Education Commons^™

Strategies For Engagement Of Non-Traditional Students In Engineering-Related Courses, Kimberly T. Luthi Dr., David Harvie, Keith Wilson, Monica Surrency

Publications

Project Goals

Overview

• Goal #1: Increase students' commitment to engineering pathways.
• Goal #2: Increase academic performance and persistence in engineering.
• Goal #3: Increase persistence of Veterans in engineering pathways.

Research Questions

• How does students' participation in peer-led team learning activities in online engineering courses correlate to their a) commitment to engineering, b) engineering identity, and c) self-efficacy.
• How do students in peer-led team learning activities compare to students in non-PLTL groups in terms of a) academic performance and b) persistence in engineering pathways?

Operationalizing The Duty Of Care Through Rubrics, Emily Faulconer

Publications

Laboratory experiments are a key aspect of science education. However, they do have risks, and accidents do happen. Science educators have a duty of care, which includes duty of instruction. One tool that can be leveraged for duty of instruction is course rubrics. Including clear safety criteria in the rubric operationalizes the duty of care and allows students to clearly understand safety expectations and competencies. Specifically, the use of organizing schemes such as RAMP (recognize hazards, assess risks, minimize risks, prepare for emergencies) in rubrics can provide clear communication to students.

Critical Teaching Behaviors: Defining, Documenting, And Discussing Good Teaching, Claudia Cornejo-Happel

Publications

What does “good” teaching mean, and how can we know it when we see it? Perhaps you have grappled with these questions at some point in your career, either as an instructor wanting to document or grow your teaching effectiveness or as a peer or administrator trying to provide guidance to or assess the teaching of others.

This book serves three purposes: a condensed, evidence-based guide to effective teaching; a resource on creating a focused teaching narrative and teaching portfolio; and a toolkit that equips faculty to conduct peer observations, student midterm feedback, and productive conversations related to teaching.

The …

Technology-Enabled Active Learning In Gen Ed Courses, Emily Faulconer

Publications

Asynchronous online courses tend to lack a true “lecture”. In STEM, when communication of content engages students, learning is more effective.

Metrics In Group Work, Emily Faulconer

Publications

Collaborative Learning, asynchronously online

• Critical Thinking
• Tech Literacy
• Communication
• Ethics
• Cultural Literacy
• Info Literacy

Show Me! Do Videos Make A Difference In An Asynchronous Online Course?, John Griffith, Emily Faulconer

Publications

This study attempted to determine if placing videos in an asynchronous course influenced the learning experience. Data were examined for an introductory college statistics course comparing results pre and post implementation of videos in support of discussions, assignments, homework, quizzes, and exams. Frequency of external tutoring was significantly reduced (40%) for the course sections that included embedded videos. This finding supports the idea that videos reduced the amount of friction or extraneous cognitive load experienced by students since using tutoring resources external to the course requires additional time and effort on the part of students and tutors. A significant majority …

Using Small Uas For Stem Education: Introducing Robotics And Mechatronics With Drones, Christian Janke, Kimberly Luthi, Stefan Kleinke, Yuetong Lin

Publications

Several global developments point to importance of STEM-related education and studies. Every industry sector faces challenges in the recruiting of qualified personnel, due to retiring employees and general economic growth. Also, several domains, foremost automotive and aviation are undergoing a tremendous shift towards electrification to achieve sustainability. Hence, sparking the interest in STEM studies, education and vocational training cannot start early enough. This paper introduces the benefits of the educational use of sUAS by identifying core benefits in the three domains of learning – cognitive, affective, psycho-motor. Preliminary data and survey results from from several science, technology, engineering and math …

Instructional Efficiency In Asynchronous Online Discussions, Emily Faulconer, Darryl Chamberlain, Beverly Wood

Publications

Cognitive load mitigation strategies & community of inquiry framework are not discipline specific.

