Infusing a Concurrent Engineering Model into Academia

该项目正在利用并行工程原理重新设计未来的机械师、技术员和工程师在社区大学接受教育的方式。门罗社区学院正在为所有三个学科(机械加工、工程技术和工程科学)的学生设计三门入门级核心课程，将它们结合在一起。这些课程使学生对如何设计和构建工程系统有一个基本的了解。这三门课程的九个模块既包括在线学习，也包括传统的课堂和实验教学。一门跨学科的顶石设计课程正在为所有三个专业的学生在最后一个学期的小规模跨学科团队创建。其他项目活动包括学生竞赛和与当地公司的合作研究。该项目还在制作和测试价格低廉的商业学生工具包，包括所需的硬件和课程材料。项目评估包括评估跨学科方法对留住学生的影响，以及学习单元的有效性和网络内容的质量。课程课程通过纽约州立大学社区学院教务委员会和每个适用校园的首席学术官员分发。课程硬件和网络链接可以在网上公开获取，学生工具包也可以通过商业渠道获得。进一步的传播包括在国家工程教育会议上的介绍和期刊论文的提交。该项目将加深我们对跨学科留学生方法的理解。

The project is redesigning the way in which future machinists, technologists, and engineers are educated at community colleges by using concurrent engineering principles. Three entry level core courses at Monroe Community College are being designed for students from all three disciplines (machining, engineering technology, and engineering science) to take them together. These courses enable the student to gain a basic understanding of how to design and build engineering systems. The nine modules in the three courses include both online learning and traditional class and lab instruction. An interdisciplinary capstone design course is being created for small, interdisciplinary teams of students in their final semester from all three majors. Additional project activities include a student competition and collaborative research with a local company. The project is also creating and testing low priced, commercially available student kits, including the hardware and course materials required.Project evaluation includes an assessment of the impact of the interdisciplinary approach on student retention as well as the effectiveness of the learning modules and the quality of the web-based content. Course curriculum is distributed through the SUNY Faculty Council of Community Colleges and chief academic officers at each applicable campus. Course hardware and web links are publicly accessible on-line and the student kits are made commercially available. Further dissemination includes presentations at national engineering education conferences and journal article submissions. The project will enhance our understanding of the interdisciplinary approach on student retention.