Scholarly Works, Engineering Education

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https://hdl.handle.net/10919/24289

Research articles, presentations, and other scholarship

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ROPES Hub Research Brief: Strengthening STEM Pathways - Lessons Learned in S-STEM Identity
Rodriguez, Sarah L.; Blaney, Jennifer M.; Richardson, Amy Jo; Knight, David B. (2025-11-11)
An exploration of psychological safety and conflict in first-year engineering student teams
Huerta, Mark Vincent; Sajadi, Susan; Schibelius, Lisa; Ryan, Olivia Jane; Fisher, Marin (American Society for Engineering Education, 2024-07-01)
Background: Developing teamwork skills is a central objective of engineering education. Psychological safety and conflict management are pivotal components of teamwork, yet despite their significance, research in engineering project-based learning (PBL) contexts is scant. Understanding students' experiences with psychological safety and its interaction with conflict is crucial to inform PBL pedagogy. Purpose: This study delves into first-year engineering students' experiences of psychological safety and conflict, including their evolution in a PBL course. Methods: Throughout the semester, we collected data from 82 students via written reflections and focus groups. Employing a thematic analysis underpinned by the team conflict dynamics model, we characterized students' experiences with psychological safety and conflict. Findings: At the semester's outset, psychological safety was notably lacking. Students often hesitated to share ideas due to apprehensions about peer reactions and fears of negative judgments. As the semester advanced, consistent positive affirmations nurtured psychological safety, increasing students' confidence and readiness to discuss ideas openly and engage in healthy task conflict. Notably, process conflicts arising from absenteeism, poor communication, and procrastination were prevalent across teams. When unresolved, these conflicts eroded psychological safety, intensifying stress, exacerbating frustrations, and provoking relationship conflict. Conclusions: Our study underscores the intertwined nature of psychological safety and conflict in shaping the first-year design experience in student teams. We urge faculty to recognize their pivotal role in fostering an inclusive culture and highlight pedagogical strategies that can bolster psychological safety at the onset, encourage healthy task conflict, and monitor unhealthy process and relationship conflicts.
Exploring fundamental engineering course instructors' test usage beliefs and behaviors: A multicase study
Chew, Kai Jun; Matusovich, Holly M. (American Society for Engineering Education, 2024-10-01)
Background: Tests are commonly and heavily used in fundamental engineering courses (FECs) to assess student learning of concepts. With existing literature presenting mixed benefits and disadvantages of testing to students' motivation to learn and documenting widely alternative assessments, the lack of questioning of heavy and common test usage must be addressed to diversify classroom assessment and promote intentionality in test usage. Purpose/Hypothesis: This study begins to address the lack of questioning by exploring and uncovering test usage beliefs and behaviors of seven FEC instructors from two engineering departments in a land-grant, public, Research 1 university. Design/Method: Grounded in the Situated Expectancy-Value Theory (SEVT), we conducted a multicase study. Data include two interviews, course syllabi, and sample tests provided by the participants, and public documents from the institution and departments. We conducted a priori and emergent coding and thematic analysis to identify the beliefs and behaviors before developing individual case summaries for cross-case analysis to identify groupings. Results: Three test usage groups emerged: enthusiastic, default, and questioning. All test usage groups featured tests heavily in their FECs, resulting in varying alignment between these participants' test usage beliefs and behaviors. Conclusions: Our findings reveal the various factors that can shape FEC instructors' test usage beliefs and behaviors, and the complexity in terms of alignment. This work lays important implications, including laying the foundations for future scholarship on testing in engineering education research and leveraging findings to begin efforts in diversifying assessment approaches and promoting intentional test usage in FECs.
Agentic Actions and Agentic Perspectives Among Fellowship-Funded Engineering Doctoral Students
Denton, Maya; Chasen, Ariel; Fleming, Gabriella Coloyan; Borrego, Maura; Knight, David (MDPI, 2025-10-15)
In the US and Europe, institutions, foundations and governments invest significant financial resources in doctoral fellowships. Unlike other graduate funding mechanisms, fellowships are typically not tied to specific projects or job responsibilities and thus may afford more agency to students. We examined how fellowship funding contributes to or undermines agency of doctoral student recipients. We interviewed 23 US engineering doctoral students primarily funded on a fellowship for at least one semester. We qualitatively analyzed the interviews, using inductive and deductive methods of coding. Participants described increased flexibility with their projects, advisor, and personal life; additional access to physical resources, people and networks, and research experiences; and feelings of internal validation and external recognition from fellowship awards. Contexts of advising, timing of fellowship, source of fellowship, financial circumstances, and fellowship structure influenced their experiences. Agentic perspectives and actions included choice of advisor and research projects, switching advisors if necessary, completing internships and visiting other labs, and enjoying a higher standard of living. Advisor support is a necessity for students funded on fellowships. Multi-year fellowships from external sources, in comparison to internal sources, more often supported agency. We make recommendations for institutions to structure and administer fellowships to better support students.
