doctoral degree in educational psychology emphasizing applied measurement and testing. In her position, Sarah is responsible for developing instructional support programs for faculty, providing evaluation support for educational proposals and projects, and working with

Conference Session

Pedagogy and Learning 1

Collection

2014 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Glenn W. Ellis, Smith College; Halimat A. Ipesa-Balogun, Smith College; Yanning Yu, Northwestern University; Yezhezi Zhang, Smith College; Xi Jiang, Smith College

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

who is pursing a Bachelor Science degree in engineering. Motivated by the importance of education in improving social mobility, she is passionate about engineer- ing education. With a strong interest in learning theories, she has conducted education research with a focus on Knowledge Building theory and the 21st century skills in hopes of designing a more effective learning environment.Miss Xi Jiang, Smith College A Smith College sophomore majoring in engineering, Xi has participated in the knowledge building special study group since last semester. She is also the instructional designer in the project designing online engineering learning environment for hight school students. Being active in extracurriculum life