scholarly journals A Laboratory-Centered Approach to Introducing Engineering Students to Electric Circuit and Electric Systems Concepts

2012 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cyrus Shafai ◽  
Behzad Kordi
Keyword(s):  
Problem Solving ◽  
Engineering Students ◽  
Electric Circuit ◽  
Historical Background ◽  
First Year ◽  
Computer Engineering ◽  
First Year Students ◽  
Problem Solving Skills ◽  
Electrical Systems ◽  
Different Types

The teaching of electric circuit analysis traditionally involves problem solving to ensure understanding of analysis theorems, complemented by laboratory experience. When taught to first year Engineering students, this approach lacks a motivational component and presents difficulties due to the weaker mathematics and problem solving skills of first year students. This paper presents a laboratory-centered approach to introduce engineering students to electric devices and systems. Using open-ended design projects, students explore and construct different types of electrical systems. Laboratories are selected so as to develop student intuition in electrical concepts, scientific fundamentals, provide a historical background, and demonstrate systems-level design issues. Over the past three years in our Department, using this approach, increased student motivation and engagement has been observed, supported by a significant increase in Electrical and Computer Engineering enrollment.

scholarly journals New Physics Curriculum

2016 ◽  
pp. 17-21
Author(s):  
Lynn Moran
Keyword(s):  
Problem Solving ◽  
Core Curriculum ◽  
New Physics ◽  
Undergraduate Teaching ◽  
First Year ◽  
First Year Students ◽  
Problem Solving Skills ◽  
The University ◽  
Physics Curriculum

Developing the critical thinking and problem-solving skills of students as rapidly as possible is a key requirement in improving learning outcomes at every stage of their degree. The Department of Physics at the University of Liverpool has entirely redeveloped years 1 and 2 of the undergraduate degree with a focus on students becoming independent learners as early as possible. The aims are to better integrate the undergraduate teaching provision and to complete the Institute of Physics core curriculum in years 1 and 2, in order to focus on research led teaching and independent projects in years 3 and 4. This new programme, entitled New Physics, starts in Welcome Week with the Undergraduate Physics Olympics and continues through the Year 1 Project (Mission to Mars) in the first week of semester one. The aim is to set the standard for collaborative achievement and introduce students to the way that physicists think. Innovative problem solving classes incorporating active learning such as peerassessment,group learning and exemplars designed to improve these skills andenhance the quality of learning among its first-year students have been introduced.

scholarly journals Investigating the Impact of Model Eliciting Activities on Development of Critical Thinking

2013 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brian Frank ◽  
Jake Kaupp ◽  
Ann Chen
Keyword(s):  
Critical Thinking ◽  
Engineering Students ◽  
Thinking Skills ◽  
Critical Thinking Skills ◽  
Learning Assessment ◽  
First Year ◽  
First Year Students ◽  
Problem Solving Skills ◽  
Model Eliciting Activities ◽  
The Impact

This paper presents a portion of a study on how model eliciting activities (MEAs) impact critical thinking development in first year engineering. Model eliciting activities (MEAs) are realistic problems used in the classroom that require learners to document not only their solution to the problems, but also their processes for solving them. Studies have shown MEAs to be valuable in helping students to develop conceptual understanding, knowledge transfer , and generalizable problem--‐solving skills. This study is investigating the impact of the MEA- integrated course on students’ development of critical thinking skills. Ultimately, the team aims to determine whether the MEA-integrated course facilitates students’ critical thinking. During the fall semester of the 2012/2013 academic year three instruments will be used to evaluate the critical thinking skills (CTS) of first year engineering students. These instruments will be used as both a pre--‐ and post--‐test in order to benchmark CTS of the incoming first year students, and determine the effectiveness of MEA instruction on developing student critical thinking ability. These instruments are the Cornell Critical Thinking Test Level Z (Cornell Z), the International Critical Thinking Essay Test (ICTET) and the Collegiate Learning Assessment (CLA). This paper will present the preliminary findings from analysis of the MEA results and pre and post tests from the study.

Predicting Success among First-Year Engineering Students at the Rand Afrikaans University

2003 ◽  
Vol 93 (2) ◽  
pp. 399-409 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jacobus G. Maree ◽  
Anlia Pretorius ◽  
Riëtte J. Eiselen
Keyword(s):  
Problem Solving ◽  
Linear Regression ◽  
Mathematics Anxiety ◽  
Engineering Students ◽  
First Year ◽  
First Year Students ◽  
Aggregate Score ◽  
Predicting Success ◽  
Study Orientation ◽  
And Mathematics

160 first-year students in the Engineering Faculty at the Rand Afrikaans University completed the Study Orientation Questionnaire in Mathematics and the Senior Aptitude Test Advanced. 100 students who passed and 40 who failed the first year scored significantly differently on three subtests, Calculations, Study attitude in mathematics, and Problem-solving behaviour in mathematics. Step-wise linear regression showed a combination of three fields, namely, Calculations, Study attitude in mathematics, and Mathematics anxiety, contributed significantly ( R2 = 25.8%) towards predicting the first-year aggregate score of first-year engineering students.

