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A PROJECT-DRIVEN FRESHMAN SUCCESS SEMINAR
Brenda Henry Groff1 and Carlos Pomalaza-Ráez2
Abstract  We have developed a required freshman success
course for students in the School of Engineering,
Technology, and Computer Science called ETCS 101Introduction to Engineering, Technology, and Computer
Science. Features of the course include multidisciplinary
projects of software and hardware nature, extensive use of
Internet and Web software tools, and a team-teaching
format. As the main project of this course, small teams of
students design, build, program, and test a mobile Robot
using LEGO parts, sensors, and the RCX controller. This is
a multidisciplinary, project-driven learning process that
encourages students to develop skills such as: problem
solving, teamwork, creativity, and logic. Objectives of the
course are to help students: 1) acquire sufficient computer
and personal development skills, 2) develop the right mental
attitude for academic success, and 3) find a successful
career path early in their studies.
obtaining a technical degree are strongly correlated with
retention [1]-[2].
While it is true that a number of students who enter a
particular program do not belong there, most of them are
highly motivated in earning a degree in a technical field. The
majority of the students who find difficulties with their
initial degree choice leave IPFW altogether with only a
small percentage exploring other programs within the School
of ETCS or pursuing different majors available in other
schools on campus. To address this situation we have
developed and implemented a high-tech freshman success
course, ETCS 101 - Introduction to Engineering,
Technology, and Computer Science that helps students
acquire sufficient computer and personal development skills,
and provides them with an introduction to several technical
disciplines, and timely academic counseling and career
information. Features of the course include multidisciplinary
projects of software and hardware nature, extensive use of
Web software tools, and a team-teaching format.
INTRODUCTION
Indiana University – Purdue University Fort Wayne (IPFW)
is located in the second largest city in Indiana and it is the
sixth largest public university in the state. Enrollment is
approximately 10,000 students. IPFW is a commuter
university (there is no on-campus student housing) with
many of the students attending classes on a part-time basis.
The average age is 27 years. The School of ETCS enrolls
around 1400 students and is comprised of five departments:
Civil & Architectural Engineering Technology, Computer
Science, Electrical & Computer Engineering Technology,
Engineering, and Manufacturing Technology. Certificate,
associate, bachelor, and master degree programs are offered
and awarded by Purdue University. Students are a mix of
traditional and non-traditional age students. Many of the
students who apply for the first time to any of the
departments of the School of ETCS are adults who have
been out of school for several years. These non-traditional
students usually hold part-time or full-time jobs in local
industry and are highly motivated in earning a degree in a
technical field, but their knowledge about the disciplines of
engineering, technology, and computer science is limited. A
large percentage of both traditional and non-traditional
students lack the proper mindset and computer skills for
success in both academic and career work in a technical
field. Computer skills and the right attitude towards
THE STUDENTS
To gain an insight in the background of the students and to
validate the premises under which the course was developed
a survey is conducted at the start of the semester. Students
are asked about their:
 choice of major,
 mathematical background,
 computer expertise,
 number of hours per week dedicated to work,
 number of hours per week dedicated to study,
 number of credits being taken,
 oral and written communication skills,
 ability to work with others,
 knowledge of professional ethical standards and world
affairs.
The results of this survey as well as the course
evaluations conducted at the end of the semester are used to
assess and update the course content. Since a major claim of
the course is its high-tech nature it is important to
continuously revise the nature and content of the projects to
address the perceived shortcomings in the background of the
students.
Brenda Henry Groff, Indiana University – Purdue University Fort Wayne, School of Engineering, Technology, and Computer Science, Fort Wayne, IN
46805, groff@ipfw.edu
2
Carlos Pomalaza-Ráez, Indiana University – Purdue University Fort Wayne, Department of Engineering, Fort Wayne, IN 46805, raez@ipfw.edu
1
American Society for Engineering Education
March 30, 2001 - Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN
2001 IL/IN Sectional Conference
1
Session #
Figure 1 shows the computer skills of the students
surveyed at the start of the Fall 2000 semester.
Time spent on campus (per week)
70
Number of Students
Computer Skills
Number of Students
120
100
80
60
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
40
>40 hrs
20 to 40 hrs
Just for classes
20
FIGURE. 3
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ETCS 101, FALL 2000 SURVEY
The survey results give strong support to one of the
hypotheses for the need of a course such as ETCS 101.