Integrating Data Science Into Undergraduate Science and Engineering Courses: Lessons Learned by Instructors in a Multiuniversity Research-Practice Partnership
Naseri, Md. Yunus; Snyder, Caitlin; Perez-Rivera, Katherine X.; Bhandari, Sambridhi; Workneh, Habtamu Alemu; Aryal, Niroj; Biswas, Gautam; Henrick, Erin C.; Hotchkiss, Erin R.; Jha, Manoj K.; Jiang, Steven; Kern, Emily C.; Lohani, Vinod K.; Marston, Landon T.; Vanags, Christopher P.; Xia, Kang (IEEE, 2025-02-01)
Contribution: This article discusses a research-practice partnership (RPP) where instructors from six undergraduate courses in three universities developed data science modules tailored to the needs of their respective disciplines, academic levels, and pedagogies. Background: STEM disciplines at universities are incorporating data science topics to meet employer demands for data science-savvy graduates. Integrating these topics into regular course materials can benefit students and instructors. However, instructors encounter challenges in integrating data science instruction into their course schedules. Research Questions: How did instructors from multiple engineering and science disciplines working in an RPP integrate data science into their undergraduate courses? Methodology: A multiple case study approach, with each course as a unit of analysis, was used to identify data science topics and integration approaches. Findings: Instructors designed their modules to meet specific course needs, utilizing them as primary or supplementary learning tools based on their course structure and pedagogy. They selected a subset of discipline-agnostic data science topics, such as generating and interpreting visualizations and conducting basic statistical analyses. Although instructors faced challenges due to varying data science skills of their students, they valued the control they had in integrating data science content into their courses. They were uncertain about whether the modules could be adopted for use by other instructors, specifically by those outside of their discipline, but they all believed the approach for developing and integrating data science could be adapted to student needs in different situations.
Widening access and participation: Exploring discourses in academic writing from the USA and the UK
Case, Jennifer M. (Springer, 2025-08-01)
Widening access and participation feature prominently in higher education policy globally, and there are now significant academic communities engaged with implementing and interrogating initiatives aimed towards these goals. Despite an apparent global homogeneity in the use of this terminology, this study explores whether differing structural arrangements for higher education in different contexts might lead to subtly different meanings for the same terms. To investigate this question, this article analyses the discourses on expanding access to higher education in the Anglo-American world, focusing on the USA and the UK. While both countries have been at the forefront of higher education research on widening access, they exhibit starkly different systems concerning their structures, governance, and levels of youth participation. Using a discourse analysis of an exemplar academic text from each context, the article identifies key differences in how widening access to higher education is conceptualized across these two settings. Two structural features that are shown to significantly influence the discourses on widening access are the centralized admissions system in the UK (compared to the USA), and the theoretically open 'system' of access in the USA by virtue of the non-selective community college sector.
ROPES Hub Research Brief: Strengthening STEM Pathways - Lessons Learned in S-STEM Industry Partnerships
Ott, Robin; Newcomer, James; Richardson, Amy Jo; Work, Anya; Knight, David B. (2025-08-25)
College Choice Decisions: An Evaluation of Perna's Conceptual Model Across Populations and Cultural Contexts
Sanchez Padilla, V.; Schibelius, Lisa (ASEE Conferences, 2024-06-23)
Understanding the factors that influence college choice decisions is critical for broadening participation in engineering programs and STEM education broadly. Studies have shown that college choice can be impacted by a host of factors beyond just interest, including socioeconomic status, contextual factors, institutional features, availability of resources, and cultural knowledge, to name a few. The conceptual model of college choice proposed by Perna is valuable in understanding the layers of choice, which can vary based on context and population. Perna's model outlines four major contexts that frame college choice decisions for the individual: 1) social, economic & policy, 2) higher education, 3) school and community, and 4) habitus, which is at the center. Studies that utilize Perna's model employ one of these contexts or a combination of them. This work reviews eleven studies that draw on Perna's model for understanding college choice decisions based on three research questions centered on both population and cultural context. These studies range from a host of contexts and populations to understand college choice, including K-12 students, undergraduate students, and historically underrepresented populations in engineering. Through our review of case studies and applied research, we compare constructs used in Perna's model, such as layers of habitus, school/community, higher education, and socioeconomic status to analyze studies according to a targeted population. We take a critical lens of the implementation of Perna's model for college choice and the ways in which particular populations as the focus of study highlight how minority and non-minority populations can be affected in their decisions to pursue a college degree. From our analysis, we encourage the readers to evaluate and consider elements from case studies to seek potential transferability or generalizations that this model brings based on context. Therefore, we recommend continuing to explore several lenses and factors using this model and complementing wherever possible with other frameworks or theories to deepen the perspective of college choice decisions and resultant conclusions and implications that can be drawn for certain populations.
