Posts Tagged ‘NSF’

SIerra College STEM announces Applied Critical Thinking Training

Monday, March 11th, 2013

In response to the need to prepare students for careers that require Applied Critical Thinking and other 21st Century Skills, Sierra College STEM Collaborative announced a new progessioal development program for high school and college faculty.

Local employers echo what national business organzations are saying – students need to be better prepared for the workplace. at a meeting on February 13, an employer skills panel made up of Andy Reimanis, Director of Engineering Telefunken Semiconductors America; Carol Rogers, Vice President, Progressive Technology; and Leandra Wilson, Director of Strategic Operations & Human Resources, Harris & Bruno shared specific examples of how employees use critical thinking. They all described the problem solving steps engineers and technicians went through to figure out how to solve production problems.

Read more about ACTivATE and what instructors and employers are saying about this new Sierra College STEm project at the Auburn Journal – Critical thinking to become a focus at local schools –Teachers listen, respond to input from local employers.

The ACTivATE project builds on National Science Foduantion projects. Sierra College will partner with Tennessee Technological University that produced a widely used Critical Thinking Assessment Test (Expanding the Use of CAT: Assessing and Improving Critical Thinking – NSF DUE 1022789 ) and the Northwestern University Searle Center for Teaching Excellence that developed Enhancing Critical Thinking in STEM Disciplines: A Faculty Development Model (NSF DUE 0942404), both National Science Foundation (NSF) projects. The ACTivATE project also builds on Sierra College’s previous NSF Tech-Explorer grant (ATE 1003259) that highlighted the fact that during a hands-on catapult building project, students did not exhibit the critical thinking skills required of technicians.


NSF grant demonstrates how to teach applied math

Saturday, December 8th, 2012

The National Science Foundation (NSF) funded a grant that enabled Sierra College to develop a model for teaching applied math while fabricating a catapult project called Tech-Explorer (www.tech-explorer.com).  Findings showed that using hands-on projects, connected to authentic work situations, improves teaching of mathematics. Watch the Tech-Explorer movie on how Sierra College integrated math instruction with a catapult building project.  The Sierra College Center for Applied Competitive Technologies (CACT) received NSF Advanced Technological Education grant #1003259 for $150,000.

A total of 306 students built catapults using mills, lathes, drills and other industrial tools. Then the students captured speed, distance, and height of a launched ball during a competition and used the data in a parabolic equation to determine the best launch angle. In addition, 32 teachers participated in three workshops on using hands-on math projects in the classroom.

According to the project principle investigator, Sandra Scott, integrating practical application into math classes and math into technical classes is imperative. “Students really responded when they realized that the parabolic curve is used in headlights, snowboards and solar collectors,” said Scott. “We need to show students how math is applied.”

The Sierra College Tech-Explorer catapult project has been adopted at College of the Canyons, College of the Sequoias, and San Bernardino Community College. The Regional Center for Advanced Manufacturing’s Advanced Manufacturing in Tennessee used it at a camp for 8-9th graders. Nebraska’s Columbus Public Schools incorporated Tech-Explorer into SHINE, a NSF funded program.

Learn more about Sierra College NSF Tech-Explorer.

 


STEM Faculty Integrate Math Lessons into Welding

Tuesday, December 4th, 2012

Through a National Science Foundation (NSF) grant,  Sierra College Math and Welding  faculty participated in the University of West Virginia at Parkersburg (UWVP) IGNITE project to develop math lessons applied to a welding project. The results showed that students’ math skills improved significantly.

Watch the movie about this NSF project integrating math into a welding technical education class at Placer Herald Sierra College addresses skills gap by fusing math with welding (11-29-2012).

Sierra College Welding Department chair, Bill Wenzel and Katie Lucero, chair of the Sierra College Math Department, developed the new applied academic curriculum. Carol Pepper-Kittredge, director, Sierra College Center for Applied Competitive Technologies (CACT), facilitated the collaboration of faculty with the University of West Virginia on this NSF grant project.

See the photo gallery of Sierra College welding students learning applied math as part of the NSF grant at the Placer Herald Sierra College fuses math and welding

 


Math in Welding Addresses Skills Gap

Wednesday, September 26th, 2012

Sierra College (www.sierracollege.edu) welding students are better prepared for employment because the critical math skills sought by industry are being overtly integrated into class projects. Sierra College Welding Department chair, Bill Wenzel worked with Katie Lucero, chair of the Sierra College Math Department to develop new infused math in welding curriculum and test it in two classes. While welding classes have always included some math, incorporating math lessons tied directly to a student project significantly improved students’ math skills.

The Sierra College IGNITE (Infusing GeN-ed Into Technical Education) project was developed in partnership with the West Virginia University at Parkersburg (WVUP) and funded by the National Science Foundation, according to Carol Pepper-Kittredge, director, Sierra College Center for Applied Competitive Technologies (CACT). (Read the Final Report: Sierra College IGNITE Final Report, Conducted Under the University of West Virginia at Parkersburg National Science Foundation ATE grant award #1003709)

Using the math competencies WVUP identified for infusion into welding, Sierra College faculty developed hands-on, applied math curriculum that related directly to welding projects. Students in Welding Technology 10 classes learned welding and technical skills as they fabricated a Hibachi Barbeque, according to Wenzel. “Classes were provided with drawings that showed measurements as fractions and decimals, step-by-step assembly directions and instruction on the use of shop equipment and hand tools,” said Wenzel. “For the experimental class, we designed weekly math lessons that covered critical math skills that applied directly to the construction of the barbeque.”

For example, students multiplied and divided fractions to determine how many lengths of a specified measurement could be cut from a rod. They calculated how much material would be used for the Hibachi handle and the grill. In another exercise, students designed two different grill patterns and calculated the amount of material needed and the cost to construct each design.

“The class that completed the hands-on math exercises performed significantly better than the control group on basic and pre-algebra skills based on pre- and post-tests,” said Wenzel. The infused math in welding curriculum was also tested in another class, Welding Technology 15, and again the students’ mathematics performance improved.

On a student survey, 52% of the students in the infused math WT-10 class had not enrolled in a math class at Sierra College but 82% said they would feel more comfortable taking a math class in the future as a result of the WT-10 class; and 48% would be more likely to take the math assessment for placement in a math class at Sierra College. So, math confidence improved too.

The Sierra College CACT provides customized training in shop math for Placer and Nevada County businesses. “Employers report that skilled employees can’t apply fractions, decimals and basic math to their work,” said Pepper-Kittredge. “Infusing math into welding shows great potential to address the skills gap before students go into the workforce.”


Catapult Projectile Calculation

Monday, October 31st, 2011

For students building Sierra College Tech-Explorer catapults, you may find the following web sites useful in calculating the distance the ball will travel. Watch the movie showing how applied math has been integrated into the Tech-Explorer catapult project supported by Sierra College CACT, Sierra STEM Collaborative and the Sierra College National Science Foundation grant project.

http://www.phy.hk/wiki/englishhtm/ThrowABall.htm

http://publicliterature.org/tools/projectile_motion/

http://www.tinafad.com/projectile/index.php

http://www.netzmedien.de/projectilemotion/scripting.html