Conference Session

NSF Grantees Poster Session

Collection

2009 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Hamid Vakilzadian, University of Nebraska, Lincoln; Dietmar Moeller, University of Hamburg

programming.6. Quality AssuranceThe mission of university education is to contribute to society through the pursuit ofeducation, learning, and research at the highest international levels of excellence [8]. In orderto ensure that the quality and excellencies of learning and teaching maintained, the M&Sprogram in electrical engineering needs to embed a quality assurance procedure which allowsexamination and reflection and enhances teaching activities. Hence, quality assurance processhas to review the teaching, learning, and assessment activities, including curriculum contentand design, at appropriate regular intervals. Normally this would be at least annually, as partof a review of the quality statement or in response to reports of examiners or

Conference Session

Instructional Strategies in AEC Education

Collection

2009 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Ahmed Megri, University of Wyoming

Tagged Divisions

Architectural

wall enclosures to identify specific ratings and their limits (i.e., smoke partitions, smoke barriers, one, two, four-hour ratings, and 2/3/4-fire walls) (show on life safety plan and all floor plans.). Provide any fire-resistance rated wall, column, beam, floor/ceiling, roof/ceiling assemblies, fire rated head-of-wall joints, curtain walls, and fire stopping penetrations through fire rated construction. Provide details in their entirety, including design illustrations and material specifications (use the UL Directory). Provide a reflected ceiling plan showing lights, diffusers, exit sign, sprinkler heads, smoke detectors and emergency lights, etc. International Building Code design philosophy is based on a prescriptive

Conference Session

SE Curriculum and Course Management

Collection

2009 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Zulfa Zakaria, IIUM

Tagged Divisions

Software Engineering Constituent Committee

for Category 1 (V&V Terminology and Foundations), Category 2(Reviews), and Category 3 (Testing).The survey results elicited here indicate that it is important to enhance the learning and teachingcoverage of Software V&V topics. This is especially apparent, for instance, in the case of unittesting that is commonly applied in industry [8] and also in the case of topics that reflect otherindustry needs [6]. The suggested PBL industry project-based course which blends withchallenging software V&V testing activities and the use of the Pex tool (to encourage TDDpractice) is to be targeted so as to attract those BSE graduate students who are interested infurthering their careers as software testers. This course aims at combining the five

Conference Session

Knowing Our Students, Faculty, and Profession

Collection

2009 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Ashlyn Munson, Colorado School of Mines; Barbara Moskal, Colorado School of Mines; Alka Harriger, Purdue University

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

. The results and opinions expressed hereinare that of the authors and do not necessarily reflect that of the NSF. Page 14.1104.3II. MethodsThis section describes the design of the 2008 student portion of the SPIRIT summer workshop,the target student population, and the quantitative and qualitative methodologies that were used.A. Workshop DesignThe 2008 SPIRIT summer workshop consisted of a two week summer institute. Teachersparticipated in the full two week program while guidance counselors and students participated inthe second week only. During week one of the workshop, teachers were educated about ITcareers and the integration of the Alice

Conference Session

Panel: Forming an Interdisciplinary Research Collaboration

Collection

2009 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Julie Mills, University of South Australia; Judith Gill, University of South Australia; Suzanne Franzway, University of South Australia; Rhonda Sharp, University of South Australia

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

in researchprojects related to women in engineering, in both the professional workplace and educationcontexts. What is unusual about this particular research group is the widely varying disciplinebackgrounds of the members. The group comprises professors in feminist economics, sociology,education and civil engineering. The collaboration has faced numerous challenges in terms ofgeography, methodology, availability, finding a common language and understanding, differingpractice in the various disciplines with respect to writing for publication and what grants count.This paper identifies four inter-related themes that have emerged from our reflections on ourexperience of gender-based multidisciplinary research.IntroductionMultidisciplinary

Conference Session

Sustainable Education and the Environment

Collection

2009 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Roger Beardsley, Central Washington University; Stephen Morton, Central Washington University

