E-CLOCK: A Wiki-based Outreach and Recruitment Tool

Joseph A. Morgan; Jay R. Porter; Douglas William Twigge; John Block; Mickie Byrd

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Conference: 2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition
Location: San Antonio, Texas
Publication Date: June 10, 2012
Start Date: June 10, 2012
End Date: June 13, 2012
ISSN: 2153-5965
Conference Session: Recruitment and Retention Matters in Engineering Technology
Tagged Division: Engineering Technology
Page Count: 17
Page Numbers: 25.483.1 - 25.483.17
DOI: 10.18260/1-2--21241
Permanent URL: https://peer.asee.org/21241
Download Count: 482

Paper Authors

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Joseph A. Morgan Texas A&M University

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Joseph A. Morgan is a Full Professor in the Electronics Engineering Technology program at Texas A&M University. He is a registered Professional Engineer in the state of Texas. His major areas of interest include wireless networking and embedded microcontroller-based data acquisition, instrumentation and control systems. Morgan has also served as Director of engineering and as a Senior Consultant to the private sector where he has been involved in several design, development and system integration projects sponsored by the FAA, USAF, and major airport authorities. As a Texas A&M faculty member, he established the Mobile Integrated Solutions Laboratory (MISL), a joint university-industry partnership focusing on the design and development of hardware and software products Morgan served 22 years in the Air Force, including a tour of duty on faculty with the Electrical Engineering Department at the U.S. Air Force Academy.

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Jay R. Porter Texas A&M University

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Jay R. Porter joined the Department of Engineering Technology and Industrial Distribution at Texas A&M University in 1998 and is currently the Program Director for the Electronics and Telecommunications programs. He received a B.S. degree in electrical engineering (1987), a M.S. degree in physics (1989), and a Ph.D. in electrical engineering (1993) from Texas A&M University. His areas of interest in research and education include product development, analog/RF electronics, instrumentation, and entrepreneurship.

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Abstract

E-CLOCK: A WIKI-BASED OUTREACH AND RECRUITMENT TOOLThe Electronics Engineering Technology (EET) program has established outreach and recruitingas one of its highest priorities. In addressing this need, the EET program has developed anumber of engineering kits that are both challenging and motivational for high school students tolearn more about the areas of electronics and telecommunications. The newest of these kits is E-Clock, a small microcontroller-based development system that allows students to accomplish:  Soldering of both through-hole and surface mount technology  Use of a wiki-based development resource  Units and measurement techniques for voltage and resistance  Software development, programming and testing in the C high level language  Design and development of expansion kits to add functionality and capability to the basic E-ClockE-Clock consists of a printed circuit board and approximately 75 through hole and surface mountparts that the student must assemble and test. The price of the kit is low enough that the EETprogram, through support grants from a major electronics manufacturer, is capable of providingkits for a large number of students who are considering engineering as their choice for a collegeeducation. Capturing the attention of these students early and making sure they have a goodunderstanding of the EET program curriculum is expected to increase the application andtransfer of top-level students into the program. The E-Clock kit/projects are versatile enough tobe used for recruiting/retention/teaching in a variety of different programs in engineering andengineering technology alike.In addition to the initial building and programming of the basic E-Clock kit, the developers arehopeful that some of the high school students will contribute to the wiki by designing their ownadvanced kits and generating the new control software. Sharing their work with others via thewiki will allow the project to continue to expand. To support this, the developers plan to create asocial communications link via Facebook to allow for increased information sharing and trackingof the high school students as they graduate and enter college.Initial results will be reported in the paper/presentation based on kits that have been sent tofemale students who participated in the Krisys Robot Women Explore Engineering (WEE)Workshop hosted by the College of Engineering during the summer of 2011. In addition, thedevelopers are working with a local high school, using E-Clock for both lower- and upper-division students to fully test and evaluate the E-Clock design and wiki-based support anddevelopment tools. This will also be presented.

Citation
Format

Morgan, J. A., & Porter, J. R., & Twigge, D. W., & Block, J., & Byrd, M. (2012, June), E-CLOCK: A Wiki-based Outreach and Recruitment Tool Paper presented at 2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition, San Antonio, Texas. 10.18260/1-2--21241

TY  - CPAPER
AB  -                       E-CLOCK: A WIKI-BASED OUTREACH                          AND RECRUITMENT TOOLThe Electronics Engineering Technology (EET) program has established outreach and recruitingas one of its highest priorities. In addressing this need, the EET program has developed anumber of engineering kits that are both challenging and motivational for high school students tolearn more about the areas of electronics and telecommunications. The newest of these kits is E-Clock, a small microcontroller-based development system that allows students to accomplish:      Soldering of both through-hole and surface mount technology      Use of a wiki-based development resource      Units and measurement techniques for voltage and resistance      Software development, programming and testing in the C high level language      Design and development of expansion kits to add functionality and capability to the basic       E-ClockE-Clock consists of a printed circuit board and approximately 75 through hole and surface mountparts that the student must assemble and test. The price of the kit is low enough that the EETprogram, through support grants from a major electronics manufacturer, is capable of providingkits for a large number of students who are considering engineering as their choice for a collegeeducation. Capturing the attention of these students early and making sure they have a goodunderstanding of the EET program curriculum is expected to increase the application andtransfer of top-level students into the program. The E-Clock kit/projects are versatile enough tobe used for recruiting/retention/teaching in a variety of different programs in engineering andengineering technology alike.In addition to the initial building and programming of the basic E-Clock kit, the developers arehopeful that some of the high school students will contribute to the wiki by designing their ownadvanced kits and generating the new control software. Sharing their work with others via thewiki will allow the project to continue to expand. To support this, the developers plan to create asocial communications link via Facebook to allow for increased information sharing and trackingof the high school students as they graduate and enter college.Initial results will be reported in the paper/presentation based on kits that have been sent tofemale students who participated in the Krisys Robot Women Explore Engineering (WEE)Workshop hosted by the College of Engineering during the summer of 2011. In addition, thedevelopers are working with a local high school, using E-Clock for both lower- and upper-division students to fully test and evaluate the E-Clock design and wiki-based support anddevelopment tools. This will also be presented.
AU  - Joseph A. Morgan
AU  - Jay R. Porter
AU  - Douglas William Twigge
AU  - John Block
AU  - Mickie Byrd
CY  - San Antonio, Texas
DA  - 2012/06/10
PB  - ASEE Conferences
TI  - E-CLOCK: A Wiki-based Outreach and Recruitment Tool
UR  - https://peer.asee.org/21241
DO  - 10.18260/1-2--21241
ER  -