Designing for the Next
Generation of Engineers
Keywords: first-year engineering,
design, community outreach,
educating at scale
Allison Godwin
Assistant Professor
Engineering
Purdue University
[email protected]
Why?
Project for First-year Engineering students to design and build exhibits that are engaging as
well as educational for elementary and middle school students on STEM-related topics for a
local science center, Imagination Station. This context does not require significant technical
expertise, but provides a community-centered design opportunity.
Learning Objectives Related to Design
• Hands-on design experience for a real client
• Learning objectives are tied to the design cycle
• Final deliverable includes written and oral
communication
When?
Project
developed
with a focus
on upcycling
Final projects
evaluated
Fall 2015
Data collected
via survey and
CATME tool to
assess project
Second round of project
implementation in First-year
Engineering
Fall 2016
Debrief with Imagination
Station director. Focus of
project shifted to take-home
activity and scale up exhibit
Timeline for the past two years of First-year Engineering (Fall 2015 and Fall 2016). This
community-project has been implemented into the 2-credit studio style course. The
design portion of the course is approximately 40% of the focus of this class. The first
time it was implemented, the project focused on developing exhibits from upcycled
materials. In the current form, based on feedback from the project direct, the focus is
on teaching children ages 9-12 about space as a theme.
Where?
This project is embedded into two concurrent
sections of ENGR 131 (the first required
engineering course of First-year Engineering)
at Purdue University. Each semester 120
students in each section (240 total) are placed
into teams of 4 for the entire semester to work
on various projects. Students spend 9 classes
(4.5 weeks in the semester) working on this
project. Winning designs are built at
Imagination Station through volunteer help.
120 students
30 teams of four
2 sections
What?
Students navigate through seven design
milestones to document their progress. During
class, students receive real-time feedback on their
work using rubrics I designed from the instructor
and teaching assistants to ensure that students
are on the right track and have guidance on what
is and is not feasible in their design process. The
project culminates in a Shark Tank-style pitch to
the client presenting the features of the exhibit,
evidence to support how it meets the design
criteria, and a value proposition for the design to
be included in the science center. The best
projects are constructed in the science center and
provide ways to improve both the student
experience in ENGR 131 at Purdue as well as local
elementary and middle school students who may
learn about engineering for the first time at this
science center.
Our offer is unique because it not only
explains how trains work, a common
interest of children, but how the way
that trains work has evolved with
scientific discoveries within mechanical
engineering over time.
Challenges
Impact
Prognosis?
Five question survey on student interest and engagement with an
open-ended reflection prompt on their interest in the class each day to
track which activities are engaging for students and which activities
could be improved - systematic reduction of design concepts using
weighted benchmarking and gathering evidence for the quality of
the final design
Comprehensive Assessment of Team Member
Effectiveness tool to understand how well the team is
functioning throughout this process and intervene in
teams with conflict early on in the project
• Giving real-time feedback to 120
students
• Providing authentic as well as safe
prototyping
• Imagination Station director is looking
for students to “think bigger” in design.
• Time burden for instructor and director
is high
• Finding children to test prototypes
• How do you do educational innovation “at
scale?”
• Are there tools to improve feedback
mechanisms?
• How can I make problematic activities from
data collected more engaging and of high
quality?
Your Help