Tagged Divisions

Energy Conversion and Conservation

that the combustion creates some NO2. According to the IPCCreport, both methane and NO2 have Global Warming Potential (GWP) values that far exceed theeffect of an equivalent mass of CO2. For CH4, the GWP = 23; for NO2, the GWP = 296 (GWPfor CO2 = 1)4. The CA-CP calculator assumes a constant value of 3940 BTU per passenger-milefrom year 2000 on, and does not automatically update the value to reflect decreasing (orincreasing) energy intensity per passenger mile. The Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS)tracks this data value7, and it should be updated for current years in the CA-CP calculator(EF_Transportation sheet, column BF).Data Point Calculator Assumptions Data value in CA-CP spreadsheet3Fuel Efficiency

Conference Session

Getting Started: Objectives, Rubrics, Evaluations, and Assessment

Collection

2009 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Kathy Schmidt, University of Texas, Austin; Mia Markey, University of Texas, Austin; Wonsoon Park, University of Texas, Austin

Tagged Divisions

New Engineering Educators

your classroom thatyou want to explore and to want to study it. Just don’t jump in without thoroughly thinking aboutwhat you are questioning and how to best get an in-depth look. Not only will a haphazardapproach create problems with data accuracy and storage, but if you fail to overlook existingempirical findings, your results are limited. Furthermore, if you are new to educational researchapproaches, it is wise to take a look at existing literature and its implications.As you conduct classroom research, you will reflect and review your teaching. This processallows you to refine and improve. An iterative cycle of reflection and improvement is good forboth teaching and learning processes.3. Research with Human ParticipantsIf you are going to

Conference Session

Mechanical Engineering Poster Session

Collection

2009 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Kathy Schmidt, University of Texas, Austin; Juan Garcia, University of Texas, Austin; Michael Webber, University of Texas, Austin

Tagged Divisions

Mechanical Engineering

interactions, reflection andto facilitate between class communications. According to Winer, “a Web log is a hierarchy oftext, images, media objects, and data, arranged chronologically, that can be viewed in an HTMLbrowser.” 6 Blogs are easy to construct for all that is needed is a Web browser and an Internetpublishing service. Given their ease of use and their proliferation, they are used frequently in alllevels of education. The pedagogical paradigm that supports the use of blogs in educationalsettings is Vygotsky's educational theory that states children learn from social interaction.7College students, however, also bring lived experiences to their learning. The use of a blog thatprovided as images, multimedia, audio, and text is a good way for

Conference Session

Multidisciplinary Design Constituents

Collection

2009 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

James Farison, Baylor University; Zhuocheng Yang, Baylor University

Tagged Divisions

Multidisciplinary Engineering

evaluators needed changes each year and with each accreditation cycle, as illustrated bythe data presented here in comparison with that of papers from the previous years of ASEE’snew accreditation role.12,13,14 Based on the current listing from the ABET website4 as compiledin Table 2, Table 3 gives the number of institutions and the numbers of multidisciplinaryengineering program accreditation visits implied for the six-year accreditation cycle from 2008-09 through 2013-14. Clearly, there is a wide variation reflected by those data in the anticipatedworkload from year to year, ranging from five programs at five institutions in 2008-09 to 20programs at 20 institutions in 2011-12. In addition to the numbers of visits over that six-yearcycle indicated

Conference Session

Engaging Students in Learning

Collection

2009 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

John Marshall, University of Southern Maine

Tagged Divisions

Engineering Technology

” or “loose it” brain. Activities designed to engage the brain canhelp grow dendrites, which is the wiring that connects brain cells. The more ways we find toprocess information the stronger learning (i.e., neural connections between brain cells) becomes.Research is proving that to enhance learning, we should be involving students in lessons byproviding a non-threatening environment which allows them time to ask questions, seek Page 14.380.2solutions, reflect, share thinking about a theme or topic, and respond to other's viewpoints.In short, as teachers, we need to be able to accomplish learning by doing. Action helps to growthe brain. The

Conference Session

Knowing Our Students, Faculty, and Profession

Collection

2009 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Janel Sutkus, Carnegie Mellon University; Donald Carpenter, Lawrence Technological University; Cynthia Finelli, University of Michigan; Trevor Harding

