IMPROVEMENTS IN A CROSS-COHORT MECHANCICAL ENGINEERING COURSE PROJECT

A cross-cohort project was created and implemented as part of the core curriculum for mechanical engineering students. A team of second-year students in “Dynamics” course was grouped with a team of third-year students in “Kinematics and Dynamics of Machines” course where they designed, prototyped and conducted dynamic motion analysis of a pick and place mechanism. Each cohort was tasked to create a sub-mechanism, combining these two mechanisms created the final machine. The teaching and learning activities are defined towards accomplishing four main interrelated objectives: (1) To provide a design challenge to guide students to implement creative potential solutions. (2) To allow second-year and third-year teams to analyze the dynamic motion of their mechanism while considering the design of the other group’s mechanism. (3) To introduce industrial dynamic simulation tools and hands on prototyping skills. (4) To facilitate cross-cohort collaboration within teams with more emphasis on students’ peer exchange of knowledge and experience. With the experience gained from conducting the project, evaluating the students’ reports, and student feedback, several modifications can be implemented in future iterations to allow the students to benefit more from this kind of project structure. This research discusses improvements based on the lessons learned.

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The Roadmap for Experimental Teaching of Science and Engineering Based Subjects

Cutting-Edge Technologies and Social Media Use in Higher Education - Advances in Higher Education and Professional Development ◽

10.4018/978-1-4666-5174-6.ch007 ◽

2014 ◽

pp. 173-194

Author(s):

Gordana Collier ◽

Andy Augousti ◽

Andrzej Ordys

Keyword(s):

Teaching And Learning ◽

Engineering Students ◽

Learning Technology ◽

Science And Engineering ◽

Online Data ◽

Web Based ◽

Experimental Teaching ◽

Industry Standard ◽

Hands On ◽

Standard Software

The continual development of technology represents a challenge when preparing engineering students for future employment. At the same time, the way students interact in everyday life is evolving: their extra-curricular life is filled with an enormous amount of stimulus, from online data to rich Web-based social interaction. This chapter provides an assessment of various learning technology-driven methods for enhancing both teaching and learning in the science and engineering disciplines. It describes the past, present, and future drivers for the implementation of hands-on teaching methods, incorporating industry standard software and hardware and the evolution of learning experiments into all-encompassing online environments that include socializing, learning, entertainment, and any other aspect of student life when studying science and engineering.

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The Roadmap for Experimental Teaching of Science and Engineering Based Subjects

Virtual Reality in Education ◽

10.4018/978-1-5225-8179-6.ch038 ◽

2019 ◽

pp. 801-823

Author(s):

Gordana Collier ◽

Andy Augousti ◽

Andrzej Ordys

Keyword(s):

Teaching And Learning ◽

Engineering Students ◽

Learning Technology ◽

Science And Engineering ◽

Online Data ◽

Web Based ◽

Experimental Teaching ◽

Industry Standard ◽

Hands On ◽

Standard Software

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Exploring the Knowledge and Attitude of Engineering Students in the Imitation of Theoretical Knowledge

Modern Applied Science ◽

10.5539/mas.v11n8p74 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 11 (8) ◽

pp. 74

Author(s):

Wael A. Salah ◽

Anees Abu Sneineh

Keyword(s):

Power Electronics ◽

Engineering Students ◽

Electrical Measurement ◽

Theoretical Knowledge ◽

Personal Interview ◽

Simulation Tools ◽

Virtual Tools ◽

Second Year ◽

Knowledge And Attitude

In this paper an exploration of the engineering student’s knowledge in different engineering simulation tools to validate the theoretical knowledge leaned were conducted. The study cover students from different courses taught at different degree levels. A survey was conducted among the students in the academic years of 2014/2015 and 2015/2016 for students attending the class of Electronics (second year level), power electronics class (third year level) and Electrical measurement class (fourth year level). A personal interview was also conducted to capture the feedback from the learners under interest. The main aim is to accrue the attitude of engineering students to apply the knowledge throughout the Imitation of theoretical knowledge using modern virtual tools.

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Using Multimodal Pedagogy to Teach Languages Online

10.4018/978-1-7998-7720-2.ch013 ◽

2022 ◽

pp. 247-268

Author(s):

Lou Tolosa-Casadont

Keyword(s):

Teacher Candidates ◽

Teaching And Learning ◽

Clinical Teaching ◽

Learning Experience ◽

Lessons Learned ◽

School Level ◽

Face To Face ◽

Multimodal Pedagogy ◽

Hands On ◽

Pros And Cons

The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020 immediately exposed inequities among students and teachers in terms of technological access and pedagogical skill. Educators responded to this new reality by modifying their teaching and interactions with learners and by seeking opportunities for introspection, reflection, and transformation. The field of teacher education was also affected by the pandemic. This chapter presents the transformation of an in-school face-to-face pre-clinical language teaching and learning experience at the elementary school level into an innovative virtual hands-on online one-on-one language pre-clinical teaching and learning experience. It also includes how teacher candidates (TCs) participating in this program designed and taught highly engaging multimodal virtual lessons, the pros and cons of teaching in this type of setting, and the lessons learned though this experience.