Problem solving skills of the 1st year and 4th year nursing students

2011 ◽  
Vol 26 (S2) ◽  
pp. 883-883
Author(s):  
Y. Sayin ◽  
M. Farimaz
Keyword(s):  
Nursing Education ◽  
Nursing Students ◽  
Problem Solving ◽  
Nuclear Family ◽  
Personal Information ◽  
Relevant Literature ◽  
Personal Control ◽  
First Year ◽  
First Year Students ◽  
Problem Solving Skills

IntroductionOne of the objectives of nursing education is helping nursing students acquire the knowledge, skills, and behaviors needed to deal with various problems.ObjectivesThe study is descriptive.AimsTo determine the “problem solving skills” of the 1st-year and 4th-year students.MethodsThe study is a descriptive one. The study sample comprised a total of 153 students in their 1st-year and 4th-year in Department of Nursing, Cumhuriyet University, Turkey. The research data were collected by means of the “Personal Information Form” developed in light of the relevant literature review and the “Problem Solving Inventory” which was developed by Heppner and Peterson (1982) and tested in Turkey in 1990 by Taylan in terms of fist validity-reliability properties.ResultsOf the first year students, 84.9% lived in a nuclear family, 61.6% lived in a city, 39.5% were first-born children. Of the fourth year students, 81.0% lived in a nuclear family, 67.2% lived in a city, 37.3% were first-born children. All of the students financial needs were met by their parents. There was no difference between the total “problem solving confidence” scores of the first year students (85.942 ± 16.649) and the fourth year students (81.866 ± 19.168) (p > 0.05). According to the sub-scales of the inventory, the first year students received higher scores than the fourth year students in “problem solving confidence”, “approach-avoidance behavior” and “personal control” (p > 0.05).ConclusionsThe education received by the students did not make a difference in the development of their problem solving skills.

scholarly journals Using Broad-Disciplinary Laboratories to Teach Electric Circuits to First Year Students While Introducing Design and Professional Lab Practices

2015 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cyrus Shafai
Keyword(s):  
Power Systems ◽  
Engineering Students ◽  
Wireless Systems ◽  
Digital Systems ◽  
First Year ◽  
Initial State ◽  
First Year Students ◽  
Electric Circuits ◽  
Electrical Systems ◽  
Systems Control

It is possible to engage first year students tolearn the history and applications of electrical systems invarious disciplines from power systems, wireless systems,control, digital systems, biomedical, and micro-sensorsthough laboratories that emphasize design and expectprofessionalism. Teaching electrical systems starting withthe traditional electric circuits first approach provideslittle motivation for first year engineering students. Ourapproach has been to complement lectures in electricaltheory with a sequence of laboratories that focus onupper level electrical systems specialties. Laboratorydesign projects start with a discussion of historical andmodern application of the presented technologies. Thispaper discusses some of the challenges faced andsolutions implemented to enable the application of thebroad-disciplinary laboratories. Professional labpractices have been introduced with the qualitativeassessment of student designs and the expectation thatthey maintain cleanliness of the laboratory and supplyinventory. We have found that TAs are more comfortable(and more critical) in their critique of student designswhen assessment is done using verbal quality indicatorsin place of simple numerical assignment. Accordingly,students make greater effort towards quality labpractices, as opposed to only finding the numericalsolutions. We have further observed that students willmeticulously return the laboratory to its initial state, ifthey were required at the outset to source suppliesthemselves, as opposed being given them.

REVERSE ENGINEERING: TENSION RATCHET DISSECTION PROJECT

2011 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeremiah Vanderlaan ◽  
Josh Richert ◽  
James Morrison ◽  
Thomas Doyle
Keyword(s):  
Reverse Engineering ◽  
Engineering Students ◽  
Measurement Techniques ◽  
First Year ◽  
Stepping Stones ◽  
First Year Students ◽  
Final Project ◽  
Undergraduate Study ◽  
Solid Edge ◽  
Part Modeling

We are a group of engineering students, in our first year of undergraduate study. We have been selected from one thousand first year students and have competed and won the PACE competition. All engineers share a common general first year, but we have been accepted into Civil and Mechanical engineering. This project was assigned as the final project in the Design and Graphics course. The project we are tasked with, called the Cornerstone Design Project, is to first dissect a product, discover how it works, dimension each part and create a fully assembled model using CAD software (Solid Edge V20 in our case). As part of discovering how it works we must benchmark it so the device can be compared with competing products. The goal of the project is to develop a full understanding of part modeling and assembly in Solid Edge, learn proper measurement techniques, and learn the process of reverse engineering and product dissection. All of these tasks were stepping stones to help us fully understand how the device, and all its components, work.

Implementation of the Second-year course in an Engineering Professional Spine

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Umar Iqbal ◽  
Deena Salem ◽  
David Strong
Keyword(s):  
Learning Outcomes ◽  
Research University ◽  
Engineering Students ◽  
Employability Skills ◽  
First Year ◽  
Computer Engineering ◽  
Core Courses ◽  
Second Year ◽  
First Time ◽  
Academic Year

The objective of this paper is to document the experience of developing and implementing a second-year course in an engineering professional spine that was developed in a first-tier research university and relies on project-based core courses. The main objective of this spine is to develop the students’ cognitive and employability skills that will allow them to stand out from the crowd of other engineering graduates.The spine was developed and delivered for the first time in the academic year 2010-2011 for first-year general engineering students. In the year 2011-2012, those students joined different programs, and accordingly the second-year course was tailored to align with the different programs’ learning outcomes. This paper discusses the development and implementation of the course in the Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE) department.

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