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

the students and asked thecampus liaison to select faculty and administrators either involved in ethics education or withknowledge of how ethics was included within the curriculum. Each participant completed a briefanonymous questionnaire which allowed us to aggregate their demographic characteristics.Student participants reflected the demographics of engineering students nationwide, with two-thirds of the participants being male, seventy-five percent studying civil, mechanical, orelectrical and computer engineering, and two-thirds being white3. In addition, the participantswere distributed almost evenly across freshman, sophomore, junior, and senior/fifth-year classes.Nearly sixty percent were members of a professional engineering student

Conference Session

Instrumentation in Education

Collection

2009 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Asad Yousuf, Savannah State University; Yan Zeng, Savannah State University

Tagged Divisions

Instrumentation

method (8,9,10). We believe this would be a good lab exercise for the studentsand advanced experiment skill for those students who will conduct their research inchemical physics area in the future.References1. “Spectroscopy and Principles of Spectroscopy” Clark, R.N. Manual of RemoteSensing, A. Rencz, Editor, John Wiley and Sons, Inc. 1999.2. “Reflectance Spectroscopy: Quantitative Analysis Techniques for Remote SensingApplications”, Clark, R.N. and T.L. Roush, J. Geophys. Res., 89, 6329-6340, 1984.3. “Mapping with Imaging Spectrometer Data Using the Complete Band Shape Least-Squares Algorithm Simultaneously Fit to Multiple Spectral Features from MultipleMaterials”, Clark, R.N., G.A. Swayze, A. Gallagher, N. Gorelick, and F.Kruse, Proceedings of

Conference Session

Think Outside the Box! K-12 Engineering Curriculum

Collection

2009 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Milo Koretsky, Oregon State University; Debra Gilbuena, Oregon State University; Adam Kirsch, Crescent Valley High School

Tagged Divisions

K-12 & Pre-College Engineering

3. Familiarization with the Software – Impacting Si3N4 Deposition Assignment. (185 min.) VCVD Worksheet I. (150 min.) 5. Peer Review / 6. Additional Testing / Report Revision – (One 7. Report Reflection (45 min.) week given outside of class to complete) Submittal Figure 5. Activities for the Virtual CVD project in the Chemistry classes.Within the Chemistry classes, the utilization of the Virtual CVD Laboratory was more directed,although, once again, tasks were framed within the situated context of the project. Instructorsremained owners of a company utilizing the CVD process, however this time student groupsrepresented consultants hired by

Conference Session

Engineering in the Middle Grades

Collection

2009 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Christine Schnittka, University of Virginia; Randy Bell, University of Virginia; Larry Richards, University of Virginia

Tagged Divisions

K-12 & Pre-College Engineering

design challenge.There is a “need to know” each particular science concept built into the curriculum. Theperformance objectives are derived from the Virginia Standards of Learning8, the NationalScience Education Standards9, and the Benchmarks for Science Literacy10, and placed in orderfrom the simplest behavior to the most complex on Bloom’s taxonomy scale.11The Save the Penguins ETK curriculum is outlined in Figure 1. It begins with the teacherperforming some engaging demonstrations about heat transfer. In these demonstrations, theteacher models the experimental methods as the “more knowledgeable other,” and students areshown how to undertake these methods on their own in social groups. The teacher then elicitsdiscussions and reflections on the

Conference Session

Engineering Collaboration: Faculty and Student Involvement in K-12 Programs

Collection

2009 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Elizabeth Eschenbach, Humboldt State University; Mary Virnoche, Humboldt State University; Lonny Grafman, Humboldt State University; Forrest Stamper, Hoopa Valley High School; Laura Atkins, Humboldt State University; Rebecca Raymond, Humboldt State University; Katie Mills, Humboldt State University

Tagged Divisions

K-12 & Pre-College Engineering

Humboldt State University(HSU) had the following objectives for secondary science and math teachers as stated in theInvitation to Participate (Appendix A): • Provide opportunities to experience the engineering design process first hand; teacher teams will complete a hands-on engineering design project at the institute. • Provide opportunities for reflection and curriculum planning during the institute. Participants will leave with tangible products to use during the school year. • Develop awareness of existing engineering secondary school curriculum, K-12 engineering education research (see www.teachengineering.com). • Develop a community of teachers interested in pursuing engineering approaches to teaching

