Improving the creativity in introductory engineering course applying fuzzy network process: A pilot study

Introductory engineering courses can benefit from the flipped classroom model as these courses develop hands-on skills such as engineering design and critical thinking skills. Providing students with instruction outside the classroom with e-learning tools frees up class time to engage in activities that promote deeper learning, e.g. classroom discussions, problem-solving sessions, design activities, etc. In this paper, we discuss the implementation of a flipped classroom version of an introductory engineering design course. We evaluate student performance and perception of a flipped classroom version using data collected during the course. We also discuss elements of the course that were found to be the most beneficial for the students.

This research paper examines first-year student performance and retention within engineering. A considerable body of literature has reported factors influencing performance and retention, including high school GPA and SAT scores, gender, self-efficacy, social status, hobbies, and social integration. Although these factors can help explain and even partially predict student outcomes, they can be difficult to measure; typical survey instruments are lengthy and can be invasive of student privacy. To address this limitation, the present paper examines whether a much simpler survey can be used to understand student motivations and anticipate student outcomes. The survey was administered to 347 students in an introductory Engineering Graphics and Design course. At the beginning of the first day of class, students were given a three-question, open-ended questionnaire that asked: “In your own words, what do engineers do?”, “Why did you choose engineering?”, and “Was there any particular person or experience that influenced your decision?” Two investigators independently coded the responses, identifying dozens of codes for both motivations for pursuing engineering and understanding of what it is. Five hypotheses derived from Dweck’s mindset theory and others were tested to determine if particular codes were predictive of first-semester GPA or first-year retention in engineering. Codes that were positively and significantly associated with first-semester GPA included: explaining why engineers do engineering or how they do it, stating that engineers create ideas, visions, and theories, stating that engineers use math, science, physics or analysis, and expressing enjoyment of math and science, whereas expressing interest in specific technical applications or suggesting that engineers simplify and make life easier were negatively and significantly related to first-semester GPA. Codes positively and significantly associated with first-year retention in engineering included: stating that engineers use math or that engineers design or test things, expressing enjoyment of math, science, or problem solving, and indicating any influential person who is an engineer. Codes negatively and significantly associated with retention included: citing an extrinsic motivation for pursuing engineering, stating that they were motivated by hearing stories about engineering, and stating that parents or family pushed the student to become an engineer. Although many prior studies have suggested that student self-efficacy is related to retention, this study found that student interests were more strongly associated with retention. This finding is supported by Dweck’s mindset theory: students with a “growth” mindset (e.g., “I enjoy math”) would be expected to perform better and thus be retained at a higher rate than those with a “fixed” mindset (e.g., “I am good at math”). We were surprised that few students mentioned activities expressly designed to stimulate interest in engineering, such as robotics competitions and high school engineering classes. Rather, they cited general interests in math, problem solving, and creativity, as well as family influences, all factors that are challenging for the engineering education community to address. These findings demonstrate that relative to its ease of administration, a five minute survey can indeed help to anticipate student performance and retention. Its minimalism enables easy implementation in an introductory engineering course, where it serves not only as a research tool, but also as a pedagogical aid to help students and teacher discover student perceptions about engineering and customize the curriculum appropriately.

This paper explores the probabilistic fuzzy analytic network process (PROFUZANP) approach in identifying the content of manufacturing strategy infrastructural decisions that attempt to integrate a sustainability and classical manufacturing strategy framework, in the presence of firm size as a relevant component in decision-making. Linguistic variables with equivalent triangular fuzzy numbers (TFNs) are used to elucidate the judgment of elements in pairwise comparison in the framework of the analytic network process (ANP). The ANP effectively handles the complexity of decision-making brought about by the subjectivity and relationships among components of the decision model. Integration of expert judgments conducted by introducing a normal probability distribution in each pairwise comparison with mean equal to the geometric mean of the judgment and standard deviation equal to a predefined perturbation of judgment around the mean. Pre-selected experts in manufacturing strategy and sustainability were asked to elicit judgment in pairwise comparison. Results show that the content of the infrastructural decisions of manufacturing strategy remains constant regardless of the types of firm size. However, the priority of each decision to the goal, which can be translated as the priority of implementation of each policy, varies between large firms and SMEs. The main contribution of this paper is a novel approach that holistically captures the judgmental uncertainty of individual decision-makers and the uncertainty of group decision-making.

