Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
June 22, 2008
June 22, 2008
June 25, 2008
2153-5965
Issues in the Professional Practice of Faculty Members in Civil Engineering
Civil Engineering
17
13.586.1 - 13.586.17
10.18260/1-2--3963
https://peer.asee.org/3963
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Allen C. Estes is a Professor and Head for the Architectural Engineering Department at California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo. Until January 2007, Dr. Estes was the Director of the Civil Engineering Program at the United States Military Academy (USMA). He is a registered Professional Engineer in Virginia. Al Estes received a B.S. degree from USMA in 1978, M.S. degrees in Structural Engineering and in Construction Management from Stanford University in 1987 and a Ph.D. degree in Civil Engineering from the University of Colorado at
Boulder in 1997.
Ronald W. Welch is Professor and Chair for the Department of Civil Engineering at The University of Texas at Tyler in Tyler Texas. Until Jan 2007, Dr. Welch was at the United States Military Academy (USMA) where he held numerous leadership positions within the Civil Engineering Program and the Department of Civil and Mechanical Engineering. He is a registered Professional Engineer in Virginia. Ron Welch received a B.S. degree in Engineering Mechanics from USMA in 1982 and M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Civil Engineering from the University of Illinois in Champaign-Urbana IL in 1990 and 1999, respectively.
Colonel Stephen Ressler is Professor and Head of the Department of Civil and Mechanical Engineering at the U.S. Military Academy (USMA) at West Point. He earned a B.S. degree from USMA in 1979, a Master of Science in Civil Engineering degree from Lehigh University in 1989, and a Ph.D. from Lehigh in 1991. An active duty Army officer, he has served in a variety of military engineering assignments around the world. He has been a member of the USMA faculty for 16 years, teaching courses in engineering mechanics, structural engineering, construction, and professional practice.
Debra S. Larson is a Professor and Chair for the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff, AZ. Prior to her faculty appointment at NAU, Debra worked as a structural and civil engineer for various companies. She is a registered Professional Engineer in Arizona. Debra received her B.S. and M.S. degrees in Civil Engineering from Michigan Technological University in, respectively, 1978 and 1981. She received her Ph.D. degree in Civil Engineering from Arizona State University in 1994.
Carol Considine is currently an Associate Professor and Civil Engineering Technology Program Director at Old Dominion University. She received her BS in civil engineering from Virginia Tech and MS in civil engineering from University of California Berkeley. Prior to joining the faculty at Old Dominion University she worked in the construction industry for 15 years.
Tonya Nilsson is a currently a project engineer working on seismic retrofits in San Jose. She was previously an Associate Professor at California State University, Chico. She is a registered Professional Engineer in California. Tonya earned her Bachelor's degree in Architectural Engineering from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, her Master's in Structural Engineering from Stanford University, and her Ph.D. in Structural Mechanics from University of California at Davis.
Jim ⁏Brien has over 32 years of experience as a leader, team builder, and manager in diverse professional and academic environments. During his 26-year military career in the US Army Corps of Engineers, he spent 13 years on the teaching faculty of the United States Military Academy (USMA) at West Point, the US Arm⁹s Command & General Staff College, and the University of Notre Dame. Jim received a Bachelor of Science degree from USMA in 1974 and a Master of Science degree from Stanford University in 1982. He is a licensed Professional Engineer in the Commonwealth of Virginia. Jim currently serves as the Managing Director of the division that includes Educational and Professional Activities Departments.
Thomas A. Lenox is Senior Managing Director for the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE). During his 28-year military career, Tom spent 15 years on the engineering faculty of the United States Military Academy (USMA) – including five years as the Director of the Civil Engineering Division. Upon his military retirement in 1998, Tom joined the staff of ASCE. Currently, Tom is leading several Society-wide projects to advance the education and professionalism of engineers. Tom received a Bachelor of Science degree from USMA, Master of Science degree from Cornell University, Master of Business Administration degree from Long Island University, and a Ph.D. degree from Lehigh University. Recent awards include the ASCE’s ExCEEd Leadership Award, ASEE’s George K. Wadlin Award, and ASCE’s William H. Wisely American Civil Engineer Award.
Session xxxx
ExCEEd Teaching Workshop: Tenth Year Anniversary
Abstract
In response to the need for faculty training, the American Society of Civil Engineers developed and funded the ExCEEd (Excellence in Civil Engineering Education) Teaching Workshop that is today – the summer of 2008 – celebrating its tenth year of existence. For the past decade, nineteen ExCEEd Teaching Workshops (ETW) have been held at the United States Military Academy, the University of Arkansas, and Northern Arizona University, with two more workshops scheduled for this summer for a total of 21 offerings. ETW has realized 449 graduates from 203 different U.S. and international colleges and universities. This paper summarizes the content of ETW, assesses its effectiveness, highlights changes in the program as a result of the assessment, and outlines future directions. The assessment data were obtained from multiple survey instruments conducted during each workshop, surveys taken six months to a year after the workshop, and a ten year longitudinal survey.
I. Introduction
Many new engineering faculty members at major colleges and universities are assigned courses of instruction and students to teach without any formal training on how to teach. The result is often a trial and error approach where real students can suffer the consequences. Seymour and Hewitt1 concluded in a study of 355 students at seven institutions that poor teaching (inadequate organization, ineffective presentation, inaccessible faculty) was the most common student complaint and was a cause for many to leave math, science and engineering programs. In response to the need for faculty training, the American Society of Civil Engineers developed and funded the ExCEEd (Excellence in Civil Engineering Education) Teaching Workshop that is today – in the summer of 2008 – celebrating its tenth year of existence. For the past decade, twenty-one ExCEEd Teaching Workshops (ETW) have been or will be held at the United States Military Academy, the University of Arkansas, and Northern Arizona University. The program has 449 graduates from over 203 different U.S. and international colleges and universities. The program has evolved from one initially relying on the dedication of its faculty and ASCE staff champions to one that is supported and embraced by department heads and deans.
The ETW is a highly intensive, hands-on, five-day workshop consisting of seminars, demonstration classes, and small group labs. The workshop focuses on basic teaching skills with the objective of helping participants improve their approach to teaching and their understanding of student learning. The overarching goal is to ultimately improve teaching and learning in civil (and related programs) programs nationwide. The ETW strategy relies on learning by doing. As such, most of the workshop consists of small group labs in which each attendee teaches three classes while receiving guidance and feedback from his or her group and mentor team. The workshop is designed to review and demonstrate the best methods of teaching and assessment, to integrate the latest in learning theories, and to provide ample opportunities for participants to apply and practice methods and theories. ETW has encouraged the development of a community of engineering educators passionate about teaching and learning in civil engineering.
Proceedings of the 2008 American Society for Engineering Education Annual Conference & Exposition Copyright © 20081, American Society for Engineering Education
Estes, A., & Welch, R., & Ressler, S., & Dennis, N., & Larson, D., & Considine, C., & Nilsson, T., & O'Brien, J., & Lenox, T. (2008, June), Exceed Teaching Workshop: Tenth Year Anniversary Paper presented at 2008 Annual Conference & Exposition, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. 10.18260/1-2--3963
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