expanded to include increased utilization as a collaboration tool betweenteams and community sponsors as well as a tool for peer to peer evaluation of project teamprogress.ReflectionFor the fall semester 2012, students were given reflective work as part of the course study.Students were asked to reflect on the following questions: 1. Did having a “real” customer improve your performance? Explain 2. Did you feel that you were helping the community with the project? Explain. 3. Do you see yourself doing service in any community in the future? Has this class experience changed that outlook?Eighty-five percent of students felt that having a “real” customer improved their performance,while 11.5% stated that their experience was improved
research involves cognitive/social psychology studies of science and engineering problem solving and creativity. His educational research and design work focuses on K-12 urban education in writing, science, technol- ogy, engineering, and mathematics—both in isolation and in various combinations.Birdy Reynolds, University of PittsburghMs. Shelly Renee Brown MEd, The Quality of Life Technology Engineering Research Center; University ofPittsburgh Shelly Brown, M.Ed. is an education and outreach coordinator for the QoLT Center at the Human En- gineering Research Laboratories and the University of Pittsburgh Department of Rehabilitation Science and Technology. Ms. Brown is responsible for all K-12 outreach projects and
,the MESA Program has made a substantial contribution to the success of our engineeringprogram.Once our MESA Center was established, it soon became apparent why this space was a criticalcomponent of the MESA Program. It has served as a focal point for student study groups and acentral location for promoting student scholarships, engineering design competitions, internships,and summer undergraduate research opportunities. The Center has been host to tutoring sessionsfor difficult courses, student success seminars, resume writing and job search workshops, as wellas meetings of several science and engineering oriented student organizations on our campus.The Center has also served as a forum for presentations by faculty and student researchers
nanoparticles fabrication and characterization Week 5: Annealing and crystallization of nanomaterials Week 6: Sol-gel-based nanomaterials fabrication and characterization Week 7: Electrospun nanofibers fabrication and characterization Week 8: Nanomaterials-based thermoelectric generators and working principles Week 9: Nanomaterials-based solar energy systems Week 10: Bionanomaterials Figure 1. The photograph showing some of the high school students with the GTA in the Nanolab prior to the nano experiment.Figure 1 shows the photograph of some of the high school students with the GTA in the Nanolabprior to the nano experiment. Following these experiments, the students were asked to write
withinternational peers. It is increasingly important for engineering students to develop a globalprofessional perspective during their training, and an international educational experience is anexceptional way to allow students to gain an understanding of engineering within the context ofanother culture. This paper describes the fourth edition of the annual SEAS/Poli-USPCollaborative Field Course, a joint program of Harvard's School of Engineering and AppliedSciences (SEAS), the Escola Politécnica of the Universidade de São Paulo (Poli-USP), andHarvard’s David Rockefeller Center for Latin American Studies (DRCLAS). This innovativecourse, which brought together 13 students from Harvard and 15 students from USP, was held inBrazil in January 2013 and focused
communication, as a two-way process, is paramount to anengineer’s success. Yet the emphasis on developing communication skills in manyengineering courses is limited to the one-way delivery of discipline-specific informationthrough technical writing and the occasional oral presentation, supported by text and imageson a screen. Oral communication in the broadest context is a learnable skill.[5] Despite this,studies from around the world reveal that it is the competency most frequently reported as Page 21.46.2being deficient in the engineering workplace. [6-8, 10]Oral communication, like many skills identified by employers as insufficiently developed
computerizedscoring of student work (Jordan & Mitchell, 2009) and computer-supported peer review (Wood,2009), and considerable success has been found by enhancing lecture time using an interactiveclassroom format and frequent in-class assessment (Hake, 1998; Knight & Wood, 2005).Instructors employing in-class assessment frequently turn to technology including audienceresponse systems (ARS) which are most often dedicated handheld transmitters often known as“clickers”, which include TurningPoint (“Turning Technologies,” n.d.) and iClicker (“iClicker,”n.d.). These approaches have been widely used and their impact on engagement and learning hasbeen presented widely.Clickers have been shown to improve student outcomes (Caldwell, 2007) such as improved
