Learning and Teaching Processes in Electrical Engineering Education

The modification of the various engineering curricula to permit adequate preparation of students in a four-year program for careers in a rapidly changing technology of ever increasing complexity is one of the chief concerns of the engineering educator. It is generally felt that a more scientifically oriented curriculum than has been customary in the past will provide a more efficient and more effective undergraduate program. The actual realization of increased efficiency and effectiveness requires a great deal of careful thought and some bold experimentation with curricula. Some considerations in this connection are set forth. In particular, it is held that unification of subject matter, whenever possible, is of primary importance in realizing greater efficiency and effectiveness, and means whereby the scientific bases for engineering may be employed to achieve unity are suggested. In this connection certain tasks that belong uniquely to the teacher are pointed out..     

Food‐Based Science Curriculum Increases 4th Graders Multidisciplinary Science Knowledge

Health professionals and policymakers are asking educators to place more emphasis on food and nutrition education. Integrating these topics into science curricula using hand‐on, food‐based activities may strengthen students’ understanding of science concepts. The Food, Math, and Science Teaching Enhancement Resource (FoodMASTER) Initiative is a compilation of programs aimed at using food as a tool to teach mathematics and science. Previous studies have shown that students experiencing the FoodMASTER curriculum were very excited about the activities, became increasingly interested in the subject matter of food, and were able to conduct scientific observations. The purpose of this study was to: (1) assess 4th graders food‐related multidisciplinary science knowledge, and (2) compare gains in food‐related science knowledge after implementation of an integrated, food‐based curriculum. During the 2009–2010 school year, FoodMASTER researchers implemented a hands‐on, food‐based intermediate curriculum in eighteen 4th grade classrooms in Ohio (n = 9) and North Carolina (n = 9). Sixteen classrooms in Ohio (n = 8) and North Carolina (n = 8), following their standard science curricula, served as comparison classrooms. Students completed a researcher‐developed science knowledge exam, consisting of 13 multiple‐choice questions administered pre‐ and post‐test. Only subjects with pre‐ and post‐test scores were entered into the sample (Intervention n = 343; Control n = 237). No significant differences were observed between groups at pre‐test. At post‐test, the intervention group scored (9.95 ± 2.00) significantly higher (p = 0.000) than the control group (8.84 ± 2.37) on a 13‐point scale. These findings suggest the FoodMASTER intermediate curriculum is more effective than a standard science curriculum in increasing students’ multidisciplinary science knowledge related to food.     

PUBLIC TWO‐YEAR COLLEGE FUNDING AND PROGRAM PATTERNS

Several sets of data were employed in efforts to address the major concerns of this study. The first was a national survey of state directors of two‐year colleges. From them basic data regarding the distribution of funding for public two‐year college institutions on a state‐by‐state basis was obtained. It was found that 57% of funding nationally was derived from state legislatures, 17% from local or regional governments, 14% from tuition, and 10% from other sources. Also computed from the survey data was the distribution of full‐time enrollments by generic program. It was found that about half of the full‐time students were enrolled in occupational programs.

Using selected national data, the cost per credit‐hour for 1979‐1980 full‐time students was computed to be $115 if 24 credit‐hours are considered a full‐time load, and $92 using 30 credit‐hours as a full‐time load.

Also determined were the correlations between selected population data and certain public two‐year college demographics. Strong positive relationships were found between state populations, number of colleges in the state, and the magnitude of the states’ gross weights (fraction of total national full‐time enrollments found in that state).     

Who benefits from a country’s scientific research?

When a publication is cited it generates a benefit. Through the country affiliations of the citing authors, it is possible to work upwards, tracing the countries that benefit from results produced in a national research system. In this work we take the knowledge flow from Italy as an example. We develop a methodology for examination of how the knowledge flows vary across fields, in each beneficiary country. We also measure the field comparative advantage of countries in benefiting from Italian research. The results from this method can inform bilateral research collaboration policies.     

Situational specificity makes the difference in assessment of youth behavior disorders

In this article we examine the ability of contextual information to enhance assessment of behavior problems in schools. Capitalizing on the multisituational structure of the Adjustment Scales for Children and Adolescents, exploratory and confirmatory analyses with a representative national sample (N = 1,400, ages 5–17 years) revealed three unique and reliable behavioral situtypes (problems in Peer Contexts, Academic Contexts, and Teacher Contexts). The situtypes were found internally consistent and structurally generalizable across age, sex, and ethnicity. Multiple logistic and discriminant analyses confirmed the ability of the situtypes to identify accurately those youth independently diagnosed as emotionally disturbed, as well as distinguish those diagnosed as learning disabled. Information gleaned from the situtypes was substantially better able than conventional psychopathology syndromes (attention‐deficit hyperactivity, oppositional defiance, etc.) to forecast later academic achievement. Implications for informing motivation and intervention are discussed. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Psychol Schs 42: 121–136, 2005.     

Art and Science: The Aesthetic Education of the Emotions and Reason

This paper explores the link between science and art in Charles Darwin (1809–1882) and Paul Gauguin (1848–1903). More specifically, its aim is to clarify the relations between science as the investigation of ‘truths’ that people hold at a particular time, on the one hand, and art as carrier of these truths into the ‘emotional’ realm of the people, on the other. The goal is simple; as is the method. The goal is to provide a way of teaching the humanities based on the aesthetic.[1] The method uses the figures chosen to act as a foil to each other, so that what seems to be a parallel of contrasts between Darwin and Gauguin, is, in fact, an equilibrium of the sensual and the rational. [2] The specific point that the paper argues is this: if teaching the humanities is tied pedagogically to art, then science, as well as the other disciplines, will join the curriculum in an integral way so as to contribute to the complete education of the student: physical, intellectual, moral, and spiritual. The first section of the paper develops the education of reason or mind in the life and thoughts of Charles Darwin. My remarks here will be limited primarily, but not exclusively, to his autobiography. The second part clarifies the education of the senses in the thoughts of Paul Gauguin.