Using Concept Maps to Explore the Impacts of a Learning-Cycle-Based Sustainability Module Implemented in Two Institutional Contexts
Publication: Journal of Professional Issues in Engineering Education and Practice
Volume 143, Issue 2
Abstract
Because engineers are responsible for the design phase of projects where decisions impacting sustainability are most effectively made, it is important to ensure that students are equipped with the necessary conceptual knowledge to engage in sustainable design. Consequently, undergraduate engineering curricula are being reformed to address sustainability-related concepts and topics. In addition, previous work has demonstrated that beyond curricular content, innovative pedagogical approaches are also important for enhancing student learning. The goal of this work was to examine the impact of a learning-cycle-based sustainability module on students’ conceptual understanding of sustainability in two varying institutional contexts. The module was integrated into the first course in the capstone design sequence at James Madison University, where sustainability was incorporated throughout the curriculum. The module was also integrated into a capstone design course at the Georgia Institute of Technology, where sustainability was primarily incorporated into an earlier, single course. Based on concept map assessments, significant improvements in conceptual sustainability knowledge were demonstrated for both groups of students. However, learning gains were more significant for students from James Madison University, likely because the module was effectively integrated into the design course and sustainability was emphasized in other course activities. Overall, this study provides theoretically grounded, empirically tested learning materials and assessment methods that can be adapted for other engineering courses.
Get full access to this article
View all available purchase options and get full access to this article.
Acknowledgments
Partial support for this study was provided by NSF #1463865 Developing and Assessing Engineering Students’ Cognitive Flexibility in the Domain of Sustainable Design. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.
References
Archibald, M., Reuber, M., and Allison, B. (2002). “Reconciling well-defined capstone objectives and criteria with requirements for industry involvement.” Proc., American Society for Engineering Education Annual Conf. and Exposition, American Society for Engineering Education, Washington, DC.
ASCE. (2006). “Code of ethics.” 〈http://www.asce.org/code-of-ethics/〉 (Apr. 22, 2016).
Barrella, E., and Watson, M. K. (2015). “Comparing the outcomes of horizontal and vertical integration of sustainability content into engineering curricula using concept maps.” New developments in engineering education for sustainable development, W. Leal and S. Nesbit, eds., Springer, Cham, Switzerland.
Barth, M., and Timm, J. M. (2011). “Higher education for sustainable development: Students’ perspectives on an innovative approach to educational change.” J. Social Sci., 7(1), 13–23.
Besterfield-Sacre, M., Gerchak, J., Lyons, M. R., Shuman, L. J., and Wolfe, H. (2004). “Scoring concept maps: An integrated rubric for assessing engineering education.” J. Eng. Educ., 93(2), 105–115.
Bhamra, T., and Lofthouse, V. (2007). Design for sustainability: A practical approach, Gower Publishing, Hampshire, U.K.
Bhandari, A., Ong, S., and Steward, B. (2011). “Student learning in a multidisciplinary sustainable engineering course.” J. Prof. Issues Eng. Educ. Pract., 86–93.
Bielefeldt, A. (2011). “Incorporating a sustainability module into first-year courses for civil and environmental engineering students.” J. Prof. Issues Eng. Educ. Pract., 78–85.
Borrego, M., Newswander, C. B., McNair, L. D., McGinnis, S., and Paretti, M. C. (2009). “Using concept maps to assess interdisciplinary integration of green engineering knowledge.” Adv. Eng. Educ., 1(3), 1–26.
Burian, S. J., and Reynolds, S. K. (2014). “Using the EnvisionTM sustainable infrastructure rating system in a civil engineering capstone design course.” Proc., American Society for Engineering Education Annual Conf. and Exposition, American Society for Engineering Education, Washington, DC.
Cañas, A. J., et al. (2004). “CmapTools: A knowledge modeling and sharing environment.” Proc., 2nd Int. Conf. on Concept Mapping.
Carew, A. L., and Mitchel, C. A. (2008). “Teaching sustainability as a contested concept: Captializing on variation in engineering educators’ conceptions of environmental, social, and economic sustainability.” J. Clean. Prod., 16(1), 105–115.