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Digital scriptum – novel approach of student experiment preparation

Proceedings of the 4th International Conference on Higher Education Advances (HEAd'18) ◽

10.4995/head18.2018.8188 ◽

2018 ◽

Author(s):

Nikolas Roß ◽

Robert Kuska ◽

Iris Rieth ◽

Sulamith Frerich

Keyword(s):

Open Source Software ◽

Teaching And Learning ◽

Engineering Students ◽

Student Experiences ◽

Engineering Science ◽

Excellent Teaching ◽

Novel Approach ◽

Hands On ◽

Remote Laboratories ◽

Classic Paper

In mechanical engineering, students pass several seminars aiming at selfconducted experiments and trials. In the ELLI project (Excellent Teaching and Learning in Engineering Science), different virtual and remote laboratories have been installed within the three engineering departments at the Ruhr-University Bochum. The preparation in a classic experiment is usually done with a classic paper print scriptum. This is not suitable for a virtual or remote laboratory, since, amongst others, no supervision is provided. Due to that, a classic scriptum has been transferred in a digital scriptum based on the Open Source software “Adapt Learning” and has been extended by various implemented digital items. This contribution is discussing preliminary student experiences and identified prospective improvements. It turns out that the digital scriptum is suitable for the preparation of virtual and remote laboratories but can be an excellent alternative to the classic printout scriptum in a student experiment in a hands on laboratory as well.

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Compassionate Flexibility and Self-Discipline: Student Adaptation to Emergency Remote Teaching in an Integrated Engineering Energy Course during COVID-19

Education Sciences ◽

10.3390/educsci10110304 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 10 (11) ◽

pp. 304 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Laura A. Gelles ◽

Susan M. Lord ◽

Gordon D. Hoople ◽

Diana A. Chen ◽

Joel Alejandro Mejia

Keyword(s):

Teaching And Learning ◽

Engineering Students ◽

Qualitative Case Study ◽

Well Being ◽

The United States ◽

Global Scale ◽

Faculty Members ◽

Global Pandemic ◽

Second Year

The global pandemic of COVID-19 brought about the transition to Emergency Remote Teaching (ERT) at higher education institutions across the United States, prompting both students and the faculty to rapidly adjust to a different modality of teaching and learning. Other crises have induced disruptions to academic continuity (e.g., earthquakes, hurricanes), but not to the same extent as COVID-19, which has affected universities on a global scale. In this paper, we describe a qualitative case study where we interviewed 11 second-year Integrated Engineering students during the Spring 2020 semester to explore how they adapted to the transition to remote learning. Our results revealed several student challenges, how they used self-discipline strategies to overcome them, and how the faculty supported students in the classroom through a compassionate and flexible pedagogy. Faculty members showed compassion and flexibility by adjusting the curriculum and assessment and effectively communicating with students. This was especially important for the women participants in this study, who more frequently expressed utilizing pass/fail grading and the personal and gendered challenges they faced due to the pandemic. During this unprecedented crisis, we found that a key element for supporting students’ well-being and success is the faculty members communicating care and incorporating flexibility into their courses.

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CLIENT-BASED CORNERSTONE DESIGN PROJECTS

Proceedings of the Canadian Engineering Education Association (CEEA) ◽

10.24908/pceea.vi0.13750 ◽

2019 ◽

Author(s):

Justine Boudreau ◽

Hanan Anis

Keyword(s):

Engineering Design ◽

Engineering Students ◽

Local Community ◽

Unmet Need ◽

Lessons Learned ◽

Problem Definition ◽

Student Groups ◽

Engineering Teams ◽

Design Projects ◽

Second Year

Engineering students at the University of Ottawa are exposed to engineering design in first- and second-year courses. Both courses are open to all engineering students and are multidisciplinary in nature. Students work in teams to deliver a physical prototype by the end of the term. The design projects are all community-based and involve a client from the local community with a specific unmet need. Examples of such clients include local hospitals, accessibility organizations, Ottawa police, Indigenous elders and many more. The client meets with the students a minimum of three times throughout the semester to provide the problem definition and give feedback to the student groups at different stages of the design process. The goal of this paper is to share best practices in selecting and delivering client-based projects targeting first- and second-year students in multidisciplinary engineering teams. The paper discusses the choice of project themes and specific projects. In addition, it presents lessons learned based on student-client interactions, lab manager-client interactions and client satisfaction. Examples are presented from the past three years of delivering such engineering design courses, with testimonials from clients and students.

