Maximizing the Impact of Engineering Laboratory Studies to Transform Undergraduate Engineering Curriculum and Advance Student Outcomes

最大限度地发挥工程实验室研究的影响，改变本科工程课程并提高学生的成绩

• 批准号: 2337194
• 负责人: Kimberly Cook-Chennault
• 金额: $ 64.93万
• 依托单位: Rutgers University New Brunswick
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2024
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2024-05-01 至 2027-04-30
• 项目状态: 未结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=2337194&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Maximizing; Impact; Engineering; Laboratory; Studies

This project aims to serve the national interest by exploring a novel approach to significantly enhancing the diversity of learners in engineering. Engineering undergraduate populations are becoming more diverse in terms of sociocultural identity, exposure to technology and preferences for teaching approaches. This IUSE Level 2 Engaged Student Learning project proposes Universal-Design Learning (UDL)-based curricular changes to undergraduate mechanical and aerospace engineering courses. The UDL framework emphasizes learning experiences that are accessible and effective for all learners, regardless of their individual differences, by considering students’ individual strengths, weaknesses, motivational factors and curricular preferences. The project will explore how laboratory curriculum design and student assessments (rooted in student strengths) can be made flexible and designed to ignite learner interest thus enhancing the quality and quantity of time students spend learning engineering concepts. The broader impact of the work is to establish a foundation for STEM instructors to create more inclusive learning environments that resonate with diverse students.UDL, defined in the Higher Education Opportunity Act of 2008 as a “scientifically valid framework for guiding educational practice,” puts the burden of change on the curriculum. By facilitating the design and implementation of a flexible, responsive curriculum, UDL offers options for how information is presented, how students respond or demonstrate their knowledge and skills, how learning is assessed and how students are engaged in learning. The goal of the project is to explore and assess student perceptions, engagement, and learning outcomes that result from modifying, using the UDL framework, three undergraduate courses within the Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Department at Rutgers University. Investigators will also acquire insights on how the educational infrastructure of the department is transformed due to those changes. Sophomore, junior, and senior level classes will be adapted to include labs developed from a prior project that focused on development and assessment of virtual labs for a senior lab course. Research questions are posited to be investigated by a sequential mixed method and exploratory research approach. Findings will be disseminated to engineering education researchers, STEM educators, and high school students via engineering experiential learning activities, publications, presentations, and professional development workshops. This project offers a roadmap for transforming conventional engineering educational philosophy and has the potential to significantly improve access and quality of learning for diverse engineering student communities. The NSF IUSE: EDU Program supports research and development projects to improve the effectiveness of STEM education for all students. Through the Engaged Student Learning track, the program supports the creation, exploration, and implementation of promising practices and tools.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

该项目旨在通过探索一种显着增强工程专业学习者多样性的新方法来服务于国家利益。工程本科群体在社会文化认同、技术接触和教学方法偏好方面变得更加多样化。学生学习项目提议对机械和航空航天工程本科课程进行基于通用设计学习 (UDL) 的课程改革，UDL 框架强调通过考虑学生的个人优势，为所有学习者提供可访问且有效的学习体验，无论其个体差异如何。 , 弱点,该项目将探讨如何灵活地设计实验室课程设计和学生评估（植根于学生的优势）以激发学习者的兴趣，从而提高学生学习工程概念的时间质量和数量，从而产生更广泛的影响。这项工作的重点是为 STEM 教师建立一个基础，以创造更具包容性的学习环境，与不同的学生产生共鸣。UDL 在 2008 年《高等教育机会法案》中被定义为“指导教育实践的科学有效的框架”，提出通过促进灵活、响应式课程的设计和实施，UDL 提供了信息呈现方式、学生如何反应或展示其知识和技能、如何评估学习以及学生如何参与的选项。该项目的目标是探索和评估学生的看法、参与度和学习成果，这些成果是通过使用 UDL 框架修改罗格斯大学机械和航空航天工程系的三门本科课程而获得的。该部门的教育基础设施如何改造由于这些变化，大二、大三和高级课程将进行调整，以包括从先前项目开发的实验室，该项目专注于高级实验室课程的虚拟实验室的开发和评估，研究问题将通过顺序混合进行研究。该项目将通过工程体验式学习活动、出版物、演讲和专业发展研讨会向工程教育研究人员、STEM 教育工作者和高中生传播研究结果。这NSF IUSE：EDU 计划支持研究和开发项目，以提高所有学生的 STEM 教育的有效性。该奖项反映了 NSF 的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。