Coffman-Wolph, S., & Gray, K., & Pool, M., & Hird, J. T., & Jimenez, A. (2023, July), Workshop: Why on earth do I have to take a class in [fill-in-the-blank]?  Paper presented at 14th Annual First-Year Engineering Experience (FYEE) Conference, University of Tennessee in Knoxville, Tennessee. 10.18260/1-2--44866

\bibitem{asee_peer_44866}
  Coffman-Wolph, S., \& Gray, K., \& Pool, M., \& Hird, J. T., \& Jimenez, A. (2023, July), \emph{Workshop: Why on earth do I have to take a class in [fill-in-the-blank]?}
  Paper presented at 14th Annual First-Year Engineering Experience (FYEE) Conference, University of Tennessee in Knoxville, Tennessee.
  10.18260/1-2--44866

Stephany Coffman-Wolph, Kimberlyn Gray, Marcia Pool, John T. Hird, and Aida Jimenez.  "Workshop: Why on earth do I have to take a class in [fill-in-the-blank]?".  14th Annual First-Year Engineering Experience (FYEE) Conference, University of Tennessee in Knoxville, Tennessee, 2023, July.  ASEE Conferences, 2023.  https://peer.asee.org/44866 Internet.  14 Dec, 2024

\bibitem{asee_peer_44866}
  Stephany Coffman-Wolph, Kimberlyn Gray, Marcia Pool, John T. Hird, and Aida Jimenez.
  "Workshop: Why on earth do I have to take a class in [fill-in-the-blank]?".
  \emph{14th Annual First-Year Engineering Experience (FYEE) Conference, University of Tennessee in Knoxville, Tennessee, 2023, July}.
  ASEE Conferences, 2023.
  https://peer.asee.org/44866 Internet.  14 Dec, 2024

@INPROCEEDINGS{asee_peer_44866
author = "Stephany Coffman-Wolph, Kimberlyn Gray, Marcia Pool, John T. Hird, and Aida Jimenez"
title = "Workshop: Why on earth do I have to take a class in [fill-in-the-blank]?"
booktitle = "14th Annual First-Year Engineering Experience (FYEE) Conference"
year = "2023"
month = "July"
address = "University of Tennessee in Knoxville, Tennessee"
publisher = "ASEE Conferences"
note = {https://peer.asee.org/44866}
number = {10.18260/1-2--44866}
}

TY  - CPAPER
AB  - Background
Anyone who has interacted with first-year students (or their parents) was asked the dreaded question – “why do I have to take _____?” or heard “I do not see how this will help me become a [fill in the blank] engineer”. For first-year engineering students, their introduction to engineering course and professors support making these connections. However, high school students, community college students, and pre-engineering university students (those who are required to take foundational courses before being admitted to an engineering program) may not have access to someone who is able to clearly articulate how applications of early science and math courses connect to engineering careers. For many students interested in pursuing engineering, the “why” of the course is important. When students fail to see the connection between the material they are learning and their career interest, they may lack motivation to learn the material, thus hindering their performance in future engineering curriculums, or they may choose not to pursue engineering altogether, thus contributing to the “leaky pipeline” in STEM. Therefore, it is essential to support students understanding the connection between foundational coursework (basic math, science, and biology) and future engineering careers. We have developed a process that instructors may use to show students the connection and hopefully retain their interest in pursuing engineering. 

Structure of workshop
The workshop will introduce background on basic math, science and computer science, the importance of learning skills in these areas, the specifics of each module, and hints and tips for adapting this process to other courses. The facilitators believe in active learning techniques and will engage attendees in trying out problems from each module and working in groups to discuss/design their own modules. 

During this workshop, attendees will be introduced to a variety of modules targeted at the high school, community college, or pre-engineering students that show how math, basic science (chemistry, physics, biology, etc.), and/or computer science skills are essential to complete common tasks in engineering or computer science careers. The workshop will directly empower attendees to answer question like the one posed above, as well as provide sample activities to share with students. For example, to create the connection for basic Microsoft Excel skills, which are taught to students in our target demographic, the module will provide several real-world examples that may appear in the day-to-day life of a chemical engineer, mechanical engineer, and/or a computer scientist. The problems range from making graphs to communicate results of a process, utilizing statistics to determine if an experiment was significant, or coding formulas to automate calculations.

By participating in the workshop, attendees will gain the “student perspective” as well as access to a series of useful teaching modules. Each module (available to attendees via a Google Drive) will contain: learning objectives, lesson plans, problem descriptions, FAQs, and other resources. Additionally, each module will contain a curated list of examples/problems/activities from reputable engineering and computer science textbooks, videos, websites, etc.

Learning Objectives for Workshop
By the end of this workshop, attendees should be able to:
1.	Explain how basic math and science are essential to engineering and computer science.
2.	Understand the connection between basic math and science and engineering/computer science shown in each module. 
3.	Create modules to connect material in courses they teach to engineering/computer science.

Workshop Presentation Schedule
1. Introduction, Purpose, and Agenda
2. Overview of Math, Chemistry, Biology, Statistics, Physics, and Computer Science Skills
3. Module 1: Applications of Excel in Engineering
This module will include descriptions of engineering problems that can be solved using Microsoft Excel as well as a sample solution of an engineering problem using Excel.
4. Module 2: Applications of Algebra and Trigonometry in Engineering
This module will include common algebra and math concepts covered in high school and college courses and give examples of their applications in engineering fields. 
5. Module 3: Applications of Biology in Engineering.
This module will describe how understanding key concepts (e.g. genetic, DNA) are essential in optimizing medical treatments (e.g. personalized medicine). 
6. Module 4: Create Your Own Module
In this module attendees will work in teams to create additional examples to share with instructors of foundational courses outside of engineering and computer science. 
7. Online Resources, Q & A, Wrap-up
AU  - Stephany Coffman-Wolph
AU  - Kimberlyn Gray
AU  - Marcia Pool
AU  - John T. Hird
AU  - Aida Jimenez
CY  - University of Tennessee in Knoxville, Tennessee
DA  - 2023/07/30
PB  - ASEE Conferences
TI  - Workshop: Why on earth do I have to take a class in [fill-in-the-blank]?
UR  - https://peer.asee.org/44866
DO  - 10.18260/1-2--44866
ER  -