Conference Session

Continuous Improvement & Assessment of ET Programs

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Nirmal Das, Georgia Southern University

Tagged Divisions

Engineering Technology

Southern University: A. Assessment of Program Outcomes 1. Course assignments (Homework/ Quizzes) 2. Exams 3. Comprehensive final exams 4. Laboratory reports 5. Oral presentations 6. Field-work 7. Capstone projects 8. Course exit survey 9. Teaching portfolios 10. Exit Survey of graduating seniors 11. Industrial Advisory Board Review B. Assessment of Program Educational Objectives 1. Survey of alumni 2. Survey of employers 3. Industrial Advisory Board reviewsIn the list of assessment methods pertaining to program outcomes (list A), the focus ofthis paper, the first seven methods constitute direct measures, while the remaining

Conference Session

Accreditation Issues

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Kenneth Van Treuren, Baylor University

Tagged Divisions

Mechanical Engineering

world news. More specifically, if contemporary issues pertain to thediscipline of engineering, students will do little to maintain their knowledge apart from what isdiscussed in the classroom context. In reality, this topic must be more intentionally interjectedinto the curriculum to show application of engineering principles.Two categories of courses come to mind that should adequately support “soft” outcomes. Onesuch course would be a senior capstone design course. Berg and Nasr discuss such a course.1 Itis true that the capstone design course should be the pinnacle of an engineering program, wherestudents are able to integrate all aspects of their education into a challenging project. It is anatural place to discuss topics in the

Conference Session

Accreditation Issues

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Hakan Gurocak, Washington State University-Vancouver

Tagged Divisions

Mechanical Engineering

studentperformance in meeting a specific outcome. Although the ABET criteria do not specify anyassessment methods, using direct measures provides stronger evidence of student learningattributed to the program effectiveness2. Typical direct measure opportunities include end-of-course assessment, targeted assignments, capstone experience, capstone examination andportfolios3-9.The mechanical engineering program at Washington State University Vancouver hasimplemented an ABET assessment system where course outcomes are tied to program outcomesthrough a set of program-level performance criteria. Performance criteria (PC) are measurableattributes identifying the performance required to meet an outcome and are confirmable throughevidence. A mapping of these PCs to

Conference Session

Interdisciplinary Education

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Jay Porter, Texas A&M University; Jorge Alvarado, Texas A&M University; Joseph Morgan, Texas A&M University; John Poston, Texas A&M University; Kenneth Peddicord, Texas A&M University; John Crenshaw, STP Nuclear Operating Company

Tagged Divisions

Engineering Technology

Electronics and Mechanical/ManufacturingPrograms were chosen for the new program. By using existing courses to the extent possible, thedepartment was able to control the cost associated with creating a new program. Through thisselection process, most of the requested topics were covered with the exception of PowerSystems, Thermal Systems and Nuclear Power Topics. To address these missing elements, thenew curriculum proposed that: • the circuits sequence be modified to include power, • a new thermal systems course be added, the inspection methods class be modified to include power generation plant topics, • four technical electives with a nuclear power focus be added, • and the capstone design sequence feature projects related to power generation

Conference Session

Mechanical Engineering Poster Session

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

James Smith, University of Southern Maine

Tagged Divisions

Mechanical Engineering

manufacturing cell. • One department of engineering housing both programs with flexible faculty, some teaching both mechanical and electrical engineering courses, as appropriate. • The existing faculty teach the foundational courses. In the implementation stage a number of the upper-level and elective courses are taught by adjuncts. This allows the program to develop and to be “tweaked” before commitments are made to full-time, tenure-track faculty. • The new program focuses on just two areas, materials and electromechanical systems. These two areas aligned well both with the existing skill sets in the department and with the needs of local industry. • The senior design project, the capstone project

Conference Session

Issues in the Professional Practice of Faculty Members in Civil Engineering

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Andrew Rose, University of Pittsburgh -Johnstown; Norman Voigt, Penn State, New Kensington