Work-Life Balance Effective Strategies To Enhance Personal And Professional Success, Cheryl Lentz

Publications

Two components of academic excellence are continuity and predictability (Noddings, 1991; Pierantoni, 2017). Students need academic consistency, especially at the early elementary levels, for optimal learning (Hemmeter et al., 2006; Pierantoni, 2017). Continuity and predictability are interrupted by internal and external factors that are sometimes beyond the control of education stakeholders (Coleman & Collinge, 2006). The unpredictability of crises can negatively affect people and disrupt the education sector and peoples’ livelihoods. Education systems, families, students, and educators struggle to maintain optimal learning environments because of the 2020 pandemic (Coleman & Collinge, 2006). Learning poverty means children are unable to read …

Exploring The Impact Of Early Exposure To Research On Dual Enrollment Students: A Qualitative Single-Case Study, Kevin A. Adkins, Jorge L. D. Albelo, Samantha Bowyer

Publications

Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University (ERAU) provides a concurrent enrollment model to high schools across the United States. The concurrent enrollment opportunity offers science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) college-credit coursework taught by college-credentialed instructors on the student’s high school campus. One faculty member transitioned to Embry-Riddle’s main residential campus following seven years of service with ERAU’s concurrent enrollment program. During his tenure with ERAU’s concurrent enrollment program, in addition to instructing a variety of concurrent enrollment courses, he maintained an active research agenda that involved concurrently enrolled students. His transition was preceded by the matriculation of a subset of these students …

Transitioning To An Active Learning Environment For Calculus At The University Of Florida, Darryl Chamberlain, Amy Grady, Scott Keeran, Kevin Knudson, Ian Manly, Melissa Shabazz, Corey Stone

Publications

In this note, we describe a large-scale transition to an active learning format in first-semester calculus at the University of Florida. Student performance and attitudes are compared across traditional lecture and flipped sections.

Engaging In Scholarly Activities: Conferences & Publication, Emily Faulconer, Amy Riordan

Publications

Scholarly activities have key characteristics.

• Intellectually rigorous
• Expands disciplinary knowledge or creative expression
• Documented
• Validated by the relevant community of professionals

Implementing The Flipped Classroom In An Undergraduate Corporate Finance Course, Jayendra S. Gokhale

Publications

This study analyzes flipped mode of instruction in Corporate Finance. In the current environment, with many students in quarantine and greater emphasis on self-study, it is even more relevant to understand how students understand and retain concepts derived from online environment. In this study, performance of students in flipped mode is compared with the performance in traditional lecture-style. In flipped class, students watched a brief video-lecture, took an online assessment quiz prior to attending an interactive discussion-based class session, unlike the traditional lecture style. The results of this study suggest that with flipped mode, most students take greater responsibility of …

Penn State’S School Of Public Affairs Security-Related Academic Programs Amid The Novel Coronavirus Catastrophe, Alexander Siedschlag

Publications

Due to its large OL student population, Penn State’s School of Public Affairs had (unintended) applicable crisis contingency protocols in place prior to the COVID-19 outbreak. With the support of our college’s Center for Teaching Excellence, many traditional F2F residential courses had already been set up on our learning management system (LMS), Canvas. As a result, many of our school’s traditional students and faculty had a handle on using Canvas and remote learning technology. The center enhanced and focused its services to faculty as COVID-19 evolved (Center for Teaching Excellence, 2020). As the COVID-19 crisis hit Penn State during the …

Seeing And Understanding Data, Beverly Wood, Charlotte Bolch

Publications

Visual displays of data are commonly used today in media reports online or in print. For example, data visualizations are sometimes used as a marketing tool to convince people to purchase a certain product, or they are displayed in articles or magazines as a way to graphically display data to emphasize a certain point. In general, it is hard to imagine the majority of disciplines in science and mathematics not using data visualizations. However, before standard data visualization techniques were developed (and accepted by the community), mathematicians and scientists very rarely used graphical displays or pictures to represent empirical data.

