Using a pilot course to evaluate curriculum redesign for a first year engineering program.
- Conference
- Location
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Prairie View, Texas
- Publication Date
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March 16, 2022
- Start Date
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March 16, 2022
- End Date
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March 18, 2022
- Tagged Topic
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Diversity
- Page Count
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10
- DOI
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10.18260/1-2--39219
- Permanent URL
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https://peer.asee.org/39219
- Download Count
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455
Paper Authors
Janie M Moore
Texas A&M University
orcid.org/0000-0002-3138-9632
Dr. Janie McClurkin Moore is an Assistant Professor in the Biological and Agricultural Engineering Department at Texas A&M University in College Station. A native of Columbus, Ohio, she attended North Carolina A&T State University where she received a B.S. in Bio Environmental Engineering in 2006. She then began pursuing her graduate education at Purdue University in the Agricultural and Biological Engineering Department, completing her Ph.D. in 2015. Her primary research areas include 1) mycotoxin risk assessment and treatment in stored grains and 2) innovate instructional strategies for Biological and Agricultural Engineering students. She is also a Member of the Engineering Education Faculty, Institute for Engineering Education and Innovation, Food Science Graduate Faculty, and Multidisciplinary Engineering Graduate Faculty groups at Texas A&M University.
Jacques C. Richard
Texas A&M University
orcid.org/0000-0002-1358-2025
Dr. Richard got his Ph. D. at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, 1989 and a B. S. at Boston University, 1984. He was at NASA Glenn, 1989-1995, worked at Argonne National Lab, 1996-1997, taught at Chicago State University, 1997-2002. Dr. Richard is an Instructional Associate Professor, Aerospace Engineer and NSF REU Program Director at Texas A&M since 1/03. His research focuses on computational plasma modeling using particle methods with spectral methods on Maxwell and Boltzmann equations. He has applied the lattice Boltzmann method to study plasma turbulence and plasma jets. He also studies engineering enculturation to better quantify and understand what in a classroom develops the engineering student into an engineer, building critical, computational and algorithmic thinking, with respect to cultural, ethnic, racial, gender, sexual, nationality, socioeconomic diversity.
Past research includes modeling ocean-air interaction; reacting flow systems; modeling jet engine turbomachinery going unstable (received NASA Performance Cash awards). Dr. Richard is involved in many outreach activities: tutoring, mentoring, directing related grants (e.g., a grant for an NSF REU site). Dr, Richard is active in professional societies (American Physical Society (APS), American Institute for Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA), ASEE, ASME). Dr. Richard has authored or co-authored about 35 technical articles (about 30 of which are refereed publications). Dr. Richard teaches courses ranging from first-year engineering design, fluid mechanics, to space plasma propulsion.
Abstract
To improve pathways in math and physics for first year engineering students, a large Southwestern University redesigned their curriculum. Before the new curriculum was implemented, a pilot course was developed to evaluate the course material and assess the difficulty for the first cohort of freshman students. In the design of the pilot course the full semester materials were condensed to 6 weeks and the cohort of participants represented 12 different engineering disciplines and all 4 grade levels, all of whom had taken the original first year engineering courses. In this work we assessed students’ perceptions, attitudes, and knowledge gains using surveys, journals, homework assignments, and the student assessment of learning gains survey. Grounded theory was used to code over 650 survey responses from 26 students. The results were separated into 5 primary codes (book, lecture, quiz, lab assignment, and homework), and 6 secondary codes (clarity, length, what went well, what went wrong, and recommendations). Tertiary codes gave us direction on how to adjust the course once it went live.
Moore, J. M., & Richard, J. C. (2022, March), Using a pilot course to evaluate curriculum redesign for a first year engineering program. Paper presented at 2022 ASEE Gulf Southwest Annual Conference, Prairie View, Texas. 10.18260/1-2--39219
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