Tagged Divisions

Civil Engineering

engineering technology. He teaches six credits per term, and because of his industrial experience, is actively involved in advising senior capstone design projects. A good working relationship between a full-time tenured faculty member and the engineers at the state transportation agency has resulted in retired engineers from the agency serving as adjunct faculty for specialized technical courses such as Transportation, Highway Surveying and Design, and Pavement Design and Management, while the full time faculty member was on a family medical leave absence.3. Provide office and administrative support for adjunct faculty For adjunct faculty to be successful, they need the support of the department.15 This

Conference Session

Approaches to Active Learning

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Mark Yim, University of Pennsylvania; Katherine Kuchenbecker, University of Pennsylvania; Paulo Arratia, University of Pennsylvania; Vijay Kumar, University of Pennsylvania; John Bassani, University of Pennsylvania; Jonathan Fiene, University of Pennsylvania; Jennifer Lukes, University of Pennsylvania

Tagged Divisions

Mechanical Engineering

to interactive games and the Internet. They are accustomed tochoosing what they want to see, and they “pull” whatever content they desire. Teachers can bemore effective for a broader set of students by employing a modality with which students arealready very familiar.In addition to the rapid pace of technological change, engineering is also becoming increasinglyinterdisciplinary. While exercises and problem sets work well to test a student’s grasp ofindividual ideas, we believe that the integration and application of multiple concepts is bestapplied in larger project or lab settings. Traditionally, undergraduate curricula in mechanicalengineering include a capstone design project that occurs during the senior year. Students inengineering at

Conference Session

Learning from Entrepreneurship Programs

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Jeffrey Blessing, Milwaukee School of Engineering; Kristen Mekemson, Kern Family Foundation; David Pistrui, Illinois Institute of Technology

Tagged Divisions

Entrepreneurship & Engineering Innovation

pitches just-in-time for theircompetitions. One of the realizations coming from the capstone design experience inentrepreneurship is that students need to be exposed to entrepreneurship principles earlier in theirstudies in order to allow them the opportunity to select an appropriate capstone project and learnthe principles of entrepreneurship in time for the competition.Another popular approach used by the KEEN schools to work entrepreneurship into existingcourses was to use educational modules to introduce appropriate topics. A module typicallycovers one aspect of entrepreneurship (such as intellectual property or idea generation) that ispresented in one or more class periods. Ideally, a module contains a lesson plan and some typeof assessment

Conference Session

Intellectual Property and Entrepreneurship

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

John Farris, Grand Valley State University; Hugh Jack, Grand Valley State University; Shabbir Choudhuri, Grand Valley State University; Christopher Pung, Grand Valley State University

Tagged Divisions

Entrepreneurship & Engineering Innovation

patent and use their contacts to help the student form the company and refine the design of theproduct. The company, Magnum Engineering, has been formed and is now working to bring the product tomarket with the help of an undergraduate senior capstone project team. The product should be ready formarket in the Fall of 2008. Figure 2. Static testing of the torque sensing crank arm.The Lean Wheel ChairIn the summer of 2007 the founder of MOVE International, a non-profit organization dedicated to helpingspecial needs children achieve dignity, approached the engineering school in search of a device to transforma powered wheel chair into a training aid. She wanted a device that would allow a child to control themovement of a

Conference Session

Mobile Robots in Education

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Steven Barrett, University of Wyoming; Chad Hager, University of Wyoming; Mike Yurkoski, University of Wyoming; Robert Lewis, University of Wyoming; Matthew Jespersen, University of Wyoming; Zachary Ruble, University of Wyoming

