scholarly journals A DESIGN-CENTERED LABORATORY CURRICULUM FOR FIRST-YEAR BIOMEDICAL ENGINEERING STUDENTS

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gabrielle Lam
Keyword(s):  
Experiential Learning ◽  
Student Performance ◽  
Biomedical Engineering ◽  
Engineering Students ◽  
First Year ◽  
Learning Approach ◽  
Laboratory Course ◽  
Structured Design ◽  
Survey Results ◽  
Design Projects

A new first-year biomedical engineering laboratory course was created using a problem-based learning approach. Centered on four semi-structured design projects and experiments, the laboratory course was designed to facilitate meaningful experiential learning. Preliminary analyses of survey results suggest that the semi-structured nature of lab activities is viewed both positively and negatively by students, depending on their perception of preparedness for the project. Its correlation with student performance will be better understood with thorough study of other components of survey results.

scholarly journals SEMI-STRUCTURED DESIGN AND PROBLEM-BASED EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING IN A FIRST-YEAR BIOMEDICAL ENGINEERING LABORATORY COURSE

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gabrielle Lam ◽  
Navjot Gill ◽  
Roza Ghaemi
Keyword(s):  
Experiential Learning ◽  
Engineering Design ◽  
Biomedical Engineering ◽  
Learning Experience ◽  
First Year ◽  
Immediate Feedback ◽  
Laboratory Course ◽  
Laboratory Courses ◽  
Design Skills ◽  
Scaffolding Strategy

A first-year biomedical engineering laboratory course was created using a problem-based approach, introducing students to the interplay of engineering design and biology in biomedical engineering. Open-ended problems were central to each laboratory module, and were designed to enhance students’ development of high-order learning skills. Although the value of problem-based learning in engineering laboratory courses has been recognized, its implementation in the first-year engineering program presents unique challenges for students who are unfamiliar with the unstructured approach and who are in their early stages of developing discipline-specific knowledge. Immediate feedback scaffolding strategies, including interactive pre-laboratory assessments and team-based quizzes, were implemented in the second iteration of the course to support students’ achievement of learning outcomes, and to improve their perception of their learning experience in a problem-based laboratory. According to preliminary survey results, students attributed the value of problem-based laboratory activities to the acquisition of technical skills, engineering design skills, as well as the development of self-directed ability, and a growth mindset. Results from the second iteration of the course also revealed that students perceived the interactive pre-laboratory assessments and team-based quizzes to be highly valuable. Taken together, our study thus far has underlined the importance of immediate feedback as an effective scaffolding strategy for supporting semi-structured experiential learning in a first-year engineering laboratory course. 

MNC-Sponsored Multidisciplinary Industrial-Strength Capstone Design Projects in China

2014 ◽  
Vol 2 (10) ◽  
pp. 54-65
Author(s):  
Vincent Chang
Keyword(s):  
Engineering Education ◽  
Biomedical Engineering ◽  
Multinational Corporation ◽  
Engineering Students ◽  
Internet Technology ◽  
Computer Engineering ◽  
University Of Michigan ◽  
Design Projects ◽  
Industrial Strength ◽  
Capstone Design

With a growing need to reform Chinese higher engineering education, University of Michigan—Shanghai Jiao Tong University Joint Institute (JI) initiated multinational corporation-sponsored industrial-strength Capstone Design Projects (CDP) in 2011. Since 2011, JI has developed 96 corporate-sponsored CDPs since its inception, which include multinational corporation sponsors such as Covidien, Dover, GE, HP, Intel, NI, Philips, and Siemens. Of these projects, healthcare accounts for 27%, energy 24%, internet technology (IT) 22%, electronics 16%, and other industries 11%. This portfolio reflects the trends and needs in the industry, which provides opportunities for engineering students to develop their careers. An accumulated 480 JI students have been teamed up based on their individual backgrounds, specifically electrical engineering, computer engineering, computer science, mechanical engineering, and biomedical engineering. The corporate-sponsored rate grew from 0% in 2010 to 86% in 2014.

scholarly journals Improving Biomedical Engineering Education Through Continuity in Adaptive, Experiential, and Interdisciplinary Learning Environments

2018 ◽  
Vol 140 (8) ◽  
Author(s):  
Anita Singh ◽  
Dawn Ferry ◽  
Susan Mills
Keyword(s):  
Nursing Students ◽  
Experiential Learning ◽  
Learning Environment ◽  
Real World ◽  
Biomedical Engineering ◽  
Engineering Students ◽  
Interdisciplinary Teams ◽  
Clinical Settings ◽  
Clinical Learning Environment ◽  
Interdisciplinary Learning

