Using a Nationwide Internet-Based Bridge Design Contest as a Vehicle for Engineering Outreach
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| Audience/Grade: | 6 - High School Senior |
| Discipline(s): |
Civil Engineering |
| Special Topic(s): |
TUES NSF Projects - Transforming Undergraduate Education in STEM |
| Learning Resource Type: |
Reference - Educational Research Paper |
| Media Type: |
Unknown |
| Author(s): |
Eugene Ressler Stephen Ressler |
| Description: | Journal of Engineering Education, Apr 2004. Abstract: "The West Point Bridge Design Contest is a nationwide competition intended to increase middle school and high school students' interest in engineering. Unique among national engineering competitions, it entails no cost to participants, is entirely Internet-based, and is achievable by any student with a Web-enabled computer. By leveraging information technology, a project team of just three people has provided an engaging engineering design experience to over 30,000 students in the past two years. The project receives financial and promotional support from the American Society of Civil Engineers and private industry. Feedback from contestants and teachers indicates that students' interest in engineering is positively affected by their participation in the contest." |
| Rating: |
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| Related Resources | |
| Keywords: | bridge design precollege outreach Web-based contest |
| References: |
West Point Bridge Designer |
| Usage Tip | |
| Use of Resource: |
Author's conclusions: "Based on the assessment data presented above, we draw the following conclusions: * The concept of a wholly Internet-based engineering design competition is viable. * The format of the West Point Bridge Design Contest-a simulation-based design experience coupled with Webbased judging and feedback-can potentially attract large numbers of student participants and can stimulate a high level of engagement. * By leveraging information technology, a small pro|ect staff can deliver high-quality engineering outreach at reasonable cost. * The contest and accompanying simulation software had a positive influence on students' learning about engineering concepts and on students' interest in engineering. We also conclude that a similar competition could be developed in any engineering discipline, as long as a suitable design problem can be formulated. The key characteristics of the problem are: (1) a very large solution space with no obvious "best answer;" (2) a succinct electronic representation of a given design; and (3) design criteria that can be evaluated by a computer program." |
| Difficulty: |
Medium |
| Version Info | |
| Publication Date: | April 2004 |
| Platform/Format: |
WWW |
| Cost: |
Free |
| Download URL: | http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa3886/is_200404/ai_n934961 |
| Metadata: |
IEEE LOM Record |
| Collection: |
NEEDS
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