Tagged Divisions

Computers in Education

years we have used student designed and developed laboratory equipmentwith great success. Typically a student team will design and fabricate a prototype of anext –generation piece of laboratory equipment. Other students are then hired tofabricate multiple production run pieces of the equipment. Student developed laboratoryequipment solves two challenging problems confronting most engineering programs: 1)the need to update laboratory exercises and equipment without adequate funds and 2)satisfying Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET) requirements fora major design experience within the curriculum. In this paper we will briefly reviewprevious projects completed such as a Motorola HC12 microcontroller based teachingplatform, a

Collection

2008 Spring ASEE Middle Atlantic Section Conference

Authors

John Adams; Charles Kochakian

evaluated, and steps are taken to improve the program. TheProgram Outcomes are similar to ABET Outcomes a-k, and the Program Outcomes are mappedonto the ABET a-k Outcomes to assist ABET evaluators in determining program compliance.Program Outcomes are evaluated within a matrix of assessment methodologies, including: • Course Points of Learning (POLs), discussed above. Each course POL is mapped onto the Program Outcomes • Advisory Board Evaluation of Senior Capstone Projects 4 • Pre/Post course surveys have recently been added as an assessment methodology to supplement course POLs • Senior exit surveyThe department

Collection

2008 ASEE Zone 1 Conference

Authors

John Adams; Charles Kochakian

evaluated, and steps are taken to improve the program. TheProgram Outcomes are similar to ABET Outcomes a-k, and the Program Outcomes are mappedonto the ABET a-k Outcomes to assist ABET evaluators in determining program compliance.Program Outcomes are evaluated within a matrix of assessment methodologies, including: • Course Points of Learning (POLs), discussed above. Each course POL is mapped onto the Program Outcomes • Advisory Board Evaluation of Senior Capstone Projects 4 • Pre/Post course surveys have recently been added as an assessment methodology to supplement course POLs • Senior exit surveyThe department

Collection

2008 Northeast Section Meeting

Authors

John Adams; Charles Kochakian

evaluated, and steps are taken to improve the program. TheProgram Outcomes are similar to ABET Outcomes a-k, and the Program Outcomes are mappedonto the ABET a-k Outcomes to assist ABET evaluators in determining program compliance.Program Outcomes are evaluated within a matrix of assessment methodologies, including: • Course Points of Learning (POLs), discussed above. Each course POL is mapped onto the Program Outcomes • Advisory Board Evaluation of Senior Capstone Projects 4 • Pre/Post course surveys have recently been added as an assessment methodology to supplement course POLs • Senior exit surveyThe department

Conference Session

Engineering Economy -- The Introductory Course

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Rajkamal Kesharwani, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University; Xiaomeng Chang, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University; Janis Terpenny, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University; william sullivan, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University

Tagged Divisions

Engineering Economy

expect that they will remember, integrate, synthesize andassimilate topics that have been ‘poured into their heads’ over the prior 3-4 years as they take ona capstone design project. Faculty teaching capstone design may introduce or reinforce a varietyof topics, such as engineering economy, that will support the design process and other learningobjectives that have not been covered earlier in the curriculum. The review of topics inpreparation for the FE exam may also be a priority in the senior year.While there are a number of excellent textbooks1-5 on engineering economy, and authors makeevery effort to improve these textbooks over time with added examples and exercises and newways of conveying concepts, these updates come every few years and

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

in its third andfinal course of the sequence, ME450. The effectiveness of this capstone course atinspiring a somewhat reluctant student population to get excited about applyingengineering principles and problem-solving techniques is primarily due to a syllabus thatis structured around three engineering design projects, or EDPs. Page 13.618.5Engineering Design Projects (EDPs)ME450 teaches mechanical engineering design by incorporating unique teaching stylesand course material to include three Engineering Design Problems (EDPs) that are gearedtowards generating student interest and excitement. These projects, which becomeprogressively more complex

Conference Session

Accreditation and Assessment Concerns in Civil Engineering Education

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Nirmala Gnanapragasam, Seattle University; Katie Kuder, Seattle University; Dragovich Jefferey, Seattle University