Conference Session

Exemplary Outreach Programs in Engineering Education

Collection

2009 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Pamela Lottero-Perdue, Towson State University

Tagged Divisions

K-12 & Pre-College Engineering

population ofBGC summer program attendees (32% female). Also reflective of this population is the ethnicdiversity in the SEAS Club: 8 members of the SEAS Club (35%) were African American; 2 (9%)were Hispanic; and 13 (56%) were white. SEAS Club participants were not asked about theirsocioeconomic (SES) status, however, according to a BGC leader, the SEAS Club and BGCsummer program participants had SES levels ranging from low- to mid-level.SEAS Club participants were not asked to divulge report cards or grades. Anecdotal evidencerevealed that there was a wide range in scholastic achievement among the participants, and manychildren described themselves as having great difficulty with reading and writing.Club ActivitiesClub activities were centered on

Conference Session

Engineering Design: Implementation and Evaluation

Collection

2009 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Gül Okudan, Pennsylvania State University; Alexander Yin, Pennsylvania State University; Saraj Gupta, Pennsylvania State University; Lisa Lattuca, Pennsylvania State University; Patrick Terenzini, Pennsylvania State University

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

flexible manner in a cycle of reflection-action-re-reflection7. All of these have implications for the pedagogy that might be chosen to convey andprepare the setting for design learning.Despite their contributions to the design research, shortcomings of these approaches exist inexplaining, (or taking into account) the relationships between the design practice, design context,and design team performance. For example, the normative approach isolates design tasks fromtheir wider context 8,9. It neglects most of the specific factors and constraints designers need tocope with, such as economic constraints, time pressure and teamwork10. The empirical approachhas not been always theory based – a clear direction of research sometimes has been missing9

Conference Session

Infusing Engineering Content Through Curricular Innovation

Collection

2009 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Michael Pelletier, Northern Essex Community College; Linda Desjardins, Northern Essex Community College; Paul Chanley, Northern Essex Community College; Lori Heymans, Northern Essex Community College

Tagged Divisions

K-12 & Pre-College Engineering

starting the Teacher Educator Institute, each of the twenty-two lead teachers filledout a participant survey. Tables V, VI and VII tabulate the participant survey responsesand reflect the number of years the teachers have been employed in education, theireducational backgrounds, and reasons for participation respectively. Table V: Number of Years Employed in Education Years in Education 3 3.5 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 13 16 17 20 Number of 3 1 2 2 2 2 2 1 1 1 1 1 1 Teachers Page 14.998.9 Table VI: Educational Background of the Lead Teachers Subject

Conference Session

Educational Research

Collection

2009 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

B. Kyun Lee, LeTourneau University; Paul Leiffer, LeTouneau University; R. William Graff, LeTourneau University; Vicki Sheafer, LeTourneau Iniversity

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

14.1293.4were researchers who could design different tasks. Most studies of cognitive styles weredescriptive, did not attempt to elucidate the underlying nature of the construct or relate styles toinformation processing theories, and were designed according to the assumption that styles arelimited to only very basic information processing operations. The main message of the researchis that styles represent relatively stable individual differences in preferred ways of organizingand processing information that cut across the personality and cognitive characteristics of anindividual.Despite declining interest in styles among cognitive scientists by the end of the 1970s, thenumber of publications on styles in applied fields increased rapidly, reflecting

Conference Session

Women in K-12 Engineering

Collection

2009 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Michelle Porche, Wellesley Centers for Women; Corinne McKamey, Wellesley Centers for Women; Peter Wong, Museum of Science

Tagged Divisions

K-12 & Pre-College Engineering

a dichotomous variable reflecting being on anengineering track if all three types of courses had been or were currently being taken (1)or otherwise coded as (0) if less than all three types taken. Because a number of studentsmay reasonably enroll in community colleges rather than 4-year institutions to attain anengineering specialty or to later transfer into a 4-year college, we included algebracourses as counting toward pre-calculus.Science Identity Salience. A single item was constructed for this study; students wereasked how much they agreed or disagreed with the item: “My interest in science is animportant part of how I see myself” (1 = disagree a lot, 4 = agree a lot).Self Concept of Ability in Math. Three items are a subset of the

