Influence of Collaborative Curriculum Design on Educational Beliefs, Communities of Practitioners, and Classroom Practice in Transportation Engineering Education
Publication: Journal of Professional Issues in Engineering Education and Practice
Volume 140, Issue 3
Abstract
The development and widespread implementation of best practices in transportation engineering classrooms is important in attracting and retaining the next generation of transportation engineers. Engineering education professionals have uncovered many best practices in the field; however, the process of effectively disseminating and ultimately achieving the widespread adoption of these best practices by others is not yet well understood. Sixty participants, including faculty members, Ph.D. students, and public-sector employees, attended a transportation engineering education workshop convened in Seattle to promote the collaborative development and adoption of active learning and conceptual exercises in the introduction to transportation engineering class. Participant assessments were conducted in the form of presurvey, postsurvey, and follow-up survey. Results showed immediately positive shifts in participant beliefs about the importance of active learning and conceptual exercises, with declines during the follow-up period, an increased density and connectivity of curriculum-development networks, and extensive reports of valuable experiences and influences from the workshop.
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Acknowledgments
This material is based on work supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant No. DUE-1235896. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation. The work of Dr. Hurwitz also was funded by the Oregon Transportation Research and Education Consortium (OTREC) with matching funds from Oregon State University. The workshop organizing committee included Andrea Bill and Michael Kyte in addition to paper authors David Hurwitz, Shane Brown, Rhonda Young, Kevin Heaslip, Kristen Sanford Bernhardt, and Rod Turochy. We gratefully acknowledge the commitment and contributions of the workshop participants and the graduate students who contributed to the workshop at all levels.
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Published In
Journal of Professional Issues in Engineering Education and Practice
Volume 140 • Issue 3 • July 2014
Copyright
© 2013 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: May 9, 2013
Accepted: Nov 4, 2013
Published online: Dec 13, 2013
Discussion open until: May 13, 2014
Published in print: Jul 1, 2014
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