Tagged Divisions

Civil Engineering

in the spring quarter oftheir junior year. The winter quarter examination is announced in the fall quarterof the senior year. Dates for both the examinations are selected so that it causesminimum disruption to the implementation of the capstone projects. Page 13.311.5 Table 1. Distribution of Topics in the Fall and Winter Quarter Comprehensive Examinationsa Fall Quarter Topic Winter Quarter Topic (no. of questions) (number of questions)Chemistry (7) Computers & Numerical Methods (3)Computers (4) Environmental Engineering (5)Dynamics (6

Conference Session

Innovations in Manufacturing Education

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

David Wells, North Dakota State University; Daniel Ewert, North Dakota State University

Tagged Divisions

Manufacturing

prompted a conscious migration of the ‘scholar’ focus towards an ‘innovation’orientation, with explicit acknowledgement that useful invention is a purposeful goal and that thelaunching of new enterprises from the platform of scholar/innovation teams would be cause forcelebration. During the Autumn of 2006, the notion of a campus-wide Bison Ventures programemerged. [2] Bison Ventures is a collaborative between the College of Engineering and Architecture, theCollege of Business Administration and the Research and Technology Park. It is a multi-disciplinary, academic, economic development plan. At the core is the long-established practiceof the senior design or capstone project. Every academic year, approximately one hundred teamsof engineering

Conference Session

Multidisciplinary Curriculum Innovation

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Michael Ciaraldi, Worcester Polytechnic Institute; David Cyganski, Worcester Polytechnic Institute; Michael Gennert, Worcester Polytechnic Institute; Michael Demetriou; Fred Looft; William Michalson, Worcester Polytechnic Institute; Bradley Miller, Worcester Polytechnic Institute; Eben Cobb, Worcester Polytechnic Institute; Lance Schachterle, Worcester Polytechnic Institute; Kenneth Stafford, Worcester Polytechnic Institute; Yiming Rong, Worcester Polytechnic Institute; Gretar Tryggvason, Worcester Polytechnic Institute; James Van de Ven, Worcester Polytechnic Institute

Tagged Divisions

Multidisciplinary Engineering

, feasibility analysis, evaluation forappropriateness, and business plan development. Industry has reacted with great enthusiasm tothe entrepreneurship component.In addition to taking courses, WPI requires all students to complete a senior-level project in theirmajor field of study. For RBE students, this constitutes a capstone design experience in RoboticsEngineering. Students typically work in teams of two to four students, although single-personprojects and larger teams are also possible. A faculty member in the major advises the work.Students are expected to take relevant coursework before the project begins. The project workitself typically starts with a formal project proposal, including literature review, clearly definedapproach, and schedule

Conference Session

NSF Grantees Poster Session

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Ronaldo Luna, Missouri University of Science & Technology; Richard Hall, Missouri University of Science & Technology; Michael Hilgers, Missouri University of Science & Technology; Ghulam Bham, Missouri University of Science & Technology; Richard Elgin, Missouri University of Science & Technology; Charles Morris, Missouri University of Science & Technology; Glenn Morrison, Missouri University of Science & Technology

. Page 13.808.1© American Society for Engineering Education, 2008 Introduction of GIS into Civil Engineering CurriculaAbstractThis research project developed a web-based learning system to teach students the use ofGeographic Information Systems (GIS) within the foundational courses of a typical civilengineering program. As opposed to generating a series of GIS courses, the GIS know-how isintroduced within existing courses as a module that will reinforce basic concepts taughtthroughout the curriculum in a comprehensive manner. Evaluation research of a proof-of-concept prototype for geotechnical course supported the efficacy of such an approach. With thisprototype as a guide, modules are developed in the following five areas