Ceulemans, K., and De Prins, M. (2010). “Teacher’s manual and method for SD integration in curricula.” J. Clean. Prod., 18(7), 645–651.
Coral, J. S. (2009). “Engineering education for a sustainable future.” Ph.D. dissertation, Universitat Politecnica de Catalunya, Barcelona, Spain.
Creswell, J. W. (2013). Research design: Qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods approaches, 4th Ed., Sage Publications, Washington, DC.
deMonsabert, S., and Miller, L. (2009). “Greening the capstone.” Proc., American Society for Engineering Education Annual Conf. and Exposition, American Society for Engineering Education, Washington, DC.
Dym, C. L., Agogino, A. M., Eris, O., Frey, D. D., and Leifer, L. J. (2005). “Engineering design thinking, teaching, and learning.” J. Eng. Educ., 94(1), 103–120.
El-Sayed, M. E., and El-Sayed, J. A. (2013). “Integration of environmental sustainability with capstone experience.” Proc., American Society for Engineering Education Annual Conf. and Exposition, American Society for Engineering Education, Washington, DC.
Feinberg, J. (2008). “Wordle [Web application].” 〈http://www.wordle.net〉.
Gebre, N. A. (2011). “For the client: The push for sustainability.” 〈http://www.nspe.org/resources/pe-magazine/client-push-sustainability〉 (Apr. 25, 2016).
Harb, J. N., Durrant, S. O., and Terry, R. E. (1993). “Use of the Kolb learning cycle and the 4MAT system in engineering education.” J. Eng. Educ., 82(2), 70–77.
Hayes, A. F., and Krippendorff, K. (2007). “Answering the call for a standard reliability measure for coding data.” Commun. Methods Measures, 1(1), 77–89.
Huynh, N., Caicedo, J. M., Pierce, C. E., and Gantt, J. W. (2013). “Combining in-class design problems and EFFECTs to stimulate critical thinking skills.” Proc., American Society for Engineering Education Annual Conf. and Exposition, American Society for Engineering Education, Washington, DC.
Kagawa, F. (2007). “Dissonance in students’ perceptions of sustainable development and sustainability: Implications for curriculum change.” Int. J. Sust. Higher Ed., 8(3), 317–338.
Kander, R. (2008). “Building a new kind of engineering degree at James Madison University.” Proc., American Society for Engineering Education Annual Conf. and Exposition, American Society for Engineering Education, Washington, DC.
Kelly, B. (2008). Sustainability in engineering education and ethics, Connexions.
Kevern, J. (2011). “Green building and sustainable infrastructure: Sustainability education for civil engineers.” J. Prof. Issues Eng. Educ. Pract., 107–112.
Kleitman, S., and Stankov, L. (2001). “Ecological and person-oriented aspects of metacognitive processes in test-taking.” Appl. Cognit. Psychol., 15(3), 321–341.
Kolb, D. A. (1984). Experiential learning: Experience as the source of learning and development, Prentice-Hall, Englewood Cliffs, NJ.
Kolb, D. A., Boyatzis, R. E., and Mainemelis, C. (2000). Experiential learning theory: Previous research and new directions, Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Mahwah, NJ.
Krippendorff, K. (2004). Content analysis: An introduction to its methodology, Sage Publications, Thousand Oaks, CA.
Lourdel, N., Gondran, N., Laforest, V., Debray, B., and Brodhag, C. (2007). “Sustainable development cognitive map: A new method of evaluating student understanding.” Int. J. Sustainable High. Educ., 8(2), 170–182.
Lozano, R. (2008). “Envisioning sustainability three-dimensionally.” J. Clean. Prod., 16(17), 1838–1846.
Lozano, R., and Peattie, K. (2011). “Assessing Cardiff University’s curricula contribution to sustainable development using the system.” J. Educ. Sustainable Dev., 5(1), 115–128.