Stakeholders' Perceptions about an Undergraduate Engineering Program Accreditation Process in Ecuador: Exploratory Work in Progress
Padilla, V. Sanchez; Case, Jennifer M.; Murzi, Homero; Espinal, Albert (ASEE Conferences, 2023-06-25)
FIWARE-Based Telemedicine Apps Modeling for Patients' Data Management
Aizaga-Villon, Xavier; Alarcon-Ballesteros, Karen; Cordova-Garcia, Jose; Sanchez Padilla, V.; Velasquez, Washington (IEEE, 2022)
Open-source technologies enable communication channels between web platforms and innovative architectures to provide reliable data distribution, in which healthcare applications can particularly benefit from them. This work presents a communication channel design to improve the user experience about telemedicine apps, especially when patients are in remote locations while assuring their information using an innovative approach. The general purpose is to avoid users having to physically go to medical facilities by the correct data management related to their appointments and medical history. By preventing the attendance to healthcare facilities, patients do not expose themselves unnecessarily to viruses and bacteria. Therefore, this research includes a data communications model based on the FIWARE platform and cloud technologies for reliable user medical information distribution. The prototype is developed based on open-source technologies and registered the evaluation of different performance metrics that included cases scenarios in which administrators of healthcare centers configured options according to the availability of assets and informatics resources. The results show the effectiveness of the communication model under realistic conditions for encouraging the acceptance of telemedicine alternatives, especially when patients and medical staff present limitations regarding mobility.
Mobile App for the information management of pre-existing diseases towards preventing COVID-19 severity
Velasquez, Washington; Coronel, Romulo J.; Loayza, Anghelo A.; Padilla, V. Sanchez; Filian-Gomez, Margarita (IEEE, 2023)
World Health Organization (WHO) studies indicate that people with pre-existing diseases are prone to suffer the severity of the effects of COVID-19 in case of infection. This work presents a mobile application development through open-source software and machine learning techniques for the prediction of the COVID-19 severity in an individual based on pre-existing disease information. For the prediction of the severity and to determine the possibility that an individual ends up in an intensive care unit (ICU), we set a machine learning algorithm, which resulted in a higher probability of prediction when the user undergoes cases of pre-existing diseases, with an efficiency rate of 98 %. We carried out load and stress testing to verify the processing performance, battery consumption, startup latency, and maximum amount of user connections supported by the application, complemented with a wristband for individual's real-time monitoring to attain low battery consumption when using public cloud services and low-power technologies for the connection.
