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The Fundamentals of Engineering Examination (FEE), administered by the National Council of Examiners for Engineering and Surveying (NCEES), is a nationally normed assessment of examinees' understanding of knowledge gained during undergraduate studies in engineering. Using a database of by-name pass/fail performance inclusive of four-years of information (2019, 2020, 2021, and 2022) this study investigated if a positive correlation exists between pass/fail performance and performance within specific electives. Statistical analysis was performed to determine the significance of any relationships that were found. Discussion is presented to address the potential for differences in causation and correlation between variables. This study was conducted to help the civil engineering program at a specific academic institution to evaluate if particular elective courses result in better preparation for students to pass the FEE. This study will help inform curricular changes that are under consideration and improve student advising. The results of this study will be of interest to the faculty and administrators at other civil engineering programs as they evaluate changes to their own curricula. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many fundamental mechanics concepts are critical to success in upper-level courses in traditional civil engineering curriculum. To evaluate retention of mechanics concepts and encourage review of the material, a mechanics diagnostic exam has been administered to civil engineering students at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point since 2018. The exam is administered to junior and senior students at the start of the fall semester. It was designed as a no-stakes assessment tool to identify common errors in students' comprehension of foundational engineering mechanics concepts. The diagnostic exams consisted of ten mechanics calculationbased problems including topics of truss analysis, indeterminate static equilibrium, and combined loading. For each problem, students were asked to rate their confidence in their solution and estimate the time spent on each problem. The purpose of administering these exams was two-fold: (1) provide longitudinal assessment data to inform changes made to mechanics courses in the civil engineering program and (2) provide self-assessment for students to identify areas of weakness before being required to apply the concepts in follow-on courses or on the Fundamentals of Engineering Exam. In addition to summarizing quantitative performance on the exam, the confidence and time spent on each problem were analyzed to identify trends. Completed exams were also reviewed to identify common errors made on each problem. This paper summarizes those common errors for mechanics concepts included in the exam. Errors were categorized as conceptual, non-conceptual, or execution errors. Recommendations are provided for instructors to address these common errors during future delivery of the course material. Some of the errors identified suggest misconceptions; a future research project will be designed to help identify why some misconceptions may exist. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This is not debated: Engineers must create innovative solutions to face challenges today and into the future. Creativity is a key attribute in The Engineer of 2020 and is central to the American Society of Civil Engineer's Body of Knowledge, 3rd Edition. What is debated is how to develop creativity within engineering students. In previous literature, a two-pronged approach has been described. First, develop creative skills in coherent steps and, secondly, create communities which support and validate creative growth. This paper strives to operationalize this approach by providing examples from across academia for doing both. After describing potential sources of individual and institutional resistance to deliberate development of creativity within engineering students the paper summarizes proven methods from the literature to address both elements of the approach. Methods to develop creativity skills within engineering courses are described. These vary from short exercises that take little class time to employ to longer, full-class activities. Exemplar programs and institutions which have cultivated a culture which values and celebrates creativity and innovation within their engineering students and faculty are showcased. This paper is not a research paper - it does not test a specific approach or method. Instead, it summarizes the literature to provide a practical reference for faculty members and organizational leaders who desire to make the development of creativity a more central element of the education of the engineering students they shepherd. While written by civil engineers and drawing largely from the literature from civil engineering educators, the methods described apply broadly to all engineering educators. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Due to the public health policies put into place by institutions in response to the international COVID-19 pandemic, many engineering educators were required to implement alternative pedagogies into their courses. The flipped classroom was viewed by many educators as a method to continue to teach within the constraints created by the pandemic. At its most fundamental form, a flipped class moves activities, which commonly take place in-person, outside of the classroom by providing students with alternative educational resources. Students are expected to engage in these activities prior to attending class which allows students to use the valuable inperson class periods to complete example problems and study advanced topics in a collaborative and creative learning environment. In the 2021 academic year, the Department of Civil and Mechanical Engineering at the U.S. Military Academy implemented the flipped classroom into four undergraduate civil engineering courses: Mechanics of Materials, Hydrology and Hydraulic Design, Soil Mechanics and Foundation Engineering, and Design of Reinforced Concrete Structures. The objective of this study is to evaluate the approach taken by each individual course to implement the flipped classroom pedagogy. The design of the four courses varied based on the execution of asynchronous content out-of-class, schedule for in-person learning, and delivery of graded assessments. The impact of each flipped course design was determined by comparing the results to historical student performance, the time spent by the students on out-ofclass activities, and anecdotical feedback from both the instructors and students. The results of the study confirmed a more deliberate design approach is required than simply rearranging the order of learning activities to effectively execute a flipped course. