Student Performance And Faculty Development In Scale Up Engineering Mechanics And Math Courses
- Conference
- Location
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Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
- Publication Date
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June 22, 2008
- Start Date
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June 22, 2008
- End Date
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June 25, 2008
- ISSN
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2153-5965
- Conference Session
- Page Count
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6
- Page Numbers
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13.1110.1 - 13.1110.6
- DOI
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10.18260/1-2--3817
- Permanent URL
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https://peer.asee.org/3817
- Download Count
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446
Paper Authors
Lisa Benson Clemson University
Lisa C. Benson is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Engineering and Science
Education, with a joint appointment in the Department of Bioengineering, at Clemson University.
Her research areas include engineering education and musculoskeletal biomechanics. Education
research includes the use of active learning in undergraduate engineering courses, undergraduate
research experiences, and service learning in engineering and science education. Her
education includes a B.S. in Bioengineering from the University of Vermont, and M.S. and Ph.D.
degrees in Bioengineering from Clemson University.
William Moss Clemson University
William F. Moss is an Alumni Distinguished Professor of Mathematical Sciences at Clemson
University. He has a BS in Electrical Engineering from MIT and a Ph.D. in Mathematics from the
University of Delaware. He has 37 years of teaching and research experience at Lockheed
Aircraft, the Naval Nuclear Power School, Georgia Institute of Technology, Old Dominion
University, and Clemson University. His research involves mathematical modeling and the use of
active learning strategies and technology to improve learning outcomes in mathematics and
engineering courses. He is current supported by an NSF Engineering CCLI grant: Adapting and
Implementing the SCALE-UP Approach in Statics, Dynamics, and Multivariate Calculus. He is
also supported by an NSF Mathematics Education CCLI grant: Adapting K-8 Mathematics
Curricular Materials for Pre-Service Teacher Education.
Sherrill Biggers Clemson University
Sherrill B. Biggers is a Professor of Mechanical Engineering at Clemson University. His research
interests include computational solid mechanics, progressive failure and nonlinear response of
composite structures, and optimum design. He has taught courses in structural and solid
mechanics, and finite element methods. He received his PhD in Mechanical Engineering from
Duke University, and has been on the faculty at Clemson since 1989, after 8 years on the faculty
at the University of Kentucky and 11 years in the aerospace industry. He is a member of ASME,
ASCE, ASEE, and an associate fellow of AIAA. He is a registered Professional Engineer (PE).
Scott Schiff Clemson University
Scott D. Schiff is a Professor of Civil Engineering and the Director of the Wind and Structural Engineering Research Facility at Clemson University. He is involved in research activities related to wind and structural engineering and the teaching of structures and fundamental engineering mechanics courses. He received his Ph.D. in Civil Engineering from the University of Illinois in 1988 and has been on the Clemson faculty since 1989. He has participated in ASCE and ASEE conferences related to civil engineering education.
Marisa Orr
Clemson University
orcid.org/0000-0001-5944-5846
Marisa K. Orr is a Ph.D. student at Clemson University. She received her B.S. In Mechanical
Engineering from Clemson in 2005. In her research, she is studying Engineering Mechanics
Education.
Matthew Ohland
Purdue Engineering Education
orcid.org/0000-0003-4052-1452
Matthew W. Ohland is an Associate Professor in Purdue University's Department of Engineering
Education and is the Past President of Tau Beta Pi, the engineering honor society. He received his Ph.D. in Civil Engineering with a minor in Education from the University of Florida in 1996.
Previously, he served as Assistant Director of the NSF-sponsored SUCCEED Engineering
Education Coalition. In addition to this work, he studies peer evaluation and longitudinal student records in engineering education.
Abstract
NOTE: The first page of text has been automatically extracted and included below in lieu of an abstract
Student Performance and Faculty Development in SCALE-UP Engineering Mechanics and Math Courses
Abstract
Our research team is in their second year of implementing active and cooperative learning in second-year engineering mechanics and math courses using the Student-Centered Activities for Large Enrollment Undergraduate Programs (SCALE-UP) model. With this approach, large studio classes are taught with an emphasis on learning by guided inquiry instead of standard listening and note taking by students. The project focuses on the development and delivery of instructional material and documentation of student comprehension, performance and perceptions in Statics, Dynamics, and Multivariate Calculus courses at Clemson University. The project is also examining the benefit of integrating the content of the two traditional sequential engineering mechanics courses (Statics and Dynamics), and the parallel content in Multivariate Calculus. The research team is tracking student grades in these courses and follow-up courses, and performance on the Statics, Dynamics, and Force Concept Inventories for students in Statics taught in a traditional format, students in Statics taught in a SCALE-UP format, and students in multiple sections of integrated Statics and Dynamics taught in a SCALE-UP format. The team is also addressing the professional development needs of instructors and student learning assistants to effectively deliver student-centered course materials and in-class assessment of student understanding.
Introduction
Teaching in a student-centered environment alters the instructor’s role in the classroom from orator to more of a facilitator and coach. This new approach to teaching, Student Centered Active Learning Environment for Undergraduate Programs (SCALE-UP), was developed to teach Physics at North Carolina State University1, and the researchers at our institution are among the first to promote the use of this method in engineering mechanics and math courses.
Background and Methods
The primary goal of this project is to deliver more effective Statics and Dynamics instruction to students at Clemson University. We have developed and delivered cooperative learning activities that are delivered using the SCALE-UP model, teaching large studio classes of up to 70 students. We have revised the present lecture approach to these topics and the integration of the content of the two sequential courses according to the needs of students in our mechanical engineering program.
All sections of SCALE-UP Statics and Integrated Statics/Dynamics were offered in a 1700 square foot SCALE-UP classroom space created and equipped for instruction and learning in the SCALE-UP mode. The space includes eight 7-foot round tables that can seat up to 9 students each (two or three teams per table). The tables have power and wired-internet to facilitate laptop use. Instructor space includes a Sympodium linked to dual projectors. White boards for instructor and student use occupy two opposing walls.
Benson, L., & Moss, W., & Biggers, S., & Schiff, S., & Orr, M., & Ohland, M. (2008, June), Student Performance And Faculty Development In Scale Up Engineering Mechanics And Math Courses Paper presented at 2008 Annual Conference & Exposition, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. 10.18260/1-2--3817
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