Board 441: Work in Progress: Unlocking Student Success: The Power of Public Speaking AI Software in Engineering Education

Rachelle L Beckner; Robert M O'Hara

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Conference: 2024 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition
Location: Portland, Oregon
Publication Date: June 23, 2024
Start Date: June 23, 2024
End Date: July 12, 2024
Conference Session: Civil Engineering Division (CIVIL) Poster Session
Tagged Division: Civil Engineering Division (CIVIL)
Permanent URL: https://peer.asee.org/47033

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Paper Authors

biography

Rachelle L Beckner Clemson University

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Rachelle Beckner is a dedicated communication lecturer in the Glenn Department of Civil Engineering at Clemson University, where she was instrumental in scaffolding oral and written communication instruction throughout the curriculum. She is passionate about equipping students for successful careers by equipping them with the essential professional skills to complement their technical expertise.
She is a graduate of West Virginia University, holding a bachelor's in journalism and an E.MBA. With a background that extends over two decades, Beckner has accumulated a wealth of expertise and experience through roles in fundraising, marketing and journalism. This rich professional background enriches her classroom instruction and brings real-world relevance to her teaching.
Beckner's dual background in communication and engineering education positions her as a unique and valuable contributor to the academic commuity, fostering the growth and achievement of future engineers.

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biography

Robert M O'Hara Clemson University orcid.org/0000-0001-7004-0487

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Robert earned his PhD in Learning Sciences at Clemson University. His research interests lie at the intersection of structured learning environments, sense of belonging, and academic confidence in undergraduate engineering students. He currently serves as a lecturer for the Department of Psychology at Clemson University. His teaching area are statistics and research methods.

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Abstract

Technical skills may get you hired, but professional skills get you promoted. For decades, program evaluation surveys have emphasized the need for improved student communication skills -- from intrapersonal communication to public speaking. However, even after adding required technical writing and communication courses, those survey responses stayed the same. Scaffolding students to develop polished professional skills is a core component of our NSF:IUSE/RED curriculum transformation. The new curriculum shifts communication training from one course in the first year to distributed training and practice from the sophomore through senior years within the civil engineering courses. To supplement our public speaking instruction, we have adopted software that creates a virtual audience for students to practice delivering presentations. Students must practice their presentations three times within the system to achieve total participation points. Feedback is presented to students after each attempt, including eye contact, pitch, volume, use of filler words and long pauses. This study investigates the impact of AI-powered public speaking software on the performance of civil engineering students in their sophomore and senior years. The research draws upon data indicating that students who engage with the software through multiple sessions achieve higher scores in their final presentations. A multiple regression model is employed, revealing that the software explains approximately 26% variation in final presentation scores. Notably, while the time spent in the software has a small but significant negative effect on estimated final scores, the number of sessions completed positively influences these scores. This finding suggests that the frequency of engagement with the software outweighs the cumulative time spent. The study also considers the roles of students' conceptual scores and final grades as additional predictors. In summary, this research offers insights into the shifting landscape of communication instruction within engineering education, emphasizing the potential of AI-powered tools to enhance student performance in public speaking, thus bridging the gap between technical expertise and professional communication skills.

Citation
Format

Beckner, R. L., & O'Hara, R. M. (2024, June), Board 441: Work in Progress: Unlocking Student Success: The Power of Public Speaking AI Software in Engineering Education Paper presented at 2024 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition, Portland, Oregon. https://peer.asee.org/47033

TY  - CPAPER
AB  - Technical skills may get you hired, but professional skills get you promoted. For decades, program evaluation surveys have emphasized the need for improved student communication skills -- from intrapersonal communication to public speaking. However, even after adding required technical writing and communication courses, those survey responses stayed the same. Scaffolding students to develop polished professional skills is a core component of our NSF:IUSE/RED curriculum transformation. The new curriculum shifts communication training from one course in the first year to distributed training and practice from the sophomore through senior years within the civil engineering courses. To supplement our public speaking instruction, we have adopted software that creates a virtual audience for students to practice delivering presentations. Students must practice their presentations three times within the system to achieve total participation points. Feedback is presented to students after each attempt, including eye contact, pitch, volume, use of filler words and long pauses.
This study investigates the impact of AI-powered public speaking software on the performance of civil engineering students in their sophomore and senior years. The research draws upon data indicating that students who engage with the software through multiple sessions achieve higher scores in their final presentations. A multiple regression model is employed, revealing that the software explains approximately 26% variation in final presentation scores. Notably, while the time spent in the software has a small but significant negative effect on estimated final scores, the number of sessions completed positively influences these scores. This finding suggests that the frequency of engagement with the software outweighs the cumulative time spent. The study also considers the roles of students&#39; conceptual scores and final grades as additional predictors.
In summary, this research offers insights into the shifting landscape of communication instruction within engineering education, emphasizing the potential of AI-powered tools to enhance student performance in public speaking, thus bridging the gap between technical expertise and professional communication skills. 
AU  - Rachelle L Beckner
AU  - Robert M O'Hara
CY  - Portland, Oregon
DA  - 2024/06/23
PB  - ASEE Conferences
TI  - Board 441: Work in Progress: Unlocking Student Success: The Power of Public Speaking AI Software in Engineering Education
UR  - https://peer.asee.org/47033
ER  -