Lundeberg, M. A., Fox, P. W., Brown, A. C., and Elbedour, S. (2000). “Cultural influences on confidence: Country and gender.” J. Educ. Psychol., 92(1), 152–159.
Lutz, B. D., Ekoniak, M., Paretti, M. C., and Smith, C. S. (2015). “Student perspectives on capstone design learning.” Proc., American Society for Engineering Education Annual Conf. and Exposition, American Society for Engineering Education, Washington, DC.
Martin, S. (2005). “Sustainability, systems thinking and professional practice.” Syst. Pract. Action Res., 18(2), 163–171.
Nagel, R., Gipson, K., Spindel, J., and Barrella, E. (2013). “Blending sustainable design, systems thinking, and engineering science concepts in an introductory engineering course.” Proc., American Society for Engineering Education Annual Conf. and Exposition, American Society for Engineering Education, Washington, DC.
Novak, J. D., and Canas, A. J. (2006). “The theory underlying concept maps and how to construct them.” 〈http://cmap.ihmc.us/docs/theory-of-concept-maps〉 (Apr. 28, 2016).
Novak, J. D., and Gowin, D. B. (1984). Learning how to learn, Cambridge University Press, New York.
Pawley, A. L., et al. (2014). “Assessing sustainability knowledge: A framework of concepts.” Proc., American Society for Engineering Education Annual Conf. and Exposition, American Society for Engineering Education, Washington, DC.
Pierrakos, O., Kander, R., Pappas, E., and Prins, R. (2008). “An innovative engineering curriculum at James Madison University: Transcending disciplinary boundaries through innovative problem based learning practices.” Proc., American Society of Mechanical Engineers International Mechanical Engineering Congress and Exposition, American Society of Mechanical Engineers, New York.
Price, J. M., et al. (2012). “Integrating sustainability principles in undergraduate engineering curriculum—A home for environmentally responsible engineering.” Proc., American Society for Engineering Education Annual Conf. and Exposition, American Society for Engineering Education, Washington, DC.
Prince, M. (2004). “Does active learning work? A review of the research.” J. Eng. Educ., 93(3), 223–231.
Prince, M. J., and Felder, R. M. (2006). “Inductive teaching and learning methods: Definitions, comparisons, and research bases.” J. Eng. Educ., 95(2), 123–138.
Ruiz-Primo, A. (2000). “On the use of concept maps as an assessment tool in science: What we have learned so far.” Revista Electrónica de Investigación Educativa, 2(1), 29–53.
Salzmann, O., Ionescu-Somers, A., and Steger, U. (2005). “The business case for corporate sustainability: Literature review and research options.” Eur. Manage. J., 23(1), 27–36.
Sattler, M. L., Weatherton, Y. P., Mattingly, S. P., Chen, V. C. P., Mattingly, S. P., and Rogers, K. J. (2011). “Engineering sustainable civil engineers.” Proc., American Society for Engineering Education Annual Conf. and Exposition, American Society for Engineering Education, Washington, DC.
Segalàs, J., Ferrer-Balas, D., and Mulder, K. F. (2008). “Conceptual maps: Measuring learning processes of engineering students concerning sustainable development.” Eur. J. Eng. Educ., 33(3), 297–306.
Segalàs, J., Mulder, K. F., and Ferrer-Balas, D. (2012). “What do EESD “experts” think sustainability is? Which pedagogy is suitable to learn it?: Results from interviews and Cmaps analysis gathered at EESD 2008.” Int. J. Sustainable High. Educ., 13(3), 293–304.
Shadish, W. R., Cook, T. D., and Campbell, D. T. (2002). Experimental and quasi-experimental designs for genearlized causal inference, Houghton Mifflin, Boston.
Siddiqui, M. K., et al. (2012). “Integrating sustainability in the curriculum through capstone projects: A case study.” Proc., American Society for Engineering Education Annual Conf. and Exposition, American Society for Engineering Education, Washington, DC.
Sisiopiku, V., Peters, R. W., and Ramadan, O. E. (2015). “Introducing sustainability into the civil engineering curriculum.” Proc., American Society for Engineering Education Annual Conf. and Exposition, American Society for Engineering Education, Washington, DC.