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SHORT DESIGN PROJECTS FOR AN INTRODUCTORY THERMOFLUIDS ENGINEERING COURSE

Proceedings of the Canadian Engineering Education Association (CEEA) ◽

10.24908/pceea.v0i0.5760 ◽

2015 ◽

Author(s):

Michele Hastie ◽

Jan Haelssig

Keyword(s):

Engineering Students ◽

Learning Experience ◽

Theoretical Work ◽

Lessons Learned ◽

Team Work ◽

Engineering Programs ◽

Design Project ◽

Introductory Course ◽

Design Projects ◽

Second Year

The Faculty of Engineering at Dalhousie University offers a common introductory course that covers the basic principles of thermodynamics and fluid mechanics in a unified manner. This introductory course is a mandatory part of the curriculum for all engineering programs offered at Dalhousie. In this course, students are required to perform six laboratory experiments, and since 2012 students have also completed short, four-week design projects.The short design project helps students to acquire more of the graduate attributes defined by the Canadian Engineering Accreditation Board (CEAB), including design, communication, and team work skills. They also provide students with a well-deserved break from purely theoretical work in lectures and tutorials, and a chance to develop some hands-on abilities.This paper describes the lessons learned from the last three design projects, which were focused on modifications to a Ranque-Hilsch vortex tube, design of a pop-pop boat, and design of a double pipe heat exchanger. The primary challenges have been the limited engineering design experience possessed by students in their third semester of studies, the heavy workload that second-year engineering students already have, and the relatively large class size. Even though there are clear challenges related to integrating a design project into a large second-year class, the results seem to indicate that these design projects provide a positive learning experience for the students.

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The ease of use and perceived usefulness of a selected computer game in expanding vocabulary in English among students at a university of technology

10.51415/10321/1602 ◽

2016 ◽

Author(s):

◽

Matshafeni Lucas Lingwati

Keyword(s):

Teaching And Learning ◽

Engineering Students ◽

English Literature ◽

Computer Game ◽

Lessons Learned ◽

Ease Of Use ◽

Perceived Usefulness ◽

Perceived Ease Of Use ◽

Major Drawback ◽

Global Language

The need to utilize English in daily International communications within broad settings, such as business and academia, is accelerated by Information and Communications Technologies (ICT) and internationalisation. Internationalisation introduces the increased need (through ICT) to communicate through a common language (global language) and English has evolved into such a ‘global language’. There is evidence in the literature indicating that teachers assume that students have the educated ‘guessing skill’ in the ability to read and write efficiently in English. Literature further proves that limited ESL proficiency is still a major drawback for the efficient and effective use of English as a medium of instruction both in academe and in other industries. Therefore, the current study postulates that interventions such as perceived educational themed computer game playing could facilitate English vocabulary improvement; an approach believed to be more appealing to the students of this ICT-dominated world than traditional rote learning. As a result, students of the Internet age more receptive towards vocabulary conveyed through ICT tools, as opposed to traditional printed texts. The focus of this study was on the utilization of an ICT tool in the form of a computer game in supplementing teaching and learning of English vocabularies. This quasi-experimental mixed methods’ research used seven research instruments that incorporated both qualitative and quantitative data collection methods. This research attempted to investigate the effectiveness of a selected computer game on English vocabulary improvement using engineering students (participants) that served as either the control or experimental groups. Data analysis tests, such as Wilcoxon Signed Ranks, Chi-Square and Paired Samples T-Test assisted in analysing the data collected for this study. The significant findings of this study indicate that the study’s selected computer game was easy to use and useful, because there were improvements in English vocabulary amongst participants resulting from the game. Further lessons learned from this study confirm that ICT relevant tools (such as this study’s computer game), do complement teaching and learning. These findings also align with the study’s theoretical framework by indicating that perceived ease of use and usefulness of the study’s selected computer game have an influence towards English vocabulary improvement.

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ACTIVE LEARNING IN A SECOND YEAR SURVEYING COURSE

Proceedings of the Canadian Engineering Education Association (CEEA) ◽

10.24908/pceea.vi0.13823 ◽

2019 ◽

Author(s):

Elena Rangelova ◽

Sheng Lun Cao

Keyword(s):

Teaching And Learning ◽

Engineering Students ◽

Psychomotor Skills ◽

Constructive Learning ◽

Classroom Activities ◽

Passive Learning ◽

Second Year ◽

Four Levels ◽

Observation Protocol ◽

The University

As a course that develops both cognitive and psychomotor skills of geomatics engineering students, the second-year surveying course at the University of Calgary has been re-designed to include more active, constructive and interactive learning experiences. Classroom activities have been designed around the idea that a balance between the four levels of learning in the ICAP (interactive-constructive-active-passive) framework should be achieved. Passive learning is acceptable because it provides students with time to accumulate knowledge and overcome their initial uncertainty in the surveying classroom. Eventually, their learning undergoes transformation most notably during the interactive team-based field labs. An observation protocol has been designed, which, in addition to mapping student learning, assesses the teaching and learning environment and specifically its student cognitive and behavioural engagement aspects. The provisional results in winter 2019 confirmed that the geomatics engineering students were more engaged in the learning process as the time spent practicing active and constructive learning accounted for 78% of the class time in three observed lectures.

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