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Theses and Dissertations - UTB/UTPA

Theses/Dissertations

Education

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Full-Text Articles in Engineering

Seeds Of Solutions™: An Economical & Efficient Approach Towards Power Engineering Education, Eli Alvarez Dec 2014

Seeds Of Solutions™: An Economical & Efficient Approach Towards Power Engineering Education, Eli Alvarez

Theses and Dissertations - UTB/UTPA

Power demands are set to increase over the next twenty years; however, research shows that there may be a shortage of power engineers due to an appreciable percentage of the current power engineer workforce retiring, insufficient enrollment in power engineering programs and a lack of emphasis in power engineering at the university level. This thesis provides supporting research for future power demands, workforce and faculty shortages. Using temporary research in modern learning / teaching styles, student / teacher perceptions, educational trends and regional course offerings, this thesis describes a learning approach towards power engineering education. Designed specifically for universities with …


A Study Comparing The Pedagogical Effectiveness Of Virtual Worlds And Of Traditional Training Methods, Benjamin Peters Aug 2014

A Study Comparing The Pedagogical Effectiveness Of Virtual Worlds And Of Traditional Training Methods, Benjamin Peters

Theses and Dissertations - UTB/UTPA

This experiment tests whether a virtual world is a more suitable alternative to classical paper and pen case studies for teaching people how to disarm improvised explosive devices (IED). Following preliminary training, the subjects are separated into a group of 32 and one of 33. The odd-numbered subjects receive case studies while the even-numbered subjects receive training in the virtual world, Second Life. After their training, each subject is put into a simulated test where they attempt to properly disarm a mock IED attached to a victim played by an actor/actress. The results of the experiment show no significant difference …


Analysis Of Brownsville Public Utilities Board Hybrid Wind And Solar Energy Systems: Case Study And Analysis In Brownsville, Texas, Lina L. Chavez Aug 2013

Analysis Of Brownsville Public Utilities Board Hybrid Wind And Solar Energy Systems: Case Study And Analysis In Brownsville, Texas, Lina L. Chavez

Theses and Dissertations - UTB/UTPA

Engineers are tasked and responsible for studying and designing environmentally safer forms of electrical generation including wind and solar sources. A national effort to reduce dependency on foreign oil due to economic and environmental impacts is underway and race to full scale implementation of alternate energy sources is eminent. The question looms: Is renewable energy generation for residences feasible from an engineering and economic perspective? Although wind and solar generators are gaining ground on conventional generation methods in different sectors, lack of information with regards to design, implementation, and payback still remain a major roadblock. The objective of this case …


Development And Implementation Of Challenge-Based Instruction In Engineering Graphics, Gregory A. Potter Aug 2011

Development And Implementation Of Challenge-Based Instruction In Engineering Graphics, Gregory A. Potter

Theses and Dissertations - UTB/UTPA

This thesis discusses the challenge-based instructional (CBI) lessons currently being developed for the Engineering Graphics course at UTPA. This endeavor concentrates on student retention, as well as the students’ ability to practically apply their new skills. Minority science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) students have been found, in recent studies, to depart from STEM undergraduate fields to some extent because of the lack of real world connections to the subject matter. Also, the traditional way of teaching theory first and then assigning a task may actually stifle creative thought and innovation required in later STEM courses. Our use of CBI …