ROPES Hub Research Brief: Strengthening STEM Pathways - Lessons Learned in S-STEM Scholar Recruitment
Newcomer, James; Richardson, Amy Jo; Work, Anya; Knight, David B. (2025-08-04)
Characteristics of Authentic Construction Learning Experiences to Enable Accurate Consideration of Cost-Effective Alternatives
Patil, Karan R.; Ayer, Steven K.; McCord, Kieren H.; Perry, Logan A.; Wu, Wei; London, Jeremi S.; Kline, Andrew R. (MDPI, 2025-07-11)
Authentic learning opportunities that simulate full-scale design and construction using real materials provide valuable experiential learning environments for construction and civil engineering students by challenging students to apply building concepts in practical settings. These activities challenge students to apply theoretical concepts in a realistic, hands-on context. However, the excessive cost of real building materials required for this mode of education limits access to the vast majority of students. As a result, educational researchers have explored potential alternatives to provide cost-effective experiential learning through activities using mock-up materials (e.g., plastic straws and popsicle sticks) and a simulation of experiences using immersive technologies (e.g., virtual reality or augmented reality). While some of these alternatives approximate the environment and others provide physical interaction with mock-up materials, the lack of authenticity in the building materials used introduces some apparent differences between the “authentic” learning environments and their cost-effective approximations. Therefore, this research aims to identify the learning processes reported by students and faculty who participated in authentic learning experiences to understand the ways in which this mode of education offers unique value to construction education. Their interview responses illustrated characteristics of authentic learning experiences that were believed to be critical to the learning process, some of which included working in groups; interdisciplinary participants; and the use of real construction materials. Although some of these characteristics are intrinsically linked to the use of real materials, others do not explicitly refer to interaction with real materials. This may point to specific aspects of authentic learning that educational researchers can replicate or enhance to provide cost-effective learning environments, such as virtual or augmented reality. The contribution of this paper is in identifying the characteristics of authentic learning experiences that may guide educational investment and research innovations that aim to replicate some of these learning experiences through more accessible learning environments.
Industry Members' Perceptions About ABET-Based Accreditation: An Exploratory Study in a Developing Country
Padilla, V. Sanchez; Espinal, Albert; Case, Jennifer M.; Cordova-Garcia, Jose; Murzi, Homero (IEEE, 2024-10)
Contribution: This study explores industry members' perceptions about the ABET-based accreditation in a developing country, using the case study of a program in a publicly funded polytechnic university in Ecuador. Background: Engineering programs often seek international accreditations to enhance the education quality, align with the global standards or gain academic reputation. ABET-based accreditation originates in United States, and thus presents some challenges for institutions in developing countries. Intended Outcomes: This study aimed to investigate the significance of international academic accreditation, as seen through the perspective of industry members. It focused on identifying fundamental competencies valued by employers and aimed to provide insights for institutions in similar contexts. Application Design: The research employed an approach informed by a qualitative methodology, involving in-depth interviews with five industry members who had served on the advisory committee board of an engineering program from a higher education institution in Ecuador. Findings: The findings identified three main areas of competencies that the industry members value: communication skills for teamwork, a problem-solving orientation, and an ability for effective task planning. The study also showed that these industry members value international accreditation as a means for enhancing education quality and ensuring graduates develop the necessary skills and competencies, yet the overall awareness with their peers remains relatively low.
Queuing Delay Reduction based on Network Traffic Patterns: A Predictive QoS Framework For Point-To-Point Communications
Espinal, Albert; Padilla, V. Sanchez (Sciendo, 2025-04-01)
Ensuring optimal quality of service (QoS) in computer networks requires a detailed assessment of performance metrics, with data network queuing delay within intermediate devices being critical parameters. This paper presents a predictive Quality of Service (QoS) model designed to reduce queuing delays by analyzing traffic patterns in intermediate devices in point-to-point network connections. The proposed novel Length Packet Queuing (LPQ) model leverages packet length analysis to predict and manage queuing delays without relying on traditional packet marking mechanisms. Through Poisson distribution and polynomial regression models, network traffic patterns and queuing delays are estimated, respectively, demonstrating significant improvements of conventional QoS models. Simulations and experimental scenarios validated the LPQ model's effectiveness, showing lower delays through various network loads and traffic conditions. The results of this research highlight the potential of the novel LPQ model for enhancing QoS in hybrid networks, where user applications generate diverse packets.
Building Transdisciplinary Research and Curricula: A Model for Developing Cross-Disciplinary Communities Among Faculty in Higher Education
Amelink, Catherine T.; Nicewonger, Todd (MDPI, 2025-06-10)
Knowledge and problem-solving approaches that span disciplinary boundaries and involve diverse communities are foundational aspects of transdisciplinarity. Transdisciplinary approaches in research efforts are needed to address complex problems of global importance. At the same time education systems should be preparing graduates to enter the workforce with complex problem-solving skills. Students need to have learning experiences that allow for the acquisition of cross-disciplinary systematic reasoning if they are expected to engage in addressing these complex problems. Recent reports have underscored the need to create university structures and incentives that allow for dynamic and responsive approaches to this global need for transdisciplinary discovery and learning efforts; however, little is known about the efficacy of the approaches and models that have been implemented to create large-scale change in higher education and how they help in achieving transdisciplinary goals. Through an ethnographic case study analysis, this paper examines how a faculty-led community of practice model is being used to build transdisciplinary research capacity and transdisciplinary curricula at a Research I university. Given the unique nature of this transdisciplinary community of practice model, this qualitative and descriptive study sought to examine what elements of the model facilitated faculty participation in transdisciplinary research and curricular efforts. More specifically, this study intended to respond to recent calls to better understand the systematic approach that would need to be employed by higher education institutions if they are adequately engaging faculty in addressing complex problems in their research efforts, as well as engaging faculty in the adequate development of the future workforce through pedagogical transdisciplinary approaches. The findings indicate that the transdisciplinary community of practice model is useful for initially motivating and incentivizing faculty participation. The results also indicate that the inclusive internal support networks that were part of the model facilitated faculty engagement.
