Impact of Course Structure on Learning and Self-Efficacy in a Unit Operations Laboratory

Janie Brennan; Shawn E Nordell; Erin D Solomon

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Conference: 2017 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition
Location: Columbus, Ohio
Publication Date: June 24, 2017
Start Date: June 24, 2017
End Date: June 28, 2017
Conference Session: Labs and Experiments
Tagged Division: Chemical Engineering
Page Count: 23
DOI: 10.18260/1-2--28462
Permanent URL: https://strategy.asee.org/28462
Download Count: 585

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Paper Authors

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Janie Brennan Washington University in St. Louis

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Janie Brennan is a Lecturer of Energy, Environmental & Chemical Engineering at Washington University in St. Louis. She earned her Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering from Purdue University in 2015. Her primary focus is on the application of research-based teaching methods in chemical engineering education.

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Shawn E Nordell Washington University in St. Louis

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Shawn E. Nordell, Ph.D. is currently Senior Associate Director of The Teaching Center at Washington University in St. Louis where she works extensively with faculty to enhance active learning strategies to help create inclusive, engaging classrooms. Her research ranges from communication networks in mammals and birds to metacognition in student learning.

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Erin D Solomon Washington University in St. Louis

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Erin Solomon, Ph.D., (Social Psychology) is currently a research scientist and project manager in the Center for Integrative Research on Cognition, Learning, and Education at Washington University in St. Louis. Her work focuses on the collection and analysis of educational data to evaluate the impact of curricular changes in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) courses. She also works to support STEM faculty in their transition to using evidence-based teaching strategies.

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Abstract

Unit operations laboratory courses serve a critical role in chemical engineering education. In addition to teaching students about various practical applications of their engineering knowledge, these courses are often also intended to teach a variety of other important professional skills, including experimentation, instrumentation, error analysis, technical communication, teamwork, and critical thinking. It is clear that the course structure and implementation will have a significant effect on the extent to which these skills are developed. In this study, numerous modifications were made to a unit operations laboratory course with the goal of improving skill development as well as student engagement.

Previous versions of the course used a “recipe”-like format for the laboratory activities, and no critical feedback was provided on written reports. In the new version of the course, laboratory activities were left ambiguous and open-ended, teams were divided into roles with specific responsibilities, and both written reports and oral presentations were required with detailed feedback. Literature suggests that these types of changes aid in the development of the desired skills listed above.

It has also been shown that a focus on open-ended problem solving, such as that implemented in the new version of the course, can improve students’ self-efficacy. Self-efficacy has been directly linked to success and persistence in engineering, so it is possible that the new course structure could have a direct effect on students’ future success as engineers.

For this study, a recently validated instrument to measure engineering self-efficacy was provided to students both before and after completing the course. Students were additionally surveyed at the end of the course about how well they perceived the course to achieve its learning objectives and which parts of the course structure they felt contributed the most significantly to the achievement of those learning objectives. The stated course learning objectives closely reflect the development of skills previously described. The data will be analyzed, examining and controlling for various factors such as standardized test scores, ethnicity, and gender.

Both quantitative and qualitative student response data will be presented. It is expected that the structural changes to this chemical engineering unit operations course will result in increased engineering self-efficacy and achievement of the course learning objectives. Finally, reflections on student feedback and instructor experiences will be used to suggest future course improvements.

Citation
Format

Brennan, J., & Nordell, S. E., & Solomon, E. D. (2017, June), Impact of Course Structure on Learning and Self-Efficacy in a Unit Operations Laboratory Paper presented at 2017 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition, Columbus, Ohio. 10.18260/1-2--28462

TY - CPAPER
AB - Unit operations laboratory courses serve a critical role in chemical engineering education. In addition to teaching students about various practical applications of their engineering knowledge, these courses are often also intended to teach a variety of other important professional skills, including experimentation, instrumentation, error analysis, technical communication, teamwork, and critical thinking. It is clear that the course structure and implementation will have a significant effect on the extent to which these skills are developed. In this study, numerous modifications were made to a unit operations laboratory course with the goal of improving skill development as well as student engagement.

Previous versions of the course used a “recipe”-like format for the laboratory activities, and no critical feedback was provided on written reports. In the new version of the course, laboratory activities were left ambiguous and open-ended, teams were divided into roles with specific responsibilities, and both written reports and oral presentations were required with detailed feedback. Literature suggests that these types of changes aid in the development of the desired skills listed above.

It has also been shown that a focus on open-ended problem solving, such as that implemented in the new version of the course, can improve students’ self-efficacy. Self-efficacy has been directly linked to success and persistence in engineering, so it is possible that the new course structure could have a direct effect on students’ future success as engineers.

For this study, a recently validated instrument to measure engineering self-efficacy was provided to students both before and after completing the course. Students were additionally surveyed at the end of the course about how well they perceived the course to achieve its learning objectives and which parts of the course structure they felt contributed the most significantly to the achievement of those learning objectives. The stated course learning objectives closely reflect the development of skills previously described. The data will be analyzed, examining and controlling for various factors such as standardized test scores, ethnicity, and gender.

Both quantitative and qualitative student response data will be presented. It is expected that the structural changes to this chemical engineering unit operations course will result in increased engineering self-efficacy and achievement of the course learning objectives. Finally, reflections on student feedback and instructor experiences will be used to suggest future course improvements.
AU - Janie Brennan
AU - Shawn E Nordell
AU - Erin D Solomon
CY - Columbus, Ohio
DA - 2017/06/24
PB - ASEE Conferences
TI - Impact of Course Structure on Learning and Self-Efficacy in a Unit Operations Laboratory
UR - https://strategy.asee.org/28462
DO - 10.18260/1-2--28462
ER -