Jim Richardson

Effect of a freshman engineering program on retention and academic performance

Longitudinal studies using seven years of student record data were recently performed on the students participating in a freshman-engineering program (called TIDE) and on students in a comparison group. The results show that: (1) a statistically significant larger percentage of TIDE students graduated in engineering than students from the comparison group; and (2) there was no significant difference in academic performance (as measured by final GPA) between TIDE and traditional students. TIDE students entering the university ready for calculus had a 14% better graduation rate (significance level of /spl alpha/ = 0.001), students entering ready for pre-calculus had a 16% better graduation rate (/spl alpha/ = 0.10), women entering ready for calculus had a 23% better graduation rate (/spl alpha/ = 0.001) and women entering ready for pre-calculus had a 26% better graduation rate (/spl alpha/ = 0.05). The paper briefly describes the TIDE program, presents the data, and discusses the results.

Freshman design projects in the Foundation Coalition

Many talented engineering students abandon engineering before taking a single engineering course. Herded into large sections of pre-engineering mathematics, chemistry and physics courses, many students prove themselves academically but walk away from engineering, disillusioned. Numerous schools have instituted freshmen engineering courses to retain some of these capable but disinterested students in the engineering program. Freshman engineering courses spark students interest by showing students that engineers communicate, lead and create as well as analyze. One of the most successful ways of showing first-year students the diversity of skills needed to practice engineering is through freshman design projects. The authors have each selected three of their favorite freshmen design projects (a total of fifteen projects) and posted detailed descriptions on the web (www.foundation.ua.edu/projects). This paper provides: a brief description of the freshman programs at each school (the schools are participants in the NSF-sponsored Foundation Coalition); short summaries of each project; and answers to frequently asked questions about freshman design projects.

Engineering curricular change across the Foundation Coalition: potential lessons from qualitative research

The National Science Foundation (NSF) funded the engineering education coalitions program to profoundly change the culture of engineering education. The culture of engineering education encompasses not only the structure of an engineering curriculum and the methods between students and the curriculum, but also the processes through which engineering curricula grow and improve. Therefore, the Foundation Coalition, one of eight engineering education coalitions, has undertaken a qualitative research project that examines processes through which coalition partners have initiated and attempted to sustain curricular change. It is important to emphasize that the focus of the study is the process of curricular change, not content of new curricula. The project is organized as series of six qualitative case studies that examine curricular change at each of the partner institutions. Data for each case study is collected through interviews of approximately twenty key faculty and administrators as well as review of relevant documentation. Each case study identifies critical events and salient issues involved in that process, as well as valuable lessons each institution learned from their experience. Interviews have been conducted at six institutions and case study reports have been prepared for three of the six institutions. Our study demonstrates that effecting major change in engineering curricula is a complex process that requires careful planning and sustained effort for success; however, what qualifies as success also changes from site to site.. It is our hope that the experience of the partners of the Foundation Coalition will be helpful to other engineering programs as they plan for curricular change.

Development of an engineering strength of material concept inventory assessment instrument

This paper discusses development of an instrument for assessing undergraduate student understanding of fundamental strength of materials concepts. The instrument was modeled after the Force Concept Inventory (FCI) by David Hestenes and others. Like the FCI, the strength of materials concept inventory is brief requires no computation and should be repeatable across broad student populations. The initial version of the instrument was tested on strength of materials students at the University of Alabama, Texas A&M University and other institutions.

On the use of bridge weigh-in-motion for overweight truck enforcement

Bridge weigh-in-motion (B-WIM) is a method by which the axle weights of a vehicle travelling at full highway speed can be determined using a bridge instrumented with sensors. This paper looks at the history of B-WIM, beginning with early work on weigh-in-motion (WIM) technologies in the 1960s leading to its invention by Fred Moses and George Goble in the USA in the mid 1970s. Research initiatives in Australia and Europe have focused on improving B-WIM accuracy. The moving force identification (MFI) method models the dynamic fluctuation of axle forces on the bridge and holds particular promise. B-WIM accuracy depends on bridge site conditions as well as the particular data processing algorithm. The accuracy classifications of several B-WIM installations reported in the literature are summarised in this paper. Current accuracy levels are sufficient for selecting vehicles to be weighed using static scales, but insufficient for direct enforcement.

Experience with Phæochromocytoma

MOST physicians and surgeons have encountered single cases of phaeochromocytoma, but we have been fortunate in assisting with the care of eight patients with this condition within a period of eight years. This paper draws attention to some of the more important features in the diagnosis and management, but no attempt is made to review all the preceding literature or to discuss all the possible modes of presentation. The hypertension which may persist after removal of a phaeochromocytoma is of particular interest, its mechanism presumably being different from that of the pre-operative paroxysmal or persistent hypertension. Renal biopsy specimens were obtained in six cases and the presence or absence of renal lesions has been correlated with the post-operative progress of the patients.

Observations on 10 years of foundation coalition curricula change efforts

Faculty at universities participating in the foundation coalition (FC) developed innovative freshman and sophomore engineering curricula in the mid 1990s. Since that time, faculty and administrators at those schools have worked to see the new curricula adopted as the standard curricula. Some of the implementation efforts have been successful and some have not-all have yielded valuable lessons concerning engineering curricula change. The authors have interviewed over 150 faculty in an effort to study the curricular change processes that occurred on each of the FC campuses.