Integrating Experiemental Techniques/An Inquiry-Based Laboratory Approach to Teaching

混凝土的性能取决于化学和加工，以及由此产生的材料的微观结构和性能；然而，土木工程专业的本科生不会接触到发展这些关系的实验室。为了让学生有机会发现这种复杂材料的多样性并最终了解其性能，提供相关的实验室经验和课堂教学至关重要。该项目为设备提供资金，涉及混凝土材料科学和工程的三个基本领域：(L)水化，(2)流动特性，和(3)运输特性。与现有的机械测试设施相结合，从教学和基于内容的角度来看，新的实验室成为一种全新的本科生体验，它汇集了化学、加工、微观结构、耐久性和机械性能方面的关键问题。这个项目的目标是：(1)让学生参与揭示混凝土的化学、加工、微观结构和性能之间关系的实验室活动；(2)将课程内容从被动的讲授教学转变为主动的动手探究式实验室活动；(3)将设计、规划、实施和分析的要素纳入实验室，而不是循序渐进的后续指导练习；(4)允许学生指导自己的实验室体验，从而每个学生可以进行不同的实验。(5)促进学生之间的合作，通过将多个单独实验的结果合并为一个累积的更大整体来扩大知识库，以及(6)用综合技术的方法取代传统的以单一技术为特色的离散实验室活动，并说明实验方法之间的关系以及如何共同解释这些结果。

The performance of concrete depends on chemistry and processing and the resulting microstructure and properties of the material; yet, undergraduate civil engineering students are not exposed to laboratories that develop these relationships. For students to have the opportunity to discover the diversity and ultimately come to understand performance of this complex material, it is critical to provide relevant laboratory experiences as well as classroom instruction. This project provides funding for equipment that addresses three basic areas of concrete materials science and engineering: (l) hydration, (2) flow properties, and (3) transport properties. In combination with existing mechanical testing facilities, the new laboratory becomes a novel undergraduate experience, both from a pedagogical and content-based perspective, which brings together key issues in chemistry, processing, microstructure, durability, and mechanical performance. The goals of this project are: (1) to engage students in laboratory activities that reveal the relationship among chemistry, processing, microstructure, and performance of concrete, (2) to shift course content from passive lecture-based teaching to active hands-on inquiry-based laboratory activities, (3) to incorporate into the laboratories elements of design, planning, implementation, and analysis rather than step-by-step follow-the-instruction exercises, (4) to permit students to direct their own laboratory experiences whereby each student may perform different experiments, (5) to promote collaboration among students to expand the knowledge base by combining the results of many individual experiments into a cumulative greater whole, and (6) to replace traditional discrete laboratory activities that feature single techniques with a methodology that integrates techniques and illustrates the relationships among experimental methods and how to interpret such results collectively.