Description :  A comprehensive plan for the enhancement of freshmen engineering courses at Louisiana Tech University targets courses that are a part of the College of Engineering and Science’s (COES) integrated curriculum. This integrated curriculum has proven successful in increasing the COE’s ability to retain freshmen engineering students from their first year to graduation with a degree from the COES. The goal of this project is to further improve this retention rate by providing more accessible methods for demonstrating, teaching, and evaluating applicable computer skills in courses that comprise the integrated curriculum. Computer skills such as computer-aided design, mathematical modeling, presentation preparation, report writing, and statistical analysis are taught in the integrated curriculum during the freshman year. Current engineering educational reform studies suggest that there is a significant need to provide hands-on experiences in engineering curricula. A transportable wireless computer network that can be used in the classrooms where these freshman engineering courses are taught helps meet this significant need. The enhancement plan consists of the acquisition of 20 laptop computers, a wireless access point, and a security cart. Based on current enrollment figures, this plan affects approximately 400 new freshmen engineers each year.

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Principal Investigator:  Crittenden, Kelly  --  Mechanical Engineering

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Collaborators:  

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Funding Agencies:  Board of Regents

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Amount Awarded:  $15,000

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Start Period:  06/01/2004

End Period:  06/30/2005