Students need to increase their computer skills in a positive
environment and they have to be given the chance and
means to interact more with each other.
THE PROJECTS
FIGURE. 1
Development of a Web Site
ETCS 101, FALL 2001
.
It is apparent from Figure 1 that the areas where the
students have the least background are in programming
languages and in Web page development. On the other hand
in these times and age most of them are very proficient in
the use of e-mail, word processing tools, and Web surfing.
Figure 2 summarizes the answers to the question of the
frequency of collaborative work with others.
Degree of collaborative work with others
Number of Students
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
some
regulary
never
FIGURE. 2
ETCS 101, FALL 2000 SURVEY
Figure 3 shows that the majority of the students only spend
time on campus to attend classes.
The objective of the first project is to provide students with
knowledge to become not just passive, but active competent
users of computers and resources available in local networks
and throughout the Internet. The integration of this new
technology creates a motivational atmosphere at the gateway
of the curricula [3]. To meet this objective, the format of the
first project is very structured. Students are given detailed
specifications on the amount (minimums and maximums) of
components (words, links, figures, etc.) that the Web pages
must have. The Web site has two main sections, a personal
information section and a professional information section.
Students are introduced to different types of software that
can be used to develop Web pages leaving it to their decision
to choose the one that best fits their individual situation.
Netscape Composer, MS Front Page, and Macromedia
Dreamweaver are samples of the software that students can
use to develop their Web site. This flexibility addresses two
issues: 1) students can work at home, at work, or while on
campus, 2) students who are very interested in the topic of
Web page development have the opportunity to learn and
work with powerful (albeit more complex) software tools
such as Macromedia Dreamweaver. Hands-on tutorial
sessions on the fundamentals of how to build a Web page are
provided and no programming is required for this project.
Figure 4 shows the home page developed by one of the
students who took the course in the Fall 2000 semester. The
page was developed using MS Front Page.
American Society for Engineering Education
March 30, 2001 - Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN
2001 IL/IN Sectional Conference
2
Session #
TABLE I
MEMBER ROLES
Team
Member
Manager
Role
 Oversees the team's activities
 When issues arise, negotiates a consensus

Material
Specialist



FIGURE. 4
A STUDENT’S HOMEPAGE
Once the students have acquired the basic knowledge on
how to write Web pages they are required to develop and
post other course work on their Web site. This work includes
an on-line resume and the laboratory journal of the second
project.
The Autonomous Mobile Robot
This is the main project of ETCS 101. Small teams of
students design, build, program, and test a mobile Robot
using LEGO parts, sensors, and the RCX controller. This is a
multidisciplinary, project driven learning process. It helps
students to develop skills such as: problem solving,
teamwork, creativity, and logic. By working on this project
students are introduced to:
 making iterative improvements
 working with systems
 working in teams
 modularity and abstraction
 feedback and control
 attention to aesthetics
 the value of simplicity and robustness
All students build and program the robot. However
additional responsibilities must be shared. Therefore, each
team consists of students with assigned roles. These roles,
shown in Table I, are decided at the beginning of the project
by meetings and discussions among the team members. The
quality of the personal web page (first project) is used to
gauge the students’ computer expertise. An effort is made to
combine experienced and novice students into a single team
of three or four members. This project has similar objectives
to the one described in [4] but the scope here is on a smaller
and simpler experience.
Webmaster


Information
Specialist

among the team members on how to
proceed
Ensures that the project is moving forward
on schedule
Tracks the use of the hardware, software,
building elements and other materials
Distributes materials
Keeps an inventory and makes sure
everyone stores the materials properly
Designs and builds the team’s web site
Records the week's work in the on-line
team journal
Collects and summarizes the information
for the project, making sure that this
information (papers, books, web pages,
etc.) is in order and the team members
know where they can find it
Building sets from the LEGO Challenger System are
used for this project. This project allows for each team to
develop their own design within a range of specifications.
These specifications include a maximum number of
components, such as light sensors, gear motors, and resource
bricks and one RCX controller (Figure 5).
FIGURE. 5
THE RCX MICROCOMPUTER
In the first phase of the project, the teams design and
build their robots. In the second phase, the teams program
the robots to perform the specified tasks. ROBOLAB, an
icon-based software tool (Figure 6) is used to write the
American Society for Engineering Education
March 30, 2001 - Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN
2001 IL/IN Sectional Conference
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Session #
programs that are then downloaded to the robot controller
via an infrared link.
