A cost-effective, secure, and portable electronic instrumentation equipment is used in Experiment Centric Pedagogy (ECP), formerly known as Mobile Hands-On Studio Technology and Pedagogy, as a teaching method for STEM subjects both inside and outside of the classroom. Since the Spring of 2020, ECP has been integrated into two Industrial Engineering (IE) courses: Thermodynamics and Materials Engineering. This has been done in various ways, including through student use at home and in-class demonstrations and teaching labs. During the most recent academic session (Fall 2021–Spring 2022), the effects of practical home-based experimentation and lab activities on students' attitudes, interests, and performance were examined for the Engineering Thermodynamics course. The outcomes of a survey known as the Motivated Strategies for Learning Questionnaires (MLSQ), which was given to 51 students, demonstrated better improvements in the student's motivation, epistemic, and perceptual curiosity, three crucial characteristics linked to their success. Along with the MLSQ, the Classroom Observation Protocol for Undergraduate Students (COPUS) assesses active learning in Industrial Engineering courses, and quantitative and qualitative data on the significant components of student achievement were gathered. Results obtained show that using ECP has improved students' awareness of material properties and increased their interest in learning about the thermodynamics concept of heat transfer in connection to various solid materials.
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Home-based Cantilever Beam Experiment for Civil Engineering Undergraduate Students
There is a growing concern in STEM fields during the ongoing pandemic about how students will be able to achieve one of the major learning outcomes; an ability to develop and conduct appropriate experimentation, analyze and interpret data, and use engineering/scientific judgement to draw conclusions. Experimental Centric Pedagogy (ECP) has been shown to promote motivation and achievement in electrical engineering among black students and students in general. This paper focuses on the development of a hands-on laboratory experiment for undergraduate students in the department of civil engineering using Mobile Hands-On Studio Technology to improve experiential learning. The home-based experiment focuses on the measurement of beam stresses resulting from weights applied to the free-end of the beam while being fixed at the other end. The beam is made up of an acrylic material and has dimensions of 1500 mm in length, 40 mm in width, and 3.175 mm in thickness. Data acquisition from strain gauges installed on the beams was made possible using ALICE Voltmeter which displays voltage readings upon beam displacement. The stress readings are then calibrated and transformed to strains based on hooke’s law relationship. Findings indicate good understanding of concepts, motivation and students learning experiences through teamwork and collaborative activities. and achievement of stated learning outcome.
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- Award ID(s):
- 1915614
- NSF-PAR ID:
- 10287104
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- 2021 ASEE Virtual Annual Conference Content Access
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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null (Ed.)The current COVID-19 pandemic has forced many colleges and universities to remain on a completely online or remote educational learning environment for the 2020 Spring and Fall semesters, however there is a growing concern in STEM fields about how students will be able to achieve one of the major ABET learning outcomes without conducting physical, hands on laboratory exercises as many STEM disciplines are switching to virtual laboratory; an ability to develop and conduct appropriate experimentation, analyze and interpret data, and use engineering/scientific judgment to draw conclusions. In addition to the limited achievement of the ABET outcomes, roughly half of the population of a historically black university communicated their anxieties during the pandemic to the University President via Change.org. The students’ main anxiety is portrayed in a statement culled from the petition as follows: “Most classes are very hands-on, and we are not able to do those from home because of the limited resources available at home”. This paper highlights the best practices for the implementation of home-based hands-on activities across multiple STEM fields. The paper further elaborates on the impact of remote and virtual labs on students’ attitude, interest, and performance in STEM over the home-based hands-on experimentation. Home-based hands-on laboratory activities were performed in biology, electrical engineering, industrial engineering, transportation system, and civil engineering. The results of a Motivated Strategies for Learning Questionnaires (MLSQ) survey that was administered to about 100 STEM students revealed better gains in key constructs associated with student success, such as motivation, critical thinking, and metacognition.more » « less
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According to National Science Foundation data, African American students comprise 2% of the B.S. degree recipients in the geosciences, 2.6% in physics and 3.9% in engineering, while Blacks comprise 14.9% of the college-aged population. There is therefore an urgent need for Historical Black Colleges and Universities, which produce a large number of African American STEM graduates, to increase their focus on broadening STEM participation among underrepresented black students. Thus, there are untapped opportunities to develop intervention strategies and programs to increase recruitment, retention, and success of minorities in STEM and the workforce. The Experiment Centric Pedagogy (ECP) has been successful in promoting motivation and enhancing academic achievement of African American electrical engineering students. ECP uses a portable electronic instrumentation system, paired with appropriate software and sensors, to measure a wide range of properties, such as vibration and oxygen levels. This work in progress describes the initial adaptation of an evidence-based, experiment-focused teaching approach in biology, chemistry, civil engineering, industrial engineering, transportation systems, and physics. ECP will be utilized in these disciplines in various settings, such as in traditional classrooms, teaching laboratories, and at home use by students. Instructors use ECP for in-class demonstrations, for cooperative group experiments, and for homework assignments. The paper will highlight the criteria used for selection of initial experiments to adapt, the modifications made, and resulting changes in the course delivery. Preliminary results will be provided using measures of key constructs associated with student success, such as motivation, epistemic and perceptual curiosity, engineering identity, and self-efficacy. This project is conducted at a minority serving institution and most participants are from groups historically underrepresented in STEM.more » « less
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