Conference Session

NSF Grantees Poster Session

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

James Becker, Montana State University

increases, the need for proper accounting of high-frequency effects is nowcommonplace. Such “advanced” considerations are typically left to upper division electivecourses and thus are often missed by undergraduates completely. By introducing the basics ofelectrical length in EE 101 and non-ideal lumped elements in EE 206, students should be able todevelop an appreciation for practical considerations in circuit design relevant to activities theymay face in their capstone projects and beyond. Page 13.1393.9In the laboratory experiment of EE 206, entitled “Frequency Response,” students use a functiongenerator and oscilloscope to study the frequency

Collection

2008 ASEE Midwest Section Conference

Authors

Rebeca G. Book

different inputs, it is sometimes hard to accommodate allsuggestions for coursework because of the number of credit hours and still be able to keep theprogram as a four-year program. Advisory council members advise and give their input to whatis important for industry needs and may even suggest that some courses be eliminated orreplaced.AccomplishmentsThe advisory council has done assessments of the plastics program for ABET and has also donebenchmarking for the program to see what courses should be included or changed. Oneparticular accomplishment for giving input was on the senior project/capstone class and whatshould be included. Another example of their input and involvement was writing letters andtalking with university administration to

Conference Session

Multidisciplinary Teams

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Carolyn Plumb, Montana State University; Durward Sobek, Montana State University

Tagged Divisions

Multidisciplinary Engineering

even moredifficult to evaluate. Over the past year, we have introduced a new course at the junior-level, “Introduction to Engineering Design.” The course focuses on the skills necessaryto complete a project in a multi-disciplinary team, and it will eventually be required forall engineering students as a precursor to their department-specific capstone designcourses. In a previous paper, we described our approach of using the engineering designprocess to determine the best solution to the problem of providing students with a multi-disciplinary educational experience in engineering at Montana State University.1In order to determine if our new course improves student performance in this area, wedeveloped a rubric for evaluating an individual’s

Conference Session

Multidisciplinary Curriculum Innovation

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Ronald Kander, James Madison University

Tagged Divisions

Multidisciplinary Engineering

goal of preparing them for a lifetime of further learning…” (3)Indeed “reinventing undergraduate education” (not just in engineering) was the theme of theErnest L. Boyer Project of the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching. (4) (5) (6) (7)These reports were also considered by members of the task force as we considered “reinventing”undergraduate engineering education. The following recommendations were considered fromamong the broad conclusions in these reports: (6)• Make research-based learning the standard• Construct an inquiry-based freshman year• Build on the freshman experience• Remove barriers to interdisciplinary education• Link communication skills and course work• Culminate with a capstone experience

Conference Session

Innovation in Construction Engineering Education II

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Sofia Vidalis, Pennsylvania State University-Harrisburg; Joseph Cecere, Pennsylvania State University-Harrisburg

Tagged Divisions

Construction

industrial relationships and partnerships that a program develops are criticalelements to its success. The programs that foster and strengthen relationships with constructionfirms and professional associations will not only benefit the program but also those firms andassociations.This paper will discuss the connection between Penn State Harrisburg's Structural Design andConstruction Engineering Technology program and the construction industry. Various activitiessuch as student organizations, career fairs, guest speakers, internships, capstone projects, fieldtrips to construction sites, and professional meetings have revealed excellent examples of a win-win relationship for both the Construction Engineering Technology program at Penn StateHarrisburg

Conference Session

Professional Engineering Management Initiatives

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Donald Merino, Stevens Institute of Technology

Tagged Divisions

Engineering Management

AC 2008-585: ASEM EM BOKDonald Merino, Stevens Institute of Technology Donald N. Merino is a tenured full professor and the Alexander Crombie Humphreys Chaired Professor of Economics of Engineering at Stevens Institute of Technology. He teaches Engineering Economy, Decision Analysis, Total Quality Management, and Strategic Planning. He is Founder Emeritus of the undergraduate Bachelor of Engineering in Engineering Management (BEEM) and the Executive Master in Technology Management (EMTM) Program at Stevens. He won the Morton Distinguished Teaching Award for full professors at Stevens. John Wiley published his book, “The Selection Process for Capital Projects”. Dr. Merino received two