This study reports our experience of developing a series of biomedical engineering (BME) courses having active and experiential learning components in an interdisciplinary learning environment. In the first course, BME465: biomechanics, students were immersed in a simulation laboratory setting involving mannequins that are currently used for teaching in the School of Nursing. Each team identified possible technological challenges directly related to the biomechanics of the mannequin and presented an improvement overcoming the challenge. This approach of exposing engineering students to a problem in a clinical learning environment enhanced the adaptive and experiential learning capabilities of the course. In the following semester, through BME448: medical devices, engineering students were partnered with nursing students and exposed to simulation scenarios and real-world clinical settings. They were required to identify three unmet needs in the real-world clinical settings and propose a viable engineering solution. This approach helped BME students to understand and employ real-world applications of engineering principles in problem solving while being exposed to an interdisciplinary collaborative environment. A final step was for engineering students to execute their proposed solution from either BME465 or BME448 courses by undertaking it as their capstone senior design project (ENGR401-402). Overall, the inclusion of clinical immersions in interdisciplinary teams in a series of courses not only allowed the integration of active and experiential learning in continuity but also offered engineers more practice of their profession, adaptive expertise, and an understanding of roles and expertise of other professionals involved in enhancement of healthcare and patient safety.

scholarly journals Incorporating Real-Life Open-Ended Design Projects In A First Year Design Course

2011 ◽  
Author(s):  
Leonard Lye
Keyword(s):  
North America ◽  
Engineering Students ◽  
Real Life ◽  
Assistive Devices ◽  
First Year ◽  
Charitable Organization ◽  
Non Profit ◽  
The Past ◽  
Local Chapter ◽  
Design Projects

At Memorial University, for the last several years, instructors of the first-year engineering design course have worked closely with the local chapter of the Tetra Society of North America to provide meaningful open-ended doable design projects that are needed by actual clients. Founded in 1987, The Tetra Society of North America is an independent non-profit charitable organization that recruits skilled technical volunteers to design and fabricate custom assistive devices for people with disabilities. In this paper, several projects that have been assigned to students in the past will be described and example solutions provided by students will also be shown. From the feedback of students, instructors, and clients, this collaboration with the Tetra Society has been very successful in providing real, needed, doable projects, with real clients for first year engineering students.

A Regional University Perspective on Engineering Education of Multi-Cultural Freshman Students From South Pacific Countries

2013 ◽  
Author(s):  
Krishnil R. Ram ◽  
Roneel V. Sharan ◽  
Mohammed Rafiuddin Ahmed
Keyword(s):  
Engineering Education ◽  
Student Performance ◽  
Engineering Students ◽  
South Pacific ◽  
Quality Teaching ◽  
First Year ◽  
Skill Sets ◽  
Ethics And Economics ◽  
Regional University ◽  
The University

Of late, there is a growing need for quality engineers who have the ability to solve complex engineering problems with reasonable knowledge of ethics and economics. This has led many universities to pursue accreditation by professional engineering bodies. While the accreditation process installs a standardized system of quality teaching, it is important that the engineering entrants have a degree of understanding that allows implementation of quality teaching methods. This study looks at the performance of first year engineering students in a bid to identify major issues that students face in a Bachelor of Engineering program. The learning of students in the School of Engineering and Physics at the University of the South Pacific is influenced by interactions of at least 12 different cultures from the 12 member countries of the university. The study looks at how students perform across cultures in the first year mechanical engineering courses, mainly engineering mechanics and engineering graphics & design. The general trend over the last five years shows that while the student numbers in the program have been increasing, student performance in one course seems to be improving but declining in the other; the two courses differ considerable in contents, required skill sets, and assessment methodologies. The study also presents possible reasons for the varied performance by considering issues such as cultural and academic backgrounds, use of teaching tools and resources, and revisions to the course and program and looks at how multi-cultural engineering education can be improved. The number of female students taking up engineering as their major is also looked at and positive trends are seen with female participation increasing from 7.6% in 2008 to 13.9% in 2013.

scholarly journals Implementation and Student Assessment of a Two-stage Midterm Exam in a First-year Physical Chemistry Course for International Engineering Students

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Roza Vaez Ghaemi ◽  
Gabriel Potvin
Keyword(s):  
Physical Chemistry ◽  
Student Performance ◽  
English Language ◽  
Engineering Students ◽  
Student Assessment ◽  
First Year ◽  
Two Stage ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Language Communication ◽  
Survey Responses