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As industry demands for qualified science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) workers continue to increase, supporting diverse groups of students towards success in STEM may help mitigate future shortfalls in the STEM workforce. Education benefits like the post 9/11 GI Bill may provide a viable pathway for increasing the STEM-qualified, engineering technician, engineering technologist, and engineer (ETETE) workforce through the nation's veteran population. Supporting student veterans along ETETE pathways may involve three key tasks: 1) building early awareness of ETETE pathways; 2) ensuring academic recognition for prior military work experience; and 3) providing seamless support from government agencies, academic institutions, and industry. Student veterans follow non-traditional education pathways and bring with them a wealth of diverse life experiences. Correspondingly, the growing number of veterans pursuing STEM degrees, and the diversity of this underserved group of students continues to gain the attention of faculty, administrators, and national organizations. To bolster ASEE's support for many diverse groups to include student veterans in ETETE pathways, the ASEE president commissioned a series of leadership roundtables during the 2018 ASEE National Conference and Exposition. There, roundtables were tasked with making recommendations regarding how ASEE can support engineering education, relevant diversity research, and engagement of these diverse communities in society activities. The purpose of this paper is to report the results of the 2018 ASEE Student Veteran Leadership roundtable. This roundtable brought together a diverse group of veterans, engineering educators, and engineering student veteran researchers. Through a series of ideation exercises and discussions, the group examined the challenges student veterans traditionally face, on-going support initiatives at their home institutions, and recommended actions for ASEE to pursue in the years ahead. The topics discussed during the panel are related to previous research about the challenges faced by veteran students beyond ETETE career paths. A series of novel initiatives are presented that may assist ASEE and university administrators more broadly in adopting a fresh approach to veteran student support. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

At the 2017 ASEE National Conference and Exhibition two papers from the US Military Academy (one in the Mechanics Division and one in the Civil Engineering Division) detailed a redesign of their initial mechanics sequence and the introduction of Inquiry Based Learning Activities. The authors of those papers extended an offer to share details and materials of their course redesign and associated lesson activities. The authors of this paper took them up on that offer and in the Fall of 2017 implemented the changes proposed at the US Military Academy at York College of Pennsylvania. The question this paper strives to answer is, can a similar course redesign produce similar results at an institution, that in many respects is very different from the US Military Academy; essentially is the West Point redesign reproducible and the results replicable and if so under what conditions?. This paper will strive to use many of the same measures from the original paper in the analysis of the success or failure of the implementation. The paper will also examine and document the differences between the students and institutions. It will then note differences in the administration of the course, changes made, and conduct of the course, to include number of instructors, sections, section size, group size and the demographic make-up of students in the course and list the effect of the differences discovered at this time. Finally, considering differences and similarities, the paper will analyze and capture the results and the effects of the two applications of the course redesign to come up with an answer to the research question. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes recent experience within the civil engineering program at the U.S. Military Academy (USMA) to integrate simulation tools to assist students in understanding concepts. Students are introduced to SOLIDWORKS Simulation in their first two engineering courses. This tool provides students with opportunities to develop a sense for structural behavior and visualize load effects on structures. This paper describes several examples of how this software has been integrated into statics and mechanics of materials courses as well as a structural analysis course. In addition to describing examples of how simulation software can be used to improve students' ability to visualize engineering mechanics concepts, this paper reports initial assessment data and discusses ideas for ways to better integrate these tools to improve student learning and assess the influence on students' conceptual understanding. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is a growing consensus that our students need to build a different set of skills during their college experience than was necessary in decades past. In addition to technical knowledge, graduates of engineering programs must enter the workforce inspired and able to engage in design activities, creatively solving problems, learning on their own, and comfortably navigating the information-rich environment we live and work in. There is also a growing body of knowledge concerning how to most effectively teach modern students - highlighting the value of student-centered learning, active learning experiences, and effective integration of technology. After an internal assessment, the Department of Civil and Mechanical Engineering at the US Military Academy determined that the initial sequence of mechanics courses provided the technical content our students needed but required updating in some important ways. First, mechanics was being taught isolated from the broader design process. Secondly, there was no integration of computer programs to begin the education of our students on their effective use (and understanding their limitations). Finally, students were largely asked to demonstrate that they could repeat a calculation they had seen worked in class rather than creating or discovering their own solutions, failing to provide the time, space and inspirational structure necessary for students to apply their knowledge in a way that demonstrates a broader understanding. For these reasons, the department conducted a radical overhaul of two courses: MC300 (Fundamentals of Engineering Mechanics and Design, which combines statics and introductory mechanics topics) and MC364 (Mechanics of Materials). The rethinking of these courses included many hands-on learning activities in place of instructor demonstrations, specifically designed to inspire the students to engage with acquiring the knowledge they need rather than waiting for it to be ladled into their brains. Many of these were designed to lead to student discovery of mechanics principles. The courses now also integrate computer aided design software to begin teaching students how to effectively use these powerful resources. Including CAD software was also intended to assist in the development of engineering judgment through assignments that required students to investigate the effect of changing parameters, allowing them to see the results in a visually rich computer environment. This paper describes the assessment that led to the changes, provides an overview of the changes made, and reports initial assessment data related to the changes. Syllabii of the two courses are included along with explanations of hands-on learning activities and CAD implementation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is well known that engineering judgment is critical to effective engineering practice, particularly when design thinking is required. As computer-aided design tools have made detailing far more automated, engineers are being asked to take on higher-level tasks earlier in their careers, necessitating the development of this judgment in undergraduates. This clearly has become a priority for many programs, as evidenced by the growth of project-based learning. Developing this type of judgment and creativity is challenging, but inquiry-based learning will play an important role and well-tested tools for inspiring new types of knowledge acquisition methods in our students are needed. This paper describes hands-on, inquiry-based learning activities that were recently designed and implemented in the first mechanics course taken by students in the Department of Civil and Mechanical Engineering at the US Military Academy in part to help accelerate the development of students' engineering judgment. These activities enabled and encouraged knowledge acquisition through personal effort which inspires deeper inquiry. This introductory course combines statics and mechanics of materials: the activities described in this paper address both foundational topics. Inspired by inquiry-based learning techniques, these activities are studentfocused rather than instructor-led activities and are somewhat open-ended. The first activity required students to assemble an engine hoist and use four basic scales and basic concepts in statics to determine the weight of an engine block. Students then predicted what would happen to the distribution of the weight as the location of the engine block moved along the engine hoist arm, reinforcing the concepts of reactions and moments of a force. Another activity used an aluminum load cell with longitudinal strain gages to weigh the engine block. This activity reinforced the concepts of stress, strain, and Hooke's law while exposing students to the world of instrumentation and data acquisition for the first time. In another activity, students were asked to predict strains occurring within a beam in bending - before the concepts and theories of bending had been introduced. Challenging their previous knowledge about axial strain, the linear strain distribution through the depth of a beam was discovered by the students measuring strains at various points through the beam's depth. Expanding this knowledge in a following lesson, students were required to predict strains on beams of equal cross-sectional area but different shapes (rectangle, square tube, and I-shape). These beams were loaded and strains were measured allowing students to observe the influence of moment of inertia on strain and, therefore, stress. Each of these activities was rich in what might be called "second order" learning, exploring topics (things like Wheatstone Bridges and analog-to-digital data conversion) well beyond the basic concepts and theory being taught. In addition to describing the activities in detail, this paper provides preliminary assessment data about the effect of the hands-on learning activities on specific learning objectives and more broadly within the context of developing judgment. Qualitative commentary on the use of these activities is also presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]