regarding the pros and cons of various energysources. Succeeding in this role requires that the player understand and apply the knowledgeabout power and energy systems learned in both the classroom and the game environment,together with the writing skills to collect appropriate evidence and compose a persuasive piece ofwriting. In fact, the game is designed in the way that automatically composes a final report forthe player by using every justification the player provides in the question prompts (Fig. 1b) atdifferent game stages.Fig. 1: (a) Chat with Mayor for the assignment; (b) a question prompt after a player visited the Mayor's roomAfter players exit the city hall, they must talk to different power system experts located in officesspread
heavilysubsidized tuition), the combination of participation in (a) a scholarship program and (b)academic support services resulted in higher academic achievement and retention for females(but both males and females used support services and peer advising at higher rates) compared togroups of students who participated in either (a) or (b) but not both. In the book Talking AboutLeaving, Why Undergraduates Leave the Sciences, 3 it is stated that nationally 40 percent ofundergraduate students leave engineering programs, 50 percent leave the physical and biologicalsciences programs, and 60 percent leave mathematics programs to pursue other non-STEMprograms.Recent findings from the Academic Pathways Study (APS) have shown that among the factorsthat predict the
transformers, important elements in protective relaying schemes.Students run experiments to identify fuse conductors through high current applications andexamine waveform phenomena of saturated CT cores. Separately, EM relay and digital relay Page 23.90.2setting calculations and testing for different types of faults are performed. Using ASPEN andETAP system simulation software, students record and analyze information regarding systemparameters under fault conditions for balanced three-phase faults, single-line faults andline-to-line faults for both radial and looped systems. Students use Matlab to write settingscalculations, obtained in course lectures
identity; her research focuses specifically on creativity, interdisciplinarity, and the role of emotion in cognition. She created the synthesis and design studios in the environmental engineering program and is currently developing the professional and design spines for the upcoming mechanical engineering program. She is also interested in faculty development and recently co-organized the NSF-sponsored PEER workshop for tenure-track engineering education research faculty. Page 23.1145.1 c American Society for Engineering Education, 2013 Teaching Journeys of Engineering Faculty
351Figure 1. Active-engagement vs. traditional instruction for improving students’ conceptualunderstanding of basic physics concepts (taken from Laws et al.,1).Although the exact definition of inquiry-based instruction varies somewhat between differentinvestigators, we will use the defining features offered by Laws et al.1 and highlighted by Princeand Vigeant5.Table 1: Elements of Inquiry-Based Activity Modules (a) Use peer instruction and collaborative work (b) Use activity-based guided-inquiry curricular materials (c) Use a learning cycle beginning with predictions (d) Emphasize conceptual understanding (e) Let the physical world be the authority (f) Evaluate student
institutions, statics is typically taken in the fall ofsecond year for civil, environmental, mechanical and aerospace engineering students. Theonly engineering course that the students have taken before statics is the first yearcornerstone course, an experience that is dwarfed by the rest of the first year load of basicscience and mathematics pre-requisite courses. The statics classroom can be one of thefirst true acculturation experiences for these future engineers. This is one of the firsttimes these students are amongst only their departmental peers and are being taught by aprofessor from their home department. Thus, the statics course has a significant role toplay in setting the tone for the years to come, and in introducing students to
writing, design and execution of an experimental plan andself-recognition of their plan). The modified, selected portfolio element rubrics were structuredin a way that competencies into two domains, cognitive and intrapersonal, could be assessed.For example, self- and peer-evaluations were included as part of the rubrics/guidelines to assessinterpersonal domains for select assignments. Additional assessment of all domains included aknowledge pre- and post-survey, team-based progress reports, quizzes, and oral presentations.For this proceeding paper, we will focus on results obtained from the knowledge surveys andsome portfolio elements and reports (Appendix C) to identify what skills and competencies, ifany, were enhanced as a result of the
. Semester-to-semester two-year persistence rates of Cañada students by ethnicity. Page 23.997.3Improving the post-secondary student retention and success has been the subject of many studies.For example, Kuh’s multi-phased study identified high-impact practices including first-yearseminars and experiences, common intellectual experiences, learning communities,writing-intensive courses, collaborative assignments and projects, undergraduate research,diversity/global learning, service learning/community-based learning, internships, and capstonecourses and projects.7 Another study published by the California State University Chancellor'sOffice shows
