Education Commons^™

Drowning In Method, Thirsty For Values: A Call For Cultural Inquiry, Jonathan Stolk, Mark Somerville, Debbie Chachra

Jonathan Stolk

A decade or more has passed since publication of most calls for reform in engineering education. In the ensuing time, there has been significant work on the design, implementation, and transferability of appropriate methodsand techniques - accompanied by, in most cases, little discussion of the values and beliefs of the people involved. But many theories of change rely on a fundamental shift in human beliefs and values, and purport that institutionalization of methods is impossible without this shift. Given this, now may be a reasonable time to re-visit the questions: What are the values of people involved in engineering education, …

Work In Progress - A Provisional Competency Assessment System, Mark Somerville, Debbie Chachra, Jonathan Chambers, Ellen Cooney, Kristen Dorsey, John Geddes, Gill Pratt, Kathryn Rivard, Ann Schaffner, Lynn Stein, Jonathan Stolk, Stephen Westwood, Yevgeniya Zastavker

Lynn Andrea Stein

Over the last two years Olin College has been defining and implementing a provisional system to develop and assess student competency levels. The system particularly emphasizes the importance of creating a community of practice that includes not only faculty but also staff and students. In this paper we provide an overview of the design process, and comment on the results of our first year of implementing the system.

Designing A Small-Footprint Curriculum In Computer Science, Allen Downey, Lynn Stein

Lynn Andrea Stein

We describe an innovative computing curriculum that combines elements of computer science, engineering and design. Although it is tailored to the constraints we face at Olin College, it contains elements that are applicable to the design of a CS major at a small school, a CS minor, or an interdisciplinary program that includes computing. We present the core courses in the program as well as several courses that are meant to connect the computing curriculum to other fields. We summarize the lessons we have learned from the first few years of this program.

Work In Progress - A Provisional Competency Assessment System, Mark Somerville, Debbie Chachra, Jonathan Chambers, Ellen Cooney, Kristen Dorsey, John Geddes, Gill Pratt, Kathryn Rivard, Ann Schaffner, Lynn Stein, Jonathan Stolk, Stephen Westwood, Yevgeniya Zastavker

John B. Geddes

Over the last two years Olin College has been defining and implementing a provisional system to develop and assess student competency levels. The system particularly emphasizes the importance of creating a community of practice that includes not only faculty but also staff and students. In this paper we provide an overview of the design process, and comment on the results of our first year of implementing the system.

Drowning In Method, Thirsty For Values: A Call For Cultural Inquiry, Jonathan Stolk, Mark Somerville, Debbie Chachra

Debbie Chachra

A decade or more has passed since publication of most calls for reform in engineering education. In the ensuing time, there has been significant work on the design, implementation, and transferability of appropriate methodsand techniques - accompanied by, in most cases, little discussion of the values and beliefs of the people involved. But many theories of change rely on a fundamental shift in human beliefs and values, and purport that institutionalization of methods is impossible without this shift. Given this, now may be a reasonable time to re-visit the questions: What are the values of people involved in engineering education, …

Work In Progress - A Provisional Competency Assessment System, Mark Somerville, Debbie Chachra, Jonathan Chambers, Ellen Cooney, Kristen Dorsey, John Geddes, Gill Pratt, Kathryn Rivard, Ann Schaffner, Lynn Stein, Jonathan Stolk, Stephen Westwood, Yevgeniya Zastavker

Debbie Chachra

Over the last two years Olin College has been defining and implementing a provisional system to develop and assess student competency levels. The system particularly emphasizes the importance of creating a community of practice that includes not only faculty but also staff and students. In this paper we provide an overview of the design process, and comment on the results of our first year of implementing the system.

Work In Progress - Impact Of Early Design Instruction On Capstone Experiences, Mark Chang, Jessica Townsend

Jessica Townsend

In the Olin College curriculum, students have significant, early, and continuous exposure to user-oriented design principles. As a result, our students have a very user-centered approach to problem solving that has affected our yearlong, industry-sponsored capstone in several ways. We have reflected on five years of capstone engagements in order to learn how our program has changed because of the design emphasis in our curriculum. The significance of our work is to inform the many departments that are already undertaking design-centric curriculum reform on how they may modify their capstone experiences to best take advantage of new student understanding, and …

'Kinetic Sculptures': A Centerpiece Project Integrated With Mathematics And Physics, Yevgeniya Zastavker, Jill Crisman, Mark Jeunnette, Burt Tilley

Yevgeniya V. Zastavker

An integrated set of courses, or Integrated Course Block (ICB), developed for incoming first-year students at the Franklin W. Olin College of Engineering, is presented. Bound by a common theme of `Kinetic Sculptures', the individual courses in this ICB are mathematics (single variable calculus and ordinary differential equations), physics (kinetics and dynamics of linear and rotational motion, thermodynamics and fluids), and an open-ended engineering project. The project part of the ICB allows students to explore the motion through the design of kinetic (moving) sculptures while utilizing the mathematics and physics concepts learned in the accompanying courses. This paper considers the …

