Collaborative Research: Assessing the Effect of Contextual Exercises on Student Adoption of Expert CAD Modeling Techniques

这个工程教育研究项目旨在了解专家如何在计算机辅助设计（CAD）中对工程产品和系统进行建模。通过从设计和使用CAD工具的行业中汲取专业知识，该项目将研究如何教授学生CAD技能，以便在CAD平台之间轻松转换，从而帮助创建更有效的工程劳动力。这个项目更广泛的意义和重要性源于这样一个事实，即计算机辅助设计是许多工程学科的基本技能，在这些学科中，学生被期望成为CAD专家。该项目还招收了一所以少数族裔为主的大学的学生，以确保研究结果可以广泛应用于广泛的工程项目。该项目与NSF的战略目标重叠，即通过培养具有新能力和专业知识的工程人才来改变前沿。此外，通过支持创新学习系统的发展，NSF实现了为社会创新的目标。

This engineering education research project seeks to understand how experts model engineered products and system in computer aided design (CAD). By drawing from expertise from industry that both design and uses CAD tools, the project will investigate how to teach students CAD skills that can readily transfer between CAD platforms, thus helping create a more effective engineering workforce.The broader significance and importance of this project stems from the fact that computer aided design is a fundamental skill in many engineering disciplines, where students are expected to become CAD experts. The project also engages students from a predominately minority institution in order to make sure the findings can be broadly applied across a wide spectrum of engineering programs. This project overlaps with NSF's strategic goals of transforming the frontiers through preparation of an engineering workforce with new capabilities and expertise. Additionally NSF's goal of innovating for society is enabled by supporting the development of innovative learning systems.