A discipline-specific first year introductory course has been the norm in engineering education. Most of these courses are often theme-based and use engineering design as a device to emphasize the relationship between the various components of a field like Electrical and Computer Engineering. Online learning has also been incorporated in such common courses to enhance student experiences. As an alternative to a first year discipline-specific engineering course, there have been recent efforts to develop common first year engineering courses that target all engineering disciplines. One rationale for such a common courses has been an early instillation of common engineering education elements like ethical and social dimension of engineering design. A problem-based curriculum is often used in such first year introductory engineering courses to also ensure that students find relevance in the Physics and Math course being taken in the first two years of engineering. Students are also challenged to work on a design project in a multi-disciplinary team. A college wide engineering course allows students to learn about various engineering disciplines and wisely choose an engineering discipline. In this paper, we introduce the "Introduction to Engineering" freshman course offered to all students enrolled in the College of Engineering. The course consists of lectures, labs, recitation sessions, and a competition. Students are introduced to the major responsibilities of engineers, presentation skills, documentation, teamwork, problem solving, design process, ethics, and the basic concepts in each of the six engineering disciplines offered in the College. We evaluate the course outcomes by collecting and analyzing the student's feedback over 2 years. The results are very encouraging and reflect a positive learning experience. We share some of the challenging multidisciplinary project ideas offered to the students. We also discuss the topics covered in the course and the relationship of each topic to the ABET criteria.

We propose and execute an introductory engineering course for investigating the history of technology and the philosophy of technology. Soft...

Written communication is an important, however often neglected, component of an engineering curriculum. The civil engineering department at North Dakota State University has included word processing in its CE 101 course in order to teach students to write reiteratively and to gain an appreciation for the convenience associated with word processing. Several conclusions were drawn from this first attempt at including word processing in an introductory engineering course. Student comments were generally favorable and they appreciated the exposure to microcomputers. The shareware program that was distributed to each student worked well, but the necessity for each student to purchase the full documentation became evident. Finally, the classical lecture style of presentation was not adequate and will be replaced by smaller computer lab sessions and hands‐on experience.

Active and collaborative learning instruments were introduced into an introductory electrical and computer engineering course. These instruments were designed to assess specific learning objectives and program outcomes. Results show that students developed an understanding comparable to that of more advanced students assessed later in the curriculum.

Maintenance is carried out to prevent the occurrence of events that lead to malfunction and interruption of the production process or the operation of the concerned equipment. One of the main approaches in maintenance is to identify the risk of equipment failure mode. Whereas by reducing the high risk of failure mode the reliability and availability of equipment enhanced and the cost of shutdown reduced, identifying the risk of failure is important. In this paper, a fuzzy hybrid approach, including failure mode and effective analysis (FMEA), decision-making trial and evaluation laboratory technique (DEMATEL), and analytic network process (ANP), is presented to select an appropriate maintenance policy through identifying the risk of failures. The authors aim to develop a risk-based method for selecting a proper maintenance strategy to have available and reliable tamping equipment in railway of Iran. Because of considering the same weight of risk factors, failure occurrence, failure severity, and failure detection ability in FMEA, the traditional FMEA method cannot correctly predict the system’s behavior. So, in this paper, the risk factors as fuzzy variables are proposed and evaluated using fuzzy linguistic terms and fuzzy ratings. In a case study, the present approach is utilized for evaluation and determination of the risk of failure modes for a railway company. At first, fuzzy FMEA is used to identify the main risk and sub-risk of failure modes. Second, fuzzy DEMATEL method is used in order to put forward the interrelationship among the main risks which are determined through fuzzy FMEA. Then, the weights of the sub-risks are calculated by fuzzy ANP approach on the basis of cause–effect relationships that are exposed through DEMATEL method. Finally, the weights of sub-risks are determined by multiplying the weights which have been obtained from fuzzy FMEA to the weights of ANP supermatrix. The weights of sub-risks were determined on the basis of these examined dependencies, and these weights were used for a tamping machine to determine maintenance policy. Finally, some strategies and suggestions have been drawn concerning the needs to reduce the risks and improve the equipment’s availability.