and writing components to the two freshman introduction to engineering coursesat the University of Pittsburgh, though continued practice through various course and universityactivities was also encouraged. Specifically for engineers, we can look to the attributes listed forThe engineer of 202013 – strong analytical skills tops the list, but here the list starts to match andexpand the list in the introduction. The engineer of 2020 needs skills in practical ingenuity,creativity, communication, business and management, leadership, along with high ethicalstandards, sense of professionalism, dynamism, agility, resilience and flexibility. Encompassedin this is the imperative for engineers to be lifelong learners.8 Here is the telling paragraph
experiences rely on final reports and presentations for formal evaluation ofperformance, capstone experiences that include a traditional course component also use regularquizzes and examinations on the design content being instructed.17 Further, many engineeringprograms have found it useful to include peer evaluations, which translate to a team grade aswell as an individual grade to accurately evaluate student performance during these capstoneexperiences.6Capstone models can also vary by capstone course lecture content. Many capstone modelsencompass both a lecture component and the applied capstone design project. While this is themost common implementation, not all capstone models include a lecture component. Rather,they focus on the applied design
information pathways and observed the resulting performance. In assessing theoverall achievement and results of the study, the reviewers concluded that “the mechanism usedin Escherichia coli to combat heat shock is just what a well trained control engineer woulddesign, given the signals and the functions available.”35One can easily see that these kinds of conclusions naturally lead to interesting discussions abouthow such exquisite engineering can emerge by accident. Nevertheless, researchers continue toapply reverse engineering techniques to natural systems simply because it works. Biologist E. O.Wilson writes, “The surest way to grasp complexity in the brain, as in any other biologicalsystem, is to think of it as an engineering problem…Researchers
to advertise and promote the scholarship program. This effortincluded high school visits and teacher networking, participation in college day fairs and internetposting through various websites. After months of effort in the middle of Japan’s Fukushimanuclear disaster, a total of seventeen applications were eventually received by April 1st deadline.Secondly, a scholarship selection committee was formed by the university faculty, staff and alocal industry representative to provide a fair selection process. The selection criteria includedactual class rank, SAT/ACT scores, financial need status, reference letters, essay writing skillsand whether the candidate was first generation U.S. resident college student. Each committeemembers’ rankings
Page 23.389.6• Generate shapes • Hypothesize and correct for distortions in the shape • Write a technical paper and deliver a technical presentation of findings These are detailed below. • Mechanical Assembly The mechanical assembly task proved to be an effective means of immediately engaging the students in the project. In particular, harvesting the laser diode from a common laser pointer and re-‐purposing it for the project offered a “tear-‐down” 7 and re-‐engineering opportunity that elicited many questions about how the device functioned and how the laser pointer itself is manufactured. Further, de-‐soldering unwanted
portfolios include ateaching philosophy, sample syllabi and course material, assessment material, and a discussionof the application of teaching theory to practice. This project occurs while students develop theiracademic CV and cover letters from the seminar-based aspect of the PPIT program. Theintention is for each student to be well on their way in developing a course as they begin theiractual academic searches. In addition to these activities, students are expected to deliver a 20-minute microteaching activity in the presence of their peers and course staff. This is essentially avideotaped lecture of each student, pending their approval, where the video is returned to eachstudent for personal self-reflection. Students then write a brief
the other hand,laboratory courses and engineering design courses are often used to teach communication andteamwork skills 1. Typical communication skills include, but are not limited to, maintaininglab/design notebooks, writing technical reports, and oral presentations. A project-based coursemay also include writing a proposal.On-line collaboration tools, also known as groupware, are widely used in many organizations toimprove their productivity and the quality of their products. Currently, Wikipedia includes over95 software tools 2. Types of collaboration tools include bulletin (discussion) boards for threadeddiscussions, public folders for sharing documents, and version control systems for concurrentediting software source codes or CAD