FIGURE. 8
WEB PROJECT JOURNAL
FIGURE. 6
ROBOLAB INVENTOR SOFTWARE
The third phase of this project is the demonstration of
each team’s robot (Figure 7). On the demonstration day, the
teams show how their robots perform their assignments in
the Engineering and Technology Building’s main lobby. In
this way, not only students taking the course, but also other
students, faculty, and staff have the opportunity to appreciate
this project.
Whereas the scope and depth of robotics in ETCS 101 is
less than a formal one semester robotics course, its inclusion
in this freshman success course aimed at engineering and
technology students has been very positive. Student
assessments at the end of the semester consistently report
that what they have enjoyed most in the course is the mobile
robot project and through it, how to work as a team (Figure
9). These results are similar to the ones reported in [5],
where the importance of a hands-on laboratory with
interesting, challenging and fun activities has been
highlighted as a way to introduce students to a technical
field in an freshman course. The experience of bringing a
design from concept to working prototype is valuable
preparation for subsequent education and employment [6][7].
What did you like most about this course
Other
Robot Project
FIGURE. 7
MOBILE ROBOT DEMONSTRATION
Teams are also required to write a project journal and a
final report (on a web page) that describes the planning,
design, building, programming, testing, and demonstration
of the robot. They are asked to include pictures and diagrams
of their design, robots, and team members (Figure 8).
FIGURE. 9
ETCS 101, FALL 2000. RESPONSE TO COURSE ASSESSMENT QUESTION
American Society for Engineering Education
March 30, 2001 - Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN
2001 IL/IN Sectional Conference
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Session #
CONCLUSIONS
The importance of a successful introductory course to
the engineering, technology, and computer science
disciplines has been highlighted. The main goal of this
course is to increase the chances that students acquire the
necessary skills and mental attitude to be successful in their
freshman year and continue in one of the programs in the
School of ETCS which best matches their interests and
abilities. A very important component of the course are the
projects that are student-centered and of a multidisciplinary,
high-tech nature. At the completion of these projects the
students achieve a basic competence in the use of computers
for academic work in a technical field.
For more
information on this course, please visit our web site at
http://raven.ipfw.edu:8901 and sign in as guest and also use
guest as the password.
ACKNOWLEDGMENT
This course has been partially funded by a grant from the
Purdue University Lilly Endowment Retention Initiatives –
First Year Seminar Studies. The authors also want to express
their thanks to Mr. Larry Brown, manager of the School of
ETCS Mechanical Engineering labs, for his continuous
support and suggestions to improve this course.
REFERENCES
[1]
Davis, G. J., “An Introduction to Computer Programming for Students
with No Programming Experience,” 1991 Frontiers in Education
Conference Proceedings, September 21-24, 1991, West Lafayette,
Indiana, pp. 748-752.
[2]
Besterfield-Sacre, M., Atman, C.J., and Shuman, L. J.,
“Characteristics of Freshman Engineering Students: Models for
Determining Student Attrition in Engineering,” Journal of
Engineering Education, vol. 86, no. 2, April 1997, pp. 139-149.
[3]
Genalo, L. J., Williams, B. D., “The Freshman Engineering Problems
and Programming Course: Integrating New and Old Tools,”
Proceedings of the 1995 ASEE Annual Conference, June 25-28 1995,
Anaheim, California, pp. 1532-1536.
[4]
Avanzato, R., “Collaborative Mobile Robot Design in an Introductory
Programming Course for Engineers,” Proceedings of the 1998 ASEE
Annual Conference, June 28 – July 1, Seattle, Washington.
[5]
Goff, R.M., Gregg, M.H., “Freshman Hands-On Engineering
Laboratory at Virginia Tech,” The Innovator, The SUCCEED
Newsletter, no. 11, Spring 1999, pp. 12-15.
[6]
Starr, G.P., “The UNM Mechanical Engineering Lego Robot
Competition,” Proceedings of the ASCE Specialty Conference on
Robotics for Challenging Environments, 1998, pp. 230-236.
[7]
Hayes, G.M., and Hallan, J.C.T., “Teaching Robotics with Lego
Robots,” IEEE Colloquium (Digest), 1995.
American Society for Engineering Education
March 30, 2001 - Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN
2001 IL/IN Sectional Conference
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