Accounting Education In Greece During The Gfc (2009-2016), Dimitrios V. Siskos

Publications

The structure of accounting education in Greece, and in the world, is facing nowadays many significant challenges since the global financial crisis has left behind many critical educational burdens. At the same time, there is an increase in accounting omissions and malpractices of ethics both in the public and in the private sector of Greece. These undoubtedly contributed to massive unemployment, high poverty rate, crime and other social ills experienced in the country. This motivated the study on restructuring accounting education by devising a new educational framework that can be applied to Greek universities and colleges with the purpose of …

Sprinting Toward Genre Knowledge: Scaffolding Graduate Student Communication Through "Sprints" In Finance And Engineering Courses, Lindsey Ives, Jayendra Gokhale, William C. Barott, Michael V. Perez

Publications

This article evaluates the use of biweekly deadlines called “Sprints” to scaffold the development of conference papers in graduate-level courses in econometric modeling and electrical engineering through analysis of faculty assessment reports, observation notes, and transcripts of two audio-recorded class sessions. Data were analyzed to identify Tardy’s (2009) four dimensions of genre knowledge: subject-matter, rhetorical, process, and formal knowledge. We found that Sprints provide consistent opportunities for students to provide and receive helpful formative feedback that builds disciplinary genre knowledge in each of the four dimensions. We conclude by recommending strategies for maximizing Sprints’ benefits while minimizing potential drawbacks in …

Evaluating The Way Forward In Online Student Engagement., Patricia Schmaltz, Julia Carpenter, Dan J. Petersen

Publications

Several factors make up the successful instructional experience in online higher education classes. With the advanced offerings in online learning, educational institutions are compelled to innovate all aspects of their online classes (U.S. Department of Education, 2016). The innovation can lead to a higher caliber learning environment. This paper advances a simple model for Instructors to follow, an Instructional Online Model (IOM), with the intent of improving student engagement, knowledge retention, leading to increased business profit. Instructors who model the discussed techniques may find increased student’s satisfaction with their courses, leading to the students pursuing further online education. Technological advancement …

Book Review: Review Of Changing Curriculum Through Stories: Character Education For Ages 10-12, Aaron D. Clevenger

Publications

This is Dr. Clevenger's book review of Marc Levitt's book, Changing Curriculum Through Stories, published by Rowman & Littlefield in 2017. ISBN: 978-1-4758-3591-5.

Motivating Students To Learn A Programming Language: Applying A Second Language Acquisition Approach In A Blended Learning Environment, Lulu Sun, Christina Frederick, Caroline Liron, Li Ding, Lei Gu, Andrew Calvin Griggs Ii, Paula Sanjuan Espejo

Publications

Learning a programming language typically involves acquisition of new vocabulary, punctuation, and grammatical structures to communicate with a computer. In other words, learning a programming language is like learning a human language. A recent study showed that programmers use language regions of the brain when understanding source code and found little activation in other regions of the brain devoted to mathematical thinking. Even though programming code involved mathematical operations, conditionals, and loop iterations, researchers found that programming had less in common with mathematics and more in common with human language.

Putting Students In The Front And Center: Exploring And Refining Student Centered Learning Techniques, Michelle M. Bennett, Anne Boettcher, Brent D. Bowen, Tonje Crossley, Dawn Groh, Tyrone Groh, Timothy B. Holt

Publications

Student-centered learning (SCL) represents a growing trend in higher education that emphasizes active learning strategies in lieu of more traditional passive strategies such as lecture. This study explores different techniques under the rubric of SCL to evaluate the utility of selected tools to enhance student knowledge and student learning. Specifically, this study tests the use of student portfolios, flipped classrooms, digital learning strategies, and problem-based learning to enhance a student’s learning experience. Originating as a collaborative effort from a university faculty learning community, this study includes a multi-disciplinary look at the effects of SCL approaches in the fields of aviation, …

Informing Online Doctoral Course Development Using Student Feedback, Haydee M. Cuevas, Jan G. Neal

Publications

This paper describes the initial development and continuous improvement of DAV 715: Human Factors in Aviation, an online post graduate course in the Ph.D. in Aviation program at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University (ERAU), from the perspectives of the subject matter expert (SME)/course instructor and the instructional designer/course builder as well as with consideration of student feedback. The process was guided by the 3-Phase Design (3PD) model developed by Sims and Jones (2003). The first section of the paper presents a definition of instructional design and development and salient instructional design challenges. This section also includes descriptions of the Ph.D. in Aviation …

Adjunct Faculty Training, Mentoring And Evaluation At The Department Level, John Griffith

Publications

Improve the learning experience for students by improving performance of adjunct faculty. Learn the strategies and tools used by an award-winning university to support adjunct faculty.

