Towards Liberal Education Assessment In Engineering And Technology Programs

Our regional accrediting body, New England Association of Schools and Colleges, requires outcome assessment of core liberal education outcomes. Because of this mandate, and our new mission at the University to prepare students with the knowledge, skills, and values necessary to thrive and be engaged in a pluralistic, complex world, we have undertaken a project to develop and assess core liberal education outcomes. This paper describes the planning and actions taken to meet these new requirements in our engineering and technology programs. The college has expanded outcome assessment by including five “intellectual and practical skills,” specifically, critical and creative thinking, inquiry/analysis, problem-solving, and information literacy. VALUE rubrics are being incorporated into the process to ascertain the best opportunities to measure student achievement within the engineering and technology programs. An assessment framework is presented and pilot results are discussed

Retention-Oriented Curricular Design

This paper presents a retention-oriented approach to the educational value stream within the STEM undergraduate area. Faced with several strategic challenges and opportunities, a Flex Advantage Plan was developed to enhance the undergraduate engineering technology programs and better utilize the curricular flexibilities inherent in the current structure. FAP provides distinction and uniqueness to these majors by presenting students with educational choices that add depth in a chosen discipline and/or another concentration. Flex Advantage has expanded awareness and increased enrollment in secondary degrees, minors and concentrations. In the next phase, the linkages between undergraduate and graduate studies will be addressed to provide a smoother transition for current undergraduate students and more relevant alternatives for part-time students

Achieving and Sustaining Gender Balance in an Undergraduate Teaching Institution

Abstract ---Recruiting and retaining women in the STEM faculty ranks has been a national priority for many years. Recent research, sponsored by the NSF ADVANCE program, was performed mostly by doctoral institutions. However, for small undergraduate universities, the resulting challenges and decision frameworks are likely to be different. The prevalent recommendations need to be re-evaluated and re-interpreted for relevance and applicability. Multiple change agents have been identified, but it is believed that the departmental climate most strongly correlates with successful institutional transformation. The primary success factor is a set of formalized processes in: (1) teaching, scholarship and service, (2) mentoring, and (3) leadership. A secondary factor is a faculty support infrastructure capable of fostering collaborations and reducing isolation. A third factor is an introspective capability that broadens the understanding of the issues affecting women ultimately expressed in the form of better policies and procedures. There is a strong connection between gender progress on the faculty side and improving the pipeline of female students. To effectively intervene on the supply side, it is important to have networking, mentoring and role modeling processes that match student demographics and global sociological conditions. In the case of our University, this requires recruiting, developing and retaining faculty whose principal focus is undergraduate education which is challenging in STEM fields where the traditional emphasis is on research. Curricular evolution in doctoral institutions is typically driven by emerging trends and technological opportunities while the needs of regional industries and local programs are more influential among primarily undergraduate institutions. As advanced degrees become a professional requirement, baccalaureate graduates will be expected to pursue advanced studies early in their career. Hence, more undergraduate STEM programs will serve as feeders to doctoral institutions. The future supply of graduate students and ultimately faculty will become more dependent on these teaching universities. This paper describes our specific efforts and successes in the context of an undergraduate teaching institution. We have demonstrated that even with limited resources and no external funding, it is possible to improve the community culture and climate. Tangible strategies and initiatives aimed at improving the climate are presented: (1) administrative leadership commitment, (2) grants and endowments, (3) faculty development resources, (4) workshops that mirror industry successes, (5) early and mid-career planning, and (6) recruiting and retention of female faculty

Applications and App Building in Hybrid Courses

This paper provides an overview of application building in the course environment illustrated with samples of student work. User applications (apps) built as extensions of multiphysics models have been integrated into traditional face-to-face and hybrid engineering courses. Apps were first included in a multidisciplinary modeling graduate course that emphasizes an end-of-semester research project. At the undergraduate level, apps were added into a two-course mechanical engineering thermo-fluids sequence. Initially, apps were used as an effective demonstration tool both in the classroom and in an on-line environment. Subsequently, application building has been embedded into a string of simulation projects featuring prominently in the performance assessment. As a result, students have become more demonstrably engaged and are devoting substantial time outside the classroom to understand theoretical concepts. Feedback from graduates indicates that familiarity with simulation work-flow and application building are effective skillsets in seeking an entry-level industry position

Finite Element Modeling of a Transistor Heat Sink

Abstract. Power transistors often require heat sinks to dissipate thermal energy and keep junction temperatures below the recommended limit. The reliability and longevity of any semiconductor device is inversely proportional to the junction temperature. Hence, a significant increase in reliability and component life can be achieved by a small reduction in operating temperature. A range of heat sink designs and mounting procedures are available, each with reasonably predictable performance. However, it is possible to overdesign by incorporating a margin of safety that is too high. This paper describes the results obtained by modeling the heat transfer process in several TO-220 heat sink configurations and discusses key design trade-offs. The finite element model was developed using COMSOL 4.2 and employs the heat transfer (ht) module for steady state with parametric studies. The materials consisted of a plastic chip carrier, stainless steel mounting tab, copper conducting leads, and an aluminum heat sink. The model accounts for heat transfer due to radiation via emissivity and natural convection into ambient temperature air. Parametric studies considered heat sink size/area, emissivity and convective cooling coefficient to estimate the impact of each on steady-state temperatures

Improving Student Readiness for Inquiry-Based Learning: An Engineering Case Study

During the past decade, the authors have sought to advance student research in a predominantly teaching institution. The two primary challenges were: academic - how to introduce and promote inquiry-based learning (IBL) given the constraints, and business - how to obtain and sustain funding in the area of industry-sponsored research. The authors developed a successful multidisciplinary modeling course that integrates four teaching and learning strategies and where key learning outcomes strengthen student readiness to engage in research. The course culminates with research performed as part of an IBL strategy that is relevant and supported by mentoring. The benefits include development of intellectual and practical skills that underlie a central activity of engineering design. The course structure, evidence of student work, and evolution over time to meet challenges are presented and discussed. Most importantly, the potential of this strategy to be implemented across other topical areas is addressed. Student participation in research improves learning of engineering and scientific concepts, increases interaction with faculty and industry sponsors, and provides opportunities for work in emerging technology areas. Benefits accrue both to students who pursue a research career and to those who enter applied fields by strengthening their ability to propose innovative solutions.</p

Engineering Curriculum in Support of Industry 4.0

The paper discusses how multiphysics simulations and applications are being used to build essential skills in preparation for entry into an Industry 4.0 workforce. In a highly networked and collaborative human/machine cyberspace, some important competencies for engineering graduates include the ability to: (1) explore design options and results easily between suites of software, (2) predict and visualize performance of complex problems in the beginning phase of the design process, and (3) identify and optimize key parameters prior to fabrication. We describe how integrated project- and inquiry-based learning in the context of a simulation environment and across the curriculum is improving student readiness and transition into industry. Our paper offers a template of how to transition into a curriculum that produces newly minted engineers better equipped to engage in complex design. Examples of project assignments, assessment methods, and student work are discussed as well as future plans