We are examining the impact of global, interdisciplinary project experiences on WPI students. A fi rst step is to understand pre-existing differences in students who choose to do their project overseas and those who do not. Here we report... more
We are examining the impact of global, interdisciplinary project experiences on WPI students. A fi rst step is to understand pre-existing differences in students who choose to do their project overseas and those who do not. Here we report results of an analysis of CIRP freshman survey data that shows significant differences in social and civic orientation between these two cohorts of students.
ABSTRACT This work in progress compares two versions of a “classroom flip” instructional strategy in which lectures are moved from inside class to outside class. Class time is then spent on problem solving and feedback. In previous... more
ABSTRACT This work in progress compares two versions of a “classroom flip” instructional strategy in which lectures are moved from inside class to outside class. Class time is then spent on problem solving and feedback. In previous offerings of this materials science course, students were asked to read instructor-supplied lecture notes and complete an on-line warmup assignment prior to class. Informal cooperative learning activities such as think-pair-share were used during class, and clickers provided a mechanism for probing understanding and providing feedback. In the most recent offering, students viewed instructor-prepared multimedia microlectures and took an individual quiz as homework, then repeated the quiz and completed a problem set with an assigned team during class. Thus, the redesigned course delivered multimedia rather than text lectures, and utilized a structured team-based learning strategy rather than informal cooperative learning structures. Moreover, higher level “material selection challenges” were added to the redesigned course. This paper summarizes the planned assessment and evaluation methods to compare the two classroom flip models; results and analysis are not yet complete.
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Education abroad programs are becoming more common as a mechanism for developing the global competencies of engineering graduates. An increasing body of research shows that intercultural learning does not occur de facto in such programs.... more
Education abroad programs are becoming more common as a mechanism for developing the global competencies of engineering graduates. An increasing body of research shows that intercultural learning does not occur de facto in such programs. This study used quantitative and qualitative methods to explore changes in students’ intercultural sensitivity over the course of a project-based education abroad experience in Thailand that was designed with proactive interventions to foster intercultural learning. In addition, we aimed to compare the intercultural development of students in U.S.-only project teams with those who were in cross-national teams with students from a partner university. Although the study group as a whole did not show a statistically significant gain in a quantitative measure of intercultural sensitivity, greater gains were seen from students in crossnational teams. A few qualitative results suggest learning that was not evident from quantitative measures. Overall, this...
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This mixed methods study characterizes the intercultural learning that occurred among participants in a project-based education abroad program in Thailand. In addition to their interdisciplinary project work, these STEM students (N=17)... more
This mixed methods study characterizes the intercultural learning that occurred among participants in a project-based education abroad program in Thailand. In addition to their interdisciplinary project work, these STEM students (N=17) engaged in cultural learning activities during a semester-long preparation period and two-month sojourn. In addition, about half of the students completed their projects in mixed teams of Thai and US students. Preand post-administration of the Intercultural Development Inventory (IDI) was used as a quantitative indicator of intercultural development, while semi-structured interviews provided some depth and context to the quantitative data. The change in students’ developmental IDI scores was marginally statistically significant, with those in the mixed teams showing greater positive change on average. Most students remained in ethnocentric stages of development, however. Still, all students regardless of their IDI results were able to describe meaning...
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Research Interests: Sociology and Curriculum
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The WPI–Norton Company Project Center, in operation since 1973, is a partnership designed to enhance undergraduate engineering education at Worcester Polytechnic Institute(WPI) and to solve problems of direct relevance to Norton Company... more
The WPI–Norton Company Project Center, in operation since 1973, is a partnership designed to enhance undergraduate engineering education at Worcester Polytechnic Institute(WPI) and to solve problems of direct relevance to Norton Company Student teams complete year-long projects on topics proposed by Norton Company and are advised both by WPI faculty and Norton employees. This arrangement differs from cooperative education in that the projects satisfy a WPI degree requirement, and the students are not paid by the company. This paper describes some logistical details of the Center's operation and highlights successes and challenges revealed by a recent evaluation of the partnership.
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There is an increasing body of research evidence suggesting that students need to develop an interest in science and STEM careers at a young age, and that out-of-school programs can play a large role in developing this interest. This... more
There is an increasing body of research evidence suggesting that students need to develop an interest in science and STEM careers at a young age, and that out-of-school programs can play a large role in developing this interest. This presentation will share structures, strategies, and outcomes of a residential summer program for rising 7th grade girls that has demonstrated success in increasing the number of young women who pursue baccalaureate degrees in engineering.