Quality Function Deployment And Proactive Quality Techniques Applied To University Lectures To Improve Student Feedback, Kenneth Witcher, Elena Navarro, Beverly Wood, Ian Mcandrew

Publications

Lecturing and instruction to students at university has traditionally been based on qualifications, experience and position of academics within ones department or college. The higher the level and more advanced the subject then the most experienced lecturers are traditionally selected for that task. Visiting lecturers are never asked to teach basic mathematics or science, they are to share their experience and enlighten the students from a vast knowledge and history. This paper reviews and discusses Kano’s model with Quality Function Deployment related to customer satisfaction and compares if the traditional approach is in keeping with university practice. Furthermore, it argues …

Udl And What It Means For Online Instructors, Angela Atwell

Publications

While designing an inclusive online learning experience is critical for student success, so too is effective implementation. Universal Design for Learning (UDL) goes beyond the initial course design to focus on best practice for delivering content to ensure understanding, providing multiple means of student expression and encouraging active engagement. These are all components of the online classroom determined and enhanced by the instructor. In this informational session, we will explore strategies you can begin using in your online class to best meet the needs of all students.

The Utilization Of Peer Mentorship And Its Positive Impact On Student Retention, Timothy B. Holt, Jacqueline Luedtke, Claire Schindler

Publications

In recognition of increasing rates of repeated ground schools and flight lessons, in combination with decreasing retention rates in the flight programs at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, the Department of Aeronautical Science in the College of Aviation took initiative to create a program that identified struggle students before they reached excessive failure or financial distress. The students identified in the Student Success Initiative (SSI) after being assessed would be required to attend a mediation session with their academic and flight training staff in order to create a specialized training program.

• Student Success Initiative (SSI)
• Identifies "at risk" students
• Implemented training plan …

Increasing Student Interactions With Learning Objectives, Emily Kaye Faulconer

Publications

As educators, we recognize the importance of strong student learning objectives. We also know that students benefit by being well informed of expectations. Existing literature offers little guidance in methods and teaching strategies to apply in exposing students to their learning objectives. In this article, we discuss the use of specific teaching strategies to increase student interactions with the learning objectives. Student opinions regarding learning objectives were measured using an end-of-course Likert survey. Although no statistically significant changes in student opinions were detected in this study, a future study will investigate the influence of these targeted strategies on content mastery. …

Learning: It's Personal, Angela Atwell

Publications

If you have any questions about this presentation or would like a copy of the handout, please contact Angela Atwell. Her information can be found at the end of the presentation.

Contrary to popular belief, teaching and learning in an online environment is not easier or less work than a traditional classroom. It takes intentionality, discipline and commitment from both the instructor and the student. However, the flexibility offered by online programs makes this option increasingly appealing. With this growing demand, online instructors must think critically about the content, strategically plan activities and align outcomes with diverse student goals. All …

Peer Counseling For Student Success In University Flight Education: A Case Example, Juan Merkt, Erica Diels, Jackie Luedtke, Timothy B. Holt, Claire Schindler

Publications

In response to attrition rates, the Department of Aeronautical Science in the College of Aviation at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Prescott, AZ, analyzed how best to identify and assist students who were struggling with their flight training. In order to maximize student retention, students at risk must be identified early, prior to training failure or financial distress. The assessment of these findings of the flight program and the attrition rates resulted in a “Student Success Initiative” (SSI) being established that would identify students approaching ‘at-risk’ points in flight training, both fixed-wing and helicopter. These students would be assessed and ultimately …

Investigating The Influence Of The Level Of Inquiry On Student Engagement, Emily K. Faulconer

Publications

Previous studies investigating student-generated questions in a laboratory class compared inquiry to a traditional approach without characterizing the inquiry level. This study investigated the influence of inquiry level on the quantity and quality of student-generated questions over one semester in a General Chemistry course with 356 participants. The researchers studied two types of inquiry in labs: structured inquiry and open inquiry. Quantity and quality of student-generated questions were analyzed and student attitudes were measured using a LIKERT survey while content knowledge was assessed via post-test. A close relationship was not found between the level of inquiry and the quantity or …