ROPES Hub Research Brief: Understanding Curricular Complexity for Engineering Transfer Students
Grote, Dustin; Knight, David B.; Richardson, Amy Jo (2025-05-28)
Exploring Student Perceptions of Capstone Design Outcomes
Lutz, Ben; Paretti, Marie C. (Tempus Publications, 2017)
Capstone design courses are pivotal in engineering curricula, and understanding and assessing the resultant learning is critical to both researchers and practitioners. While current scholarship does provide tools for such assessments, most are based on outcomes derived through research with faculty, administrators, and various industry stakeholders. As a result, students' self-reported learning gains have been largely overlooked. Addressing this gap, this paper presents a qualitative thematic analysis that explores student perceptions of capstone learning. Drawingon50semi-structured interviewswith 31 students from three different institutions, we describe four emergent themes: (1) Engineering Design Skills; (2) Teamwork and Communication; (3) Self-directed Learning Skills; and (4) Development of an Engineering Identity. These themes are generally consistent with current outcomes identified from other sources, but students' discussions also highlight areas of personal development that move beyond acquisition of technical and professional skills. That is, students' perceptions of their own learning in capstone reflect not only those outcomes currently desired by various stakeholders and accreditation bodies, but also outcomes that might be more subtle and less tangible than those demonstrated via traditional assessment approaches. Thus, we argue that in order to more meaningfully support student growth, both technical and professional, capstone faculty should incorporate opportunities to actively promote and provide evidence for the kinds of critical reflection that students engage in throughout the course.
Learning to Teach Engineering Capstone Design: An Analysis of Faculty Members' Experiences
Paretti, Marie C.; Murzi, Homero; Lutz, Benjamin; Menon, Maya; Schibelius, Lisa (Tempus Publications, 2024)
The credentials required to teach engineering at the university level vary widely around the world. In the U.S., though many universities ask for a statement of teaching philosophy as part of job applications, U.S. faculty members are rarely, if ever, required to have any form of pedagogical training or credentials, and little is known about how many, to what extent, or with what frequency engineering faculty members engage in such faculty development around teaching and pedagogy. This study draws on interview data from a larger project examining capstone teaching, asking three questions: (1) What do faculty members need to learn to teach the capstone course? (2) How do they gain this learning? and (3) How does learning vary based on engineering discipline? Analysis revealed seven learning foci and three sources of learning and examined the relationships between them. Findings suggest that beyond general strategies for course design, assessment, active learning, and student motivation, capstone faculty members need to develop teaching practices such as structuring and mentoring teams, and such learning needs to be grounded in current industry practices. Given the central role of capstone courses in preparing students for engineering practice, departments and programs may need to think more intentionally about how they prepare new faculty members for the capstone teaching role, including explicit support for professional development.
Earned Credit Could be Lost Credit
Richardson, Amy Jo; Knight, David B. (Sage, 2024-11-14)
Beginning the path to a bachelor’s degree in community college has the potential to be a more cost-effective higher education option. Previous research on transfer students has focused broadly on curriculum alignment, articulation policies, and academic advising in efforts to reduce credit loss. Credit loss can significantly impact transfer students and result in unnecessary time and costs for them. Minimal research quantifies and visualizes credit loss or explains in detail how and why it occurs throughout students’ entire education trajectories. This study visualizes credit loss for bachelor’s programs seeking engineering transfer students who began at in-state community colleges using data from the sending and receiving institutions. Findings revealed that credit loss can occur throughout the entire degree pathway, including high school dual enrollment and advanced placement credits to community college credits. This work has implications for informing degree pathways and policies that promote successful transfer and degree completion.

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