Demonstrates how forensic science can be used as a framework for generating student interest and learning in chemistry and promoting critical thinking. The "Who Dunnit?" forensic science workshop was developed by undergraduate... more
Demonstrates how forensic science can be used as a framework for generating student interest and learning in chemistry and promoting critical thinking. The "Who Dunnit?" forensic science workshop was developed by undergraduate students and is one element of a two-week residential summer outreach program that seeks to develop interest in engineering among middle school girls. (Author/MM)
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ABSTRACT Study abroad programs offer enormous potential to develop graduates who have the ability to function effectively in intercultural contexts. Programs less than a semester in duration are becoming more common and may enable more... more
ABSTRACT Study abroad programs offer enormous potential to develop graduates who have the ability to function effectively in intercultural contexts. Programs less than a semester in duration are becoming more common and may enable more engineering students to participate. This Work in Progress describes a qualitative, exploratory study of ways in which engineering students describe their cross-cultural experiences in a variety of shorter-term, experiential study abroad programs. The extent to which student characteristics and program design factors may affect development of intercultural sensitivity will also be investigated.
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Abstract–Faculty-led experiential study abroad is an increasingly popular vehicle for internationalizing STEM education. However, STEM faculty can lack the necessary knowledge and experience to lead study abroad programs, and may be... more
Abstract–Faculty-led experiential study abroad is an increasingly popular vehicle for internationalizing STEM education. However, STEM faculty can lack the necessary knowledge and experience to lead study abroad programs, and may be reluctant to get involved. At Worcester Polytechnic Institute, half of all STEM undergraduates complete interdisciplinary research projects abroad under faculty guidance, and over 25% of STEM faculty have some level of involvement in offcampus project programs. WPI's faculty ...
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... Doping with 1 mol.% SnO 2 was necessary to accelerate the anatase-to-rutile ... painted with conductive silver paint on both sides and attached to silver wire (Johnson ... to explore possible explanations for the difference in... more
... Doping with 1 mol.% SnO 2 was necessary to accelerate the anatase-to-rutile ... painted with conductive silver paint on both sides and attached to silver wire (Johnson ... to explore possible explanations for the difference in conductivity between nanocrystalline and microcrystalline ...
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ABSTRACT We are examining the impact of global, interdisciplinary project experiences on WPI (Worcester Polytechnic Institute) students. A first step is to understand pre-existing differences in students who choose to do their project... more
ABSTRACT We are examining the impact of global, interdisciplinary project experiences on WPI (Worcester Polytechnic Institute) students. A first step is to understand pre-existing differences in students who choose to do their project overseas and those who do not. Here we report results of an analysis of CIRP freshman survey data that shows significant differences in social and civic orientation between these two cohorts of students.
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The goal of this ongoing classroom research effort is to better understand how students with different learning styles experience and perform in an introductory materials course. Analysis of student grades and questionnaire responses as a... more
The goal of this ongoing classroom research effort is to better understand how students with different learning styles experience and perform in an introductory materials course. Analysis of student grades and questionnaire responses as a function of students' preferred sensory modality and Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) type has helped to identify effective aspects of instructional design. However, it was discovered that some types of learners seem to struggle in the course. This knowledge will be used to inform subsequent changes in instructional design.
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In USA there is not a federal system of higher education, but a diverse and independent nation-wide set of public and private institutions. Consequently, for the last 100 years, Quality Assurance in US higher education has been performed... more
In USA there is not a federal system of higher education, but a diverse and independent nation-wide set of public and private institutions. Consequently, for the last 100 years, Quality Assurance in US higher education has been performed not by the federal government but by the voluntary regional and disciplinary accrediting agencies such as the Accreditation Board for Engineering and
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ABSTRACT An educational experiment at Worcester Polytechnic Institute is described in which the instruction of the Introduction to Materials Science course (ES2001) was modified to incorporate active and cooperative learning. The overall... more
ABSTRACT An educational experiment at Worcester Polytechnic Institute is described in which the instruction of the Introduction to Materials Science course (ES2001) was modified to incorporate active and cooperative learning. The overall goal was simultaneously to enhance educational quality and faculty productivity. Aspects of the course modification included use of “active” rather than traditional lectures, assignment of students to cooperative learning teams, introduction of a “product dissection project,” and a “teacher as manager” approach to instruction, in which undergraduate Peer Learning Assistants and the graduate Teaching Assistant took on responsibilities as part of the instructional team. Data were gathered from 382 students in three traditional course offerings and two active/cooperative offerings, using various survey instruments to measure students' learning and performance, attitudes about learning, interest in materials science, and their satisfaction with the course.
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ABSTRACT Many engineering students enter and exit general chemistry courses with little appreciation of chemistry's relevance to other fields. At WPI many of these students go on to take introductory materials science and arrive... more
ABSTRACT Many engineering students enter and exit general chemistry courses with little appreciation of chemistry's relevance to other fields. At WPI many of these students go on to take introductory materials science and arrive with poor attitudes about chemistry and little retention of key concepts, but then become more engaged as they discover connections to engineering applications. Consequently, instructors in chemistry and mechanical engineering collaborated to augment general chemistry laboratories with explicit “bridges” to material properties and applications. Evaluation results showed that while students' attitudes toward chemistry were unaffected by bridging, particular aspects of the students' lab experience were enhanced to a statistically significant degree. Similar cross-disciplinary collaborations might be considered elsewhere as a means of helping students find meaning and integrate subject matter, in a manner that is more feasible than large-scale course or curriculum restructuring.