Search

As part of our study examining the factors that influence the academic performance and persistence of second-year chemical engineering students, we are assessing the impact of an intervention (a two-day voluntary workshop) on the specific factors of self-efficacy and social support. This workshop, called the "ChemE Camp", is held just before the start of fall classes and includes team-building exercises, presentations from faculty about upcoming classes, a lab tour, presentations from upper-level students and alumni about their experiences in the curriculum and in industry, information about academic advising and the career fair, and some recreational games. Students who attend the camp can learn more about chemical engineering courses and the profession and also have the opportunity to meet peers and interact with faculty and upper-level students. It was hypothesized that the activities included in the camp would have a positive impact on students' self-efficacy and social integration, factors which have been shown in other studies to significantly influence student experience and student success. To assess the effect of the intervention, surveys were administered to students at the start of the camp. These surveys included published subscales used in the study of self-efficacy and social and academic integration. These same surveys were also administered to all second-year chemical engineering students at the beginning of the academic year (three days after the beginning of the camp) and the end of the academic year (approximately eight months later). Data collected from the previous two academic years indicate a statistically significant increase in the chemical engineering self-efficacy, coping self-efficacy, and social and academic integration ratings for students who attend the camp. These effects appear to largely be maintained throughout the sophomore year and are distinct from the results observed for nonattendees. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we discuss the spatial visualization curriculum: Developing Spatial Thinking, endorsed by ENGAGE, and the Purdue Spatial Visualization Test: Rotation test results from participants in an NSF S-STEM-funded sophomore bridge program for engineering majors, known as the Engineering Fast-Forward Program. This paper also discusses the impact the spatial visualization curriculum has had on the students in the Fast-Forward program. The Fast-Forward program, which has been offered every summer from 2017 to 2021, is designed for students who have unmet financial needs which are determined by the financial aid office on campus. This program seeks to retain students in engineering programs as well as increase the number of people in the engineering workforce. Participants in the Engineering Fast-Forward Program take Statics and Mechanics of Materials, Calculus III, and Professional Planning with Spatial Visualization in the summer before their sophomore year. These classes normally taken in the Fall of their Sophomore years give the students an opportunity to get a head start in their Sophomore curriculum. Professional Planning with Spatial Visualization is a course where students are taught from the Developing Spatial Thinking curriculum as well as participating in other professional development activities such as resume building, mock interviews, and industry visits. The participants take the Purdue Spatial Visualization: Rotations (hereafter referred to as the PSVT:R) as a pre and post-assessment in the course. Statistical analysis is completed using the results from these tests including data from all five summers. The statistical analyses included: paired sample t-tests, independent sample t-tests, and repeated measure ANOVA tests. The goal of the analysis was to see if students from traditionally underrepresented groups (URG) had a higher level of improvement on the PSVT:R than students from non-underrepresented groups (non-URG). For the purpose of the statistical analysis of this work requiring similar sample sizes for the two groups, non-URG students are White and Asian males with URG students being the students from the cohorts identifying with any other demographic descriptions. The results of the statistical analysis show a statistical significance from pre to post results for all of the students. URG and non-URG students' scores are increasing from pre- to post-test at the same rate. However, URG students start and end with lower scores than the non-URG students. We conclude that the Developing Spatial Thinking curriculum is improving the spatial visualization skills of all students, yet is unfortunately not closing the gap between the two groups. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]