Paper ID #22281Teaching Mechanics in Another Country – Reflections on a Professorenaus-tauschDr. Brian P. Self, California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo Brian Self obtained his B.S. and M.S. degrees in Engineering Mechanics from Virginia Tech, and his Ph.D. in Bioengineering from the University of Utah. He worked in the Air Force Research Laboratories before teaching at the U.S. Air Force Academy for seven years. Brian has taught in the Mechanical Engineering Department at Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo since 2006. During the 2011-2012 academic year he participated in a professor exchange, teaching at the Munich
that seeks to promote diversity and improve transdisciplinary collaboration within the college. Specifically, I serve on the Resilience in Engineering Education Project team aimed to investigate the effects that students’ resilience and professional skills have on exam performance in technical courses.Dr. Nicola W. Sochacka, University of Georgia Nicola W. Sochacka is the Associate Director of the Engineering Education Transformations Institute (EETI) in the College of Engineering at the University of Georgia. Dr. Sochacka’s research interests span interpretive research methods, STEAM (STEM + Art) education, empathy, diversity, and reflection. She holds a Ph.D. in Engineering Epistemologies and a Bachelor of
presenting the material in a way that iseasily remember by students. With this in mind, the ABCD mnemonic device was developed. Inclass, it is presented in bullet format as shown: • Ⓐ – All Forces • Ⓑ – Body • Ⓒ – Coordinates • Ⓓ – Dimensions (Only for rigid bodies) ⇒ Ⓔ of Ⓔ – Equations of Equilibrium(Stated – Your A, B, C and sometimes D drives your E of E).While the order of the ABCD does not reflect the order generally followed when physicallydrawing the FBD, it does serve as a reminder to check that everything is included. Students areencouraged to always write the letters “ABCD” on their homework and exam papers.In class, the process for drawing an FBD is outlined as follows. Initially students must identifyan appropriate