students you know don’t seem to get it at first so. It’s brand new so that how most learning experiences are. I think it’s a decent method.Some TA’s also have difficulty understating the intention for some parts of the activity, thusmade it difficult to help students. Peter mentioned: I think [students] are in the same position as a lot of peer teachers (UTAs), they don’t understand why they are doing, like they are given a problem this person wants them to do this... but their immediate reaction is well why.. what am I gaining from this.. I mean yeah they know how to write a memo now and they can make a procedure and they can give user feedback, but I don’t think they understand the purpose behind it like
learned how to collaboratewith their peers from a different cultural environment residing in different time zones.IntroductionUniversities have the responsibility to educate their engineering students in such a way that theyare able to provide effective and responsible solutions to human-social-environmental needs asan individual as well as a member of a team after graduation with a BS degree in engineering.Engineering capstone design projects are typically taught by forming a team of several studentsfrom the same discipline. However, it is not enough to make them competent workers in today’sglobal market or to act as a better workforce. Universities need to prepare students to be able towork in a diversified environment so that they can interact
'better' than their peers, and hence Khan Academyserves a supplemental purpose to learning as well. Khan Academy videos are notrecommended for people experienced with the subject at hand, as Khan gives thebasics only. However, if students wish to refresh their skills, Khan Academy is agreat place to go to, due to its exercises and videos. Khan Academy is a greatplace to learn, as Khan rewards you for learning more. A small improvementwould be the 'review' system- after a student has completed a set of exercises,after a while, Khan Academy marks the exercise as needing review. Students haveto go through the entire set of exercises again to get rid of the review marker.Another MOOC which is rapidly gaining traction in their course offerings
cognition. She created the synthesis and design studios in the environmental engineering program and is currently developing the professional and design spines for the upcoming mechanical engineering program. She is also interested in faculty development and recently co-organized the NSF-sponsored PEER workshop for tenure-track engineering education research faculty. Page 23.597.1 c American Society for Engineering Education, 2013 Faculty Reflections on a STEAM-Inspired Interdisciplinary Studio CourseAbstractConcerns regarding America’s
Time management 4.50 Presentation Importance of Skills to Career Path Writing Teamwork Leadership 4.00 Research Teaching 3.50 3.00 2.50 2.00 2.00 2.50 3.00
interested in transferring to a bachelor’s program in engineering.The purpose of the course is to introduce potential Grove students to the practice of engineering Page 23.249.4research in the engineering disciplines the school offers. The course consists of a group researchassignment, lab and library visits, guest lectures on engineering ethics and statistics, groupreports and presentations, math tutoring, and writing exercises analyzing a research article andexploring a research problem. A program description is provided in appendix 2. The studentswere recruited by Grove’s office of student programs using its contacts in many communitycolleges and
which aligns “with contextual knowingand with synthetic and evaluative tasks. (p. 4)” 31 Another tool, originally termed the curriculardebrief and now termed the Engineering Professional Skills Assessment (EPSA), was developedat Washington State University to measure all of the ABET professional skills criteriasimultaneously 32, 33. This assessment places students on teams and tasks them with a complex,real-world scenario, giving them merely 45 minutes to “determine the most important problem/sand to discuss stakeholders, impacts, unknowns, and possible solutions. (p. 2)” 33 Other morecommonly used tools such as performance reviews and peer assessments have also beenreported.In order to help engineering students acquire proficiency in
B. The multidisciplinarity of EPICS can create challenges but we have developedassessment tools that can be used for all majors. The assessment are based on the ABETlanguage but with “engineering” replaced by “your discipline” and “technical” with“disciplinary”. This allows each student to read into his or her expertise and be evaluated againstthe criteria. Using terms like “professional preparation” allows the tools to be used acrossmajors effectively. In addition, Peer Evaluation and Feedback are also done for each student ineach team. They include self-evaluation and anonymous evaluations from peers that are used tosupplement the individual documentation.Project EvaluationsProject Evaluations are done for each team. The individual grade