Conference Session

Focus on Faculty

Collection

2009 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Barbara Hacker, California State Polytechnic University, Pomona; Winny Dong, California State Polytechnic University, Pomona; Mary Lucero Ferrel, California State Polytechnic University, Pomona

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

and informal mentoring at Cal Poly Pomona. Theirfeedback and reflections on the above five programmatic issues were collected. This processaccomplished three things. The first is a better understanding of the climate for mentoring at CalPoly Pomona. (Are faculty members seeking mentoring and are they currently receivingmentoring in their departments and colleges?) The second benefit of the interviews was asummary of previous mentoring programs’ successes and pitfalls. The third benefit was the buy-in of these senior women; without their full participation the ‘Mentoring Circles’ could not besuccessful.The Mentoring Circles Program created networks across ranks, departments, and colleges. TheMentoring Circle structure would provide support to

Conference Session

NSF Grantees Poster Session

Collection

2009 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Mark Yeary, University of Oklahoma; Tian-you YU, University of Oklahoma; Robert Palmer, University of Oklahoma; James Sluss, University of Oklahoma; Guifu Zhang, University of Oklahoma; Phil Chilson, University of Oklahoma; Mike Biggerstaff, University of Oklahoma

andManagement Systems (BESTEAMS)” was to provide a team curriculum that can be easilyadopted by engineering faculty from various schools and at different levels of the undergraduatecurriculum [37].At the current time, student activities are numerous. Computing algorithms are studied andimplemented that convert radar data from the phased array radar into environmentalmeasurements known as spectral moments – very similar to previous researchers associated withconventional rotating weather radars [38, 39, 40]. Spectral moments (reflectivity, radial velocity,and spectrum width) are the essential, required radar meteorological measurements that are usedto make decisions about cloud locations, storms, rain fall, tornadoes, downbursts, hail and

Conference Session

Enhancing Recruitment and Retention in Engineering Education

Collection

2009 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Gary Winn, West Virginia University; Laura Winn, Waynesburg Central High School; Reagan Curtis, West Virginia University; Robin Hensel, West Virginia University

Tagged Divisions

K-12 & Pre-College Engineering

college application process, ACT/SAT tests, etc., can offer greatpeer-to-peer insight to younger, less-experienced students. For a sample of those insights, see,“My View From the Trenches: Reflections About Peer Mentoring in the Information Age,”attached here.Research ObjectivesIn evaluating the adaptation of the social stress model to STEM career choices with respect to theeffect of peer influence on Appalachia area high school students, we asked these questions: 1. What effect does peer influence have on learning math tips, SAT/ACT preparation, or challenging academic material when presented to high school students by peers during our EOT summer camp? 2. What effect does peer influence play when a high school

Conference Session

Assessment and Curriculum Development

Collection

2009 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Elizabeth Godfrey, University of Auckland; Rosalind Archer, University of Auckland; Paul Denny, University of Auckland; Margaret Hyland, University of Auckland; Chris Smaill, University of Auckland; Karl Stol, University of Auckland

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

the students straight into an engineering way of thinking” Interview with Dean of Engineering, July 1997 from Godfrey20The new structure embraced the ideas of: reducing the workload to make time for moreindependent learning and reflection, increasing the use of project based learning in allsubjects, including at least one Design course in each year of each specialization andincluding explicit common core courses to prepare graduates for professional life includingsocial and environmental responsibilities. “The IEAust Review came out soon after we started, and I felt we could have written it, our new degree matched what they wanted done – so our thinking was really up there with current

Conference Session

NSF Grantees Poster Session

Collection

2009 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

John Krupczak, Hope College; Kate Disney, Mission College; Scott VanderStoep, Hope College

Self- -5.0% -10.0% -15.0%Figure 1: MSLQ Preliminary Results —48 Students, Spring 08.AcknowledgementThe work was supported by the National Science Foundation under award: DUE-0633277. Anyopinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those ofthe authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.Bibliography 1. Pearson G., and A.T. Young, editors, Technically speaking: Why all Americans need to know more about technology, National Academies Press, (2002). 2. Krupczak, J.J., D. Ollis, “Technological Literacy and Engineering for Non-Engineers: Lessons from