Faculty On Integrated Project-Based Learning, Yevgeniya Zastavker, Casey Canfield

Yevgeniya V. Zastavker

This paper examines the experiences, perspectives, and concerns of faculty involved in implementing a first-year integrated project-based engineering curriculum as they attempt to understand and reconcile their own and students’ views, attitudes, and beliefs regarding project-based learning (PjBL). A semi-structured, open-ended interview protocol is employed with seven mathematics and physics faculty participants. Grounded theory is used to identify the following themes: divergence of faculty perceptions regarding the effectiveness of an integrated approach in teaching and learning, the value of projects, and conflicting student expectations.

Qualitative Research Gains Equality: A Review Of Research Methodology: A Step-By-Step Guide For Beginners, Li Jin

Li Jin

No abstract provided.

Student Inquiry And Research At The Illinois Mathematics And Science Academy, Steven Rogg

Steven R Rogg

Student Inquiry and Research at the Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy. The 8th International Student Science Fair, April 30-May 4, 2012. Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada

Democratic Education Only For Some: Secondary Schooling In Northern Uganda, Philip Kelly, Stephen Odama

Philip P. Kelly

This article analyzes the effects of the political, social and cultural contexts of secondary education in northern Uganda. Specifically, the authors examine interactions between several factors with the schooling system, including

• post-colonial curriculum,
• centralized examination system,
• several decades of war and instability,
• poverty, and
• intra-national and inter-tribal prejudice and discrimination.

Informing the analysis is the fact that Uganda is a democracy and thus has certain democratic responsibilities to its children and students. To explore these issues, the lenses of democratic theory and critical theory are employed.

Ethical Considerations For Teachers In The Evaluation Of Other Teachers, Kenneth Peterson, Philip Kelly, Micki Caskey

Philip P. Kelly

Three themes in educational practice and policy create a need for consideration of ethics to frame practices of teachers serving in the evaluation of colleagues. First is a reoccurring series of evaluation designs that directly involve teachers in formative and/or summative peer evaluation (e.g., NBPTS, 2002: Peterson, 2000). The second basis is a call for increased teacher professionalism, which includes some form of peer review or evaluation (Cooperm 1998; Darling-Hammond, 1989). Finally, ethical codes to guide professional behavior have been established for a variety of educational applications (NEA, 1975; Sparks, 2000).

Mobile Technology Re-Imagined—Ipfw’S “Project #Mobileedu”, Joyce Lazier

joyce lazier

No abstract provided.

Extreme Math Makeover: Mathematics Assessment And Reporting In The Era Of The Common Core Standards, Glenn W. "Max" Mcgee

Glenn W. "Max" McGee

This presentation discusses the need to develop high quality performance based assessments of the Common Core Mathematical Standards and Mathematical Practices. Several examples of performance assessments from high achieving countries as well as from the 2009 PISA test are included.

Experiential Learning And Macro-Education: Enhancing Traditional Marketing Courses With Macromarketing Projects, Scott Radford, David Hunt, Deborah Andrus

David M. Hunt

Review Of The Book: Standing On The Outside Looking In: Underrepresented Students’ Experiences In Advanced Degree Programs By Mary F. Howard-Hamilton Et Al. (Eds.), Zeynep Isik-Ercan

Zeynep Isik-Ercan

No abstract provided.

Book Review -- Writing Assessment And The Revolution In Digital Texts And Technologies, Jeanne Bohannon

Jeanne Law Bohannon

No abstract provided.

Can 3d Visualization Assist In Young Children’S Understanding Of Sun-Earth-Moon System?, Zeynep Isik-Ercan, Beomjin Kim, Jeff Nowak

Zeynep Isik-Ercan

This research-in-progress investigates how the usage of technology, specifically three dimensional (3D) stereoscopic vision, might support astronomy learning in primary grades. 3D stereoscopic vision might be an effective means to observe the relationships among space objects through simulations. In order to explore this presumption, this pilot study examines how 3D stereoscopic vision might enhance urban second graders’ understanding of (a) the shape of Sun, Moon, and Earth, (b) how day and night alternate, and (c) how Moon appears in different shapes. Currently, Indiana state standards for science do not suggest the teaching of these astronomical concepts explicitly before fourth grade. …

“I Go To School Six Days A Week”: The Role Of Cultural And Religious Practices Within Hybrid Turkish-American Communities In Supporting Academic And Socioemotional Growth, Zeynep Isik-Ercan

Zeynep Isik-Ercan

No abstract provided.

Sociocultural Theory-Guided College-Level Mandarin Chinese Hybrid Course Design, Li Jin

Li Jin