Conference Session

Professional Skills and the Workplace

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Margaret Huyck, Illinois Institute of Technology; daniel ferguson, Illinois Institute of Technology; Elizabeth Howard, Illinois Institute of Technology; June Ferrill, Rice University; Lisa Getzler-Linn, Lehigh University

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

Consultant at McKinsey & Company; and was a training development specialist for KBR's Engineering Division. She has a Ph.D. in the Join Ph.D. Program in English and Education at the University of Michigan.Lisa Getzler-Linn, Lehigh University Lisa Getzler-Linn, Ph.D., is the Associate Director of the Integrated Product Development Program at Lehigh University. She oversees the IPD Capstone Projects and continues to institute new processes to encourage IPD student development of the higher order competencies required by industry. Her diverse background includes undergraduate studies in Theater Arts and Business, practical experience as a successful entrepreneur and graduate work in

Conference Session

DELOS Best Paper Nominations

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Richard Drushel, Case Western Reserve University; John Gallagher, Wright State University

Tagged Divisions

Division Experimentation & Lab-Oriented Studies

efforts and make appropriate use of available resources tocomplete their projects in a timely manner. They are also required to engage fellow students indiscussions about the techniques which they applied on a class discussion list. Studentsdocument their work in electronic project journals (in PDF format) that are submitted for reviewon a regular basis. In addition, students are required to answer a series of discussion questionsevery week, submit those answers, and participate in group discussion over the discussionquestions at regular intervals. There is no special open capstone project, but students are giventhe opportunity to demonstrate (through the virtual classroom environment) an example of aproblem solution which they feel is

Conference Session

Best Practices in Aerospace Education

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Kristi Shryock, Texas A&M University; Helen Reed, Texas A&M University

Tagged Divisions

Aerospace

as an exam question, project, or report, and correlate toa particular outcome. Courses that are more relevant to a particular outcome, such as shown inTable 2, are better choices for utilizing embedded indicators. It is important for the score of theactivity to directly correlate to a specific outcome. This may take a little time on the part of thefaculty member to directly associate test questions or weekly activities to a particular outcome.In addition, the management and statistical summary of results can be overwhelming for facultyand/or staff members but can be automated with a spreadsheet program to provide ease inobtaining results over time once developed.7,8 While embedded indicators can be found in anycourse, a senior capstone

Conference Session

Focus on IE Principles and Techniques

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Sharon Johnson, Worcester Polytechnic Institute; Bryan Norman, University of Pittsburgh; Jean Fullerton, Elizabethtown College; Susan Pariseau, Merrimack College

Tagged Divisions

Industrial Engineering

specific tactics, which fit naturally as subtopics withinexisting courses, students often encounter lean tactics in a piecemeal fashion, making it difficultfor students develop an integrated understanding of the underlying philosophies. Courses Page 13.1340.2dedicated to lean are generally aimed at senior-level students. Opportunities to practice processdesign are often the domain of senior-level capstone projects as well.To improve the teaching of lean concepts, as well as to develop students’ ability to designeffective processes, several IE faculty at one university (referred to as Site 1 here) developed alean laboratory to support an

Collection

2008 Spring ASEE Middle Atlantic Section Conference

Authors

Mir M. Atiqullah

demand for composites engineers the engineering andtechnology graduates need to be knowledgeable in the field, if not develop some level of expertise, beforethey graduate from college. Traditional materials science/engineering course can accommodate only anoverview of composites. In the absence of a dedicated composites course a special project course or aresearch project on composites could be a supplement to the standard materials course. During thesummer of 2007, two minority students were awarded scholarships from Peach State Louis StokesAlliance for Minority Participation (PSLSAMP) to do undergraduate research. These students alreadycompleted their regular engineering materials course and were assigned to the project of performing