Group exams have been shown to improve student performance, retention of material, and teamwork and communication skills. This paper assesses the opinion of students regarding group exams, and their perception of potential benefits and impacts on their learning, before and after having participated in one. Both a traditional and two-stage exam were performed in first-year physical chemistry courses in the engineering stream of Vantage College at UBC, which means the participating cohort is entirely composed of international students with a range of English-language communication skills.The overall experience of students with group exams, based on survey responses, was positive, and the large majority of students indicated they would like to continue using this format of exam in the future. The perception of group exams improved before and after having written one, with the students initially overestimating the difficulty, stress, and level of conflict associated with this process. Some students indicated less confidence that peer learning helped them improve their performance after having written the exam, but further study to elucidate the significance and the causes of this result.

scholarly journals Integrated Learning in First-Year Engineering: Preliminary Findings and Impressions from a New Project-Based Design Course

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Colin P McDonald
Keyword(s):  
Biomedical Engineering ◽  
Materials Science ◽  
Health Sciences ◽  
First Year ◽  
Engineering Curriculum ◽  
Engineering Profession ◽  
Design Computing ◽  
Design Projects ◽  
Second Year ◽  
Required Courses

The first-year engineering curriculum at McMaster University is a common curriculum that introduces students to the field of engineering through discrete courses focused in graphics design, computing, materials science, and the engineering profession. While these courses provide an important foundation for entry into second year (in addition to the required courses in math and science), course topics are isolated and there is very little cross-over in content from one course to the next. This paper will present initial findings and impressions of “Health Solutions Design Projects I”, a project-based first-year course in McMaster’s new Integrated Biomedical Engineering and Health Sciences (iBiomed) program. This new course, first offered in Fall 2017, integrates the aforementioned topics in first-year engineering into one course, and further reinforces these concepts through a series of design projects.

scholarly journals Using Incoming Data to Monitor Engagement and Inform Mathematics Support Interventions

2019 ◽  
Vol 17 (3) ◽  
pp. 15-27
Author(s):  
Ioannis Lignos
Keyword(s):  
Student Success ◽  
Student Performance ◽  
Engineering Students ◽  
Performance Data ◽  
First Year ◽  
Teaching Activities ◽  
Student Behaviour ◽  
And Performance ◽  
The University ◽  
Academic Year

Students who do not engage enough with their studies could place themselves at risk of underperforming or failing. Such a risk may be higher for students who are assessed in one or more mathematics modules and lack the appropriate background knowledge, or do not engage enough with related teaching activities. It has been shown for students who engage with mathematics support, there is a significant impact on student performance and progression in the relevant modules. Thus, improving the mechanisms of engagement with mathematics support should be a priority for any student success strategy.We discuss the monitoring of attendance and performance data of first-year engineering students, as it becomes available, in order to inform interventions which suit the observed student behaviour best. Specifically, the method described was used with first-year engineering students at the University of East London (UEL) during the 2017-8 academic year. We find that when monitoring processes are applied to an already tailored support package, they can often help maintain engagement levels, understand why some students do not engage, and prompt us to differentiate support further.

scholarly journals One Week, Many Ripples: Measuring the Impacts of the Fall Reading Week on Student Stress

2017 ◽  
Vol 10 ◽  
pp. 163-172
Author(s):  
Heather Poole ◽  
Ayesha Khan ◽  
Michael Agnew
Keyword(s):  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Engineering Students ◽  
First Year ◽  
Negative Experience ◽  
Post Secondary ◽  
Student Stress ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Complex Picture ◽  
Survey Results ◽  
Lower Ratio

More and more Canadian post-secondary institutions are introducing a fall break into their term calendars. In 2015, a full week fall break was introduced at our university in order to enhance academic performance and improve mental health amongst students. Our interdisciplinary team surveyed undergraduate students at our university about their experience of the fall break, collected standardized measures of experienced stressors and perceptions of stress before and after the break, and hosted several focus groups to develop a detailed narrative of students’ experience. Stress can also be assessed through non-invasive hormone measures. We collected saliva samples to profile metabolic hormones, cortisol, and dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA), from first-year male engineering students in order to document possible changes in their stress levels before and after the week-long break. This group was compared to male engineering students at a similar university that does not hold a fall break. Students exhibited a lower ratio of cortisol to DHEA after a fall break than those that did not experience a break. Our survey results indicate that the majority of students thought the fall break was a positive experience. However, self-reports of stress show a more complex picture, with many students reporting increased perceived stress after the break. Additionally, a portion of students reported that the fall break was a negative experience. To the best of our knowledge, our study is the first of its kind to use a mixed-methods approach to examine the impacts of a fall break.

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