Conference Session

Successful Mentoring and Outreach Programs for Girls and Minorities

Collection

2009 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Ruth Friedman, Ohio State University; Linda Weavers, Ohio State University; Glenda La Rue, Ohio State University

Tagged Divisions

K-12 & Pre-College Engineering

the participants blew on them. Unlike the Waves ofDestruction; the Hovercraft; and the Concrete: Mix, Pour, and Decorate activities, however,these two activities required much less physical engagement on the part of the participants. Thisreduction in physical movement is reflected in these activities’ lower mean participant ratingswith regard to fun. It is also important to note here that the Airplane Design activity, whichappeared at the bottom of the list of the top 14 highest ranking activities on the fun meter, gavethe participants even fewer chances for doing something with their bodies. Although theparticipants enjoyed using a computer design program to create an airplane, this activity failed toengage them physically: Indeed, they did

Conference Session

NSF Grantees Poster Session

Collection

2009 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Kathleen Alfano, College of the Canyons; Sharlene Katz, California State University, Northridge

. Page 14.1181.3 • Students in the California State University, Fresno Industrial Technology online/hybrid program continue to progress. Over 80% of the initial 2005 cohort have graduated with their B.S. degrees. • A feasibility study was conducted to access the need for a new four-year engineering technology program in the region.Objective 3: Implement regional programs in Information Technology, Engineering Technology and Manufacturing Technology that reflects existing and emerging industry needs. • CREATE has developed and implemented over 50 new engineering/manufacturing/ electronics/information technology Associate degree and certificate programs. These new curricula have resulted in over 200 new or revised

Conference Session

The Best of Design in Engineering Education

Collection

2009 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Marjan Eggermont, University of Calgary; Meghan Armstrong, University of Calgary

Tagged Divisions

Design in Engineering Education

depicted, ideas are more able to inspire new ones. Sketching can be a way toexpress sight and the imagination however when used for creative ideation thedesigner/engineer’s sketch is not typically an exercise in transposition or duplication. This isbecause the idea has yet to exist in a tangible form. The sketch resembles thinking out loud,giving form to a vague thought. As Andersson describes, “one of the basic cognitive benefits ofsketching is that the mere acts of formulating a mental image in a concrete way on paper makesit possible for the designer to reflect over the concept at once and almost instantly develop itfurther into a new concept, a so called iteration.”4 Acting as a placeholder the sketch gives formto uncertainty and provides the

Conference Session

Case Studies and Engineering Education Around the Globe

Collection

2009 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Kevin Kelly, Dublin Institute of Technology

Tagged Divisions

International

realities. There were conflicting views and opinions andthe culture of the way thing was done was important and impinged upon manyaspects of this research. In order to reflect these diverse views twenty individualinterviews and a focus group interview took place. Interviewees represented all of themajor stakeholders affected by academic change including students, technical staff,central services and all levels of academic staff up to and including the Dean of theengineering college and the President of the university. The intention was to consultwith and collaborate with stakeholders about what was happening at this time ofunprecedented change. Fourth Generation Evaluation as described by Guba &Lincoln6 was used. This seeks to address the

Conference Session

Interdisciplinary and Multidisciplinary Laboratories

Collection

2009 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Robert Edwards, Pennsylvania State University, Erie; Gerald Recktenwald, Portland State University; Brian Benini, Case Western Reserve University

Tagged Divisions

Division Experimentation & Lab-Oriented Studies

for thestepped tube, and reflection/extension. This section describes what the students are asked to doas the exercise proceeds. The entire worksheet is included as Appendix 1.To determine an equation to use for the pressure transducer the students are given two datapoints and told that the transducer is linear over its’ useful range. On the surface it is a simpletask to determine the equation of the straight line describing the calibration curve, and thestudents do manage to complete this task. However, observations during the lab exercise exposethat many students do not really understand the concept of transducer calibration and strugglewith this. While some students manage this task quite easily, others need guidance to get themgoing in