Search

This paper describes the implementation and the results of an online project-based learning (PBL) pedagogy in an advanced fluid mechanics course in a mechanical engineering technology program. This work is a close collaboration between engineering and education faculty and the engineering librarian, and aligns with the new research areas identified by the National Engineering Education Research Colloquies and the ABET Criteria for Accrediting Engineering Technology Programs Criterion 3 (student outcomes, SLO 1 to 5) and Criterion 5 (curriculum, discipline specific content C, D and E). Students were required to work in teams to design and dimension a heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning (HVAC) duct system, a real-world expression of engineering thinking. Students applied information literacy skills to identify relevant engineering codes and standards, such as ASHRAE, and used previously learned content knowledge from various courses to finalize the project. The PBL exercise was chosen as a culminating experience and in support of engineering competencies development. The results showed improvements in the flow of air in ducts content knowledge, professional communication skills, and the ability to collaborate as part of a team, including improving one's ability to work with other students on assignments, listening to the ideas of others, learning from the ideas of others, and evaluating the ideas of others. The students unanimously agreed that the project improved their heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning (HVAC) knowledge beyond the classroom as well as their information seeking skills. Based on the students end of semester course evaluation, this PBL exercise improved their readiness for the workforce. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the advent of the COVID-19 outbreak, major disruptions were witnessed in the engineering education community, especially with regards to course delivery. With the subsequent cancelation of in-person classes, transition to remote delivery had to be swift, and both faculty and students had to face many challenges, not the least of which was how to handle course-integrated laboratory exercises. At Grand Valley State University, while the traditional in-person classrooms were converted to virtual classrooms with relative ease, a major concern was the delivery of the accompanying laboratories for certain courses, especially fluid mechanics. The fluid mechanics lab, which requires extensive hands-on experience, is woven into the lecture component; therefore, it was concerning that the students would miss this vital component, resulting in a greatly diminished experience. Several possibilities ranging from canceling the lab to simply providing data for the students to analyze were considered. Ultimately, to preserve the conceptual and mechanical literacies, it was decided to incorporate the hands-on approach by requiring students to conduct certain experiments at-home using readily available (or easy to purchase) supplies and analyze the collected data. This paper demonstrates several innovative ideas that were implemented to enable students to better comprehend fluid mechanics concepts through engaging hands-on experiments. A total of eleven different labs and a project were conducted during the remote semester. Of the eleven labs, six required students to conduct at-home experiments in addition to the experiments conducted onsite. For ten of the eleven labs, the authors conducted experiments onsite and provided students with data for further analysis; aspects of some, but not all, onsite experiments were video recorded for the students, but the at-home experiments were demonstrated by video. The students welcomed the at-home experiments and indicated that it was vital in their understanding of certain fundamental concepts while being fun at the same time. Assessment indicated that this approach seemed to be effective in terms of outcomes with respect to fluid mechanics (cross-sectional study), but the aspects of deep learning and confidence did significantly decrease performance in the subsequent advanced course, heat transfer (long-term study). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The goal of the present work was to explore student perspectives about a course module designed with cognitivist and constructivist learning theories, the cognitive apprenticeship instructional model, and a T-shaped design, specifically the first module of a Computational Fluid Mechanics curricular unit within a Master of Computational Mechanics program. This module was redesigned accordingly after the professor participated in a faculty development course, Engineering Education Theory and Practice, at the Faculty of Engineering, University of Porto. Student perspectives on the efficacy of the redesigned course were solicited, along with those from students who had previously taken the course. Students who participated in the revised course module reported higher levels of satisfaction than students from the previous iteration of the course and were more likely to recognize the value of specific instructional activities. This paper describes the revision of the course module and a comparison of the student feedback before and after those revisions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]