1 INTRODUCTION Design education usually employs project-based learning, in which students learn to research, plan, design and reflect on the creation of technological projects [1], [2]. Student experience issues may influence students' design process, as well as their perception of professional knowledge development. Studies have pointed out students are ill-informed about design education when entering university [3]. In the field of design, although there have been student surveys to analyze design thinking skills and for assessing design literacy. However, these studies are primarily assessment tools, and do not investigate students’ attitudes or experiences of their design courses. While several studies focus on measuring students’ cognitive knowledge, assessments of affective variables, such as attitude, are far fewer in number. The objective of this study was to investigate student experiences, specifically the issues and challenges faced by students in three foundational design courses – focusing on introductory design, architectural design and engineering design – at the . We investigate issues such as how do students experience various instruction modes such as lectures and studio; and their experience of working individually or as teams in the three foundational design courses. 2 METHOD We conducted a survey in three foundational design courses, in both online and paper format. The survey comprised quantitative and qualitative components. Respondents consisted of 248 students from the introductory design course, 48 students from the introductory architectural design course and 71 students from the engineering design course. Respondents rated their perceptions on 23 items in two types of questions: Likert, semantic differential. Additionally, they provided their input in two open-ended questions. 3 RESULTS A principal component analysis conducted on the data revealed five factors that primarily contributed to students’ perception of foundational design courses: (1) the fun aspects of design, (2) the stressful aspects of design, (3) Course Pressures, (4) Student temperament issues, (5) Teamwork experience. Performance pressures majorly affected student experience in all three courses. The architectural design course was seen to be the most enjoyable for students, as fun scores were higher than the stress scores, and low course pressures. The engineering design course was observed to be very stressful for students, with low scores for fun. 4 SIGNIFICANCE Student perception of foundational design courses is important because it can be used to drive forward changes in curriculum and pedagogy. While this study uses data from one university, the issues reported here are generic and relevant for instructors developing design courses across different parts of the world. Research in student experience and perspectives is crucial to develop design education and propel it into the future. REFERENCES [1] Y. Doppelt, “Assessing creative thinking in design-based learning,” International Journal of Technology and Design Education, vol. 19, no. 1, pp. 55–65, 2009, [2] N. Lee, “Project methods as the vehicle for learning in undergraduate design education: a typology,” Design Studies, vol. 30, no. 5, pp. 541–560, Sep. 2009, [3] A. B. Gencosmanoglu, “Learning, teaching and administration in design education: DESIGNtrain Project: Training tools for developing design education,” in Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences, 2010.

This chapter studies the mathematical skills required in technical subjects of bachelor programs in engineering. The interface between mathematical subjects and introductory engineering courses is conceptualized to study this topic. We developed a transferable framework for the analyses of exercises, related problem-solving strategies, and typical sources of errors. In exercises from an engineering exam after the second semester, the transitions between engineering contexts and the use of mathematical methods, whose use and shape can stem from courses on mathematics for engineering or from their use in lectures on engineering themselves, are characterized, also concerning the tensions they create. Finally, we present the results of applying this framework to an exercise used in an exam, which was given after the first year studies in electrical engineering.

Purpose – This paper aims to argue that the process of making an original game develops digital literacy skills and provides an authentic learning experience as students create, publish and deploy interactive games. Teaching students to create computer games has become common in both K-12 and tertiary education to introducing programming concepts, increase student engagement and recruit majors and minors in technology fields. This study describes a project where first-year college students in an introductory technology concepts course use a visual game creation tool to develop original games to play on their computers and mobile devices. Design/methodology/approach – The author created a game development exercise which was implemented in three different sections of an introductory technology course. Students who participated were surveyed about their experiences. In addition, the author considers information technology (IT) skills and aspects of authentic learning which are achieved through this assignment. Findings – Initial findings suggest that students found the gaming assignment offers an opportunity for students with no prior programming skills to create software within a controlled and supportive environment. It allows them to demonstrate their understanding of coding principles, including identifying objects and interactions, and that creating software requires a developer to specify exact instructions for the computer to follow. Research limitations/implications – This study is limited to results from one semester and a small number of students participating. In addition, student frustration with the complicated process of publishing games online may have influenced student attitudes toward the assignment. Practical implications – Challenges of implementing this study on a larger scale are discussed. Social implications – Creating games encourages collaborative learning through trial and error, and students who share their games with friends to play on their devices achieve a sense of pride. Originality/value – While most studies of game development emphasize the programming skills that are developed through creating computer games, this paper looks at a larger scope of digital literacy and IT skills achieved, as well as opportunities to perform tasks often completed by IT professionals.

As one component of a college-wide redesign of its introductory engineering courses, a project-based introduction to computer science is being developed using open-source software running under the GNU/Linux operating system. The course components include hardware assembly, operating system and software installation, basic system administration, and a working introduction to the engineering design process through the completion of several collaborative projects involving content-based graphic design and computer animation. Through the three semesters, the course has gravitated away from a module-based survey of fundamental concepts in computer science and engineering toward greater student exploration of fewer topics most relevant to the projects. Continuing assessment of each phase of the course provides formative and summative feedback and has played an important role in the maturation of the course.