Skerlos, S. J., Morrow, W., and Michalek, J. (2006). “Sustainable design engineering and science: Selected challenges and case studies.” Sustainability Sci. Eng., 1, 467–515.
Svinicki, M. D., and Dixon, N. M. (1987). “The Kolb model modified for classroom activities.” College Teach., 35(4), 141–146.
Thomas, J. (2012). “Engineering education: The key to a sustainable future.” Technol. Eng. Teacher, 72(3), 18–23.
Thompson, G. (2002). “Status and prospects of sustainable engineering education in some American universities.” Proc., Engineering Education in Sustainable Development, Delft Univ. of Technology, Delft, Netherlands.
Tuncer, G. (2008). “University students’ perception on sustainable development: A case study from Turkey.” Int. Res. Geograph. Environ. Educ., 17(3), 212–226.
Turns, J., Atman, C., and Adams, R. (2000). “Concept maps for engineering education: A cognitively motivated tool supporting varied assessment functions.” IEEE Trans. Educ., 43(2), 164–173.
United Nations. (2002). “Johannesburg declaration on sustainable development.” 〈http://www.un-documents.net/jburgdec.htm〉 (Apr. 28, 2016).
Wallace, B. (2005). Becoming part of the solution: The engineer’s guide to sustainable development, American Council of Engineering Companies, Washington, DC.
Watson, M., Noyes, C., and Rodgers, M. (2013a). “Student perceptions of sustainability education in civil and environmental engineering at the Georgia Institute of Technology.” J. Prof. Issues Eng. Educ. Pract., 235–243.
Watson, M., Pelkey, J., Noyes, C., and Rodgers, M. (2014). “Use of concept maps to assess student sustainability knowledge.” Proc., American Society for Engineering Education Annual Conf. and Exposition, American Society for Engineering Education, Washington, DC.
Watson, M. K. (2013). “Assessment and improvement of sustainability education in civil and environmental engineering.” Ph.D. dissertation, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta.
Watson, M. K., Lozano, R., Noyes, C., and Rodgers, M. (2013b). “Assessing curricula contribution to sustainability more holistically: Experiences from the integration of curricula assessment and students’ perceptions at the Georgia Institute of Technology.” J. Clean. Prod., 61, 106–116.
Watson, M. K., Noyes, C., and Rodgers, M. (2012). “Development of a structured-inquiry module for teaching sustainability ‘around the cycle’.” Proc., American Society for Engineering Education Southeastern Section Conf., American Society for Engineering Education, Washington, DC.
Watson, M. K., Pelkey, J. G., Noyes, C., and Rodgers, M. O. (2016a). “Assessing conceptual knowledge using three concept map scoring methods.” J. Eng. Educ., 105(1), 118–146.
Watson, M. K., Pelkey, J. G., Noyes, C., and Rodgers, M. O. (2016b). “Assessing impacts of a learning-cycle-based module on students’ conceptual sustainability knowledge using concept maps and surveys.” J. Clean. Prod., 133, 544–556.
Yadav, A., Subedi, D., Lundberg, M. A., and Bunting, C. (2011). “Problem-based learning: Influence on students’ learning in an electrical engineering course.” J. Eng. Educ., 100(2), 253–280.
Yuan, D., Fraser, J. M., and Paudel, A. M. (2015). “Incorporating sustainable engineering design principles into senior design proposals.” Proc., American Society for Engineering Education Annual Conf. and Exposition, American Society for Engineering Education, Washington, DC.
Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Journal of Professional Issues in Engineering Education and Practice
Volume 143 • Issue 2 • April 2017
Copyright
© 2016 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Jan 31, 2016
Accepted: Jun 15, 2016
Published online: Jul 21, 2016
Discussion open until: Dec 21, 2016
Published in print: Apr 1, 2017
Authors
Metrics & Citations
Metrics
Citations
Download citation
If you have the appropriate software installed, you can download article citation data to the citation manager of your choice. Simply select your manager software from the list below and click Download.