2023 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Impact of Self-Directed Learning Modules on Preparing Students to Take the FE Exam

Presented at Mechanical Engineering Division (MECH) Technical Session 9: Online Learning Environments

Previous studies have shown a positive relationship exists between engineering students’ self-directed learning abilities and online learning experience. It was also shown that exam-focused, self-selected learning modules for preparation to take a standardized English test improved awareness of students’ strengths and weaknesses, helped them make informed decisions about their own learning, and improved their test-taking skills. The objective of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness of using self-directed learning modules (SDLM) to prepare students to take the Fundamentals of Engineering (FE) exam. The SDLM includes micro review and example videos for concepts included in the NCEES Reference Handbook, live/recorded review sessions with students, and FE-style assessments for each topic covered in the FE exam where the problems are drawn randomly from a large bank of problems. The SDLM was implemented in a course to prepare students to take the fundamental engineering (FE) Exam first in person, followed by hybrid and entirely online during the Covid-19 pandemic, which allowed us to evaluate the effect of SDLM to prepare students to take the FE Exam. Evaluation methods include students' feedback in the course evaluations and surveys, history of students’ performance on practice exams as well as FE exam results in each topic area. Results indicate a high level of satisfaction with the FE exam preparation process leading to performance above the national average in most topic areas.

Authors

Dr. Tao Xing http://orcid.org/0000-0003-1889-0825 University of Idaho [biography]

Professor Tao Xing received his Ph.D. degree in mechanical engineering from Purdue University. His areas of specialty include computational fluid dynamics, verification and validation, and online teaching. He serves as an Associate Editor of ASME Journal of Verification, Validation and Uncertainty Quantification. He is a licensed U.S. Professional Engineer (P.E.) and holds the Design Teach Online (DTO) certificate issued by the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Dr. Steven W. Beyerlein University of Idaho [biography]

Dr. Beyerlein has taught at the University of Idaho for the last 35 years. His scholarly interests include design pedagogy, program assessment, engine testing, and industrial energy conservation. He was the Mechanical Engineering department chair from 2015 to 2020. He is now retired, but remains involved in the freshman introduction to engineering and multi-disciplinary capstone design programs.
Dr. John Crepeau http://orcid.org/0000-0001-7277-1347 University of Idaho [biography]

Professor John Crepeau received his BS degree in mechanical engineering from the University of California, Berkeley, and his MS and PhD degrees from the University of Utah. After serving as an NSF-NATO Postdoctoral Research Fellow, he began teaching at th

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