Jaskirat Sodhi is interested in first-year engineering curriculum design and recruitment, retention and success of engineering students.He is the coordinator of ENGR101, an application-oriented course for engineering students placed in pre-calculus

PropCart is a three wheeled model vehicle with a variable pitch pusher propeller and rubber band motor. This paper presents the construction and testing of this vehicle as a platform for teaching concepts of linear and rotational mechanics, and elementary aerodynamics of airfoils applied in aircraft and wind turbines. Building and testing the vehicle is proposed as a 12th Grade STEM project: SCIENCE component: Physics; Linear and Rotational Mechanics with practical determination of basic and derived quantities in particular uniformly accelerated motion. TECHNOLOGY component: Design and construction of the vehicle. ENGINEERING component (overlapping technology): Measurement of thrust of the propeller at different setting angles using video data of propeller angular velocity and cart linear velocity; enabling determination of relative wind and angle of attack, calculation of Reynolds number and identifying stall angle without the use of a wind tunnel. MATHEMATICS component: Data analysis using Excel. A teaching course based mainly on the Khan academy physics programme is provided to support concepts used in the propeller cart project. PropCart is based on a four wheeled vehicle with fixed pitch propeller, devised by David Newton (1999). A redesigned three wheel vehicle with a variable pitch propeller was used in a practical project in a 12 week introductory engineering course at the University of Canterbury (2002) for 15 Petronas students. 12 students completed the project: Test videos for each student were taken in PAL format at 25fps for time intervals of 1–2 seconds for propeller setting angles of 15, 30 and 45 degrees; with student choice of the number of rubber bands used and the number of windup turns. Readings of linear and angular motion were taken with software which could select frame by frame display. Linear and angular displacement against time were plotted against time and time squared. Separate experiments were conducted on the performance of the propeller with the cart fixed with motor axis normal to an annular scale graduated in degrees. The propeller using 2 rubber bands was wound up by 30 turns for each test. Setting angles from 0 to 90 degrees were used. Graphs of angular displacement against time were compared over one second and plotted on a common time axis for setting angles 0 to 90 degrees. The graphs show that stalling occurs at angles greater than 15 degrees. Cart linear motion and propeller angular velocity within a one second time interval were related. Angular velocity of the propeller against time was a piecewise function: At low setting angles near 15 degrees tending to an acceleration sub-function followed by a constant velocity sub-function the latter giving constant thrust and constant linear acceleration of the cart. The angular displacement against time squared graph showed non uniform decreasing acceleration, with the rate of decrease increasing with time squared due to drag; further supported by the test results of the linear motion of the students’ vehicles. A large number of activities are detailed for the teaching of linear and rotational mechanics. For example, the rotational inertia of the propeller can be determined by mounting it as a compound pendulum; this activity importantly uses the parallel axis theorem. Taking the propeller blade as a flat plate airfoil: The relative air flow at mid span can be determined as falling along the resultant of air relative to the cart and air relative to the reference point on the blade: Enabling the determination of flow angle and angle of attack for a given setting angle. A parallel linkage with adjustable link lengths was developed for measuring setting angle by reflecting a laser beam off mirror foil on the blades, this is briefly discussed.

Introduction to Engineering Analysis (IEA; course 20.100, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute) is generally taken in the first semester of the freshman year and provides an integrated treatment of vector mechanics (statics) and linear algebra, also emphasizing computer-based matrix methods for solving engineering problems. The course format combines large (i.e., 80-100 students) lectures with weekly, smaller (40-50 students) recitations during which students work as teams to solve problems, assisted by the professor and/or the teaching assistant(s). IEA, therefore, incorporates active and peer-learning techniques with traditional lecture-based instructional methods. Students and faculty have been pleased with the additional teamwork and problem-solving practice provided by recitation sections; however, the recitations are a panacea for the many special challenges inherent in teaching a first-semester, freshman-level course. For example, students who performed well in high school classes, while exerting minimal effort, may not possess study skills which are appropriate for a rigorous college environment. Moreover, engineering problem solving is often a totally new mental exercise for college freshmen, even for students who excelled in high school math and science classes. Therefore, the Learning Center at Rensselaer initiated a series of Supplemental Instruction (SI) sessions for IEA students in the Fall of 1996. The authors describe the nature of these sessions and their evaluation.