2023 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Board 199: A Move to Sustainability: Launching an Instructor Interface

Presented at NSF Grantees Poster Session

Sketch Mechanix, an NSF-IUSE funded research project, launched a new feature with the Fall 2022 semester: an instructor interface. Sketch Mechanix’s development had previously focused upon converting to an html platform and then expanding problem types. The initial problem that was featured was truss analysis (method of joints). The second problem type was free body diagrams with point loads at any angle. The most recent sketch recognition feature was the addition of applied moments, using a curved arrow. For any of these problem types, Sketch Mechanix features sketch recognition and automatic feedback to students on their free body diagrams through an online homework platform.

With this latest innovation, instructors adopting this novel homework system can now input their own problems, view student scores broken down by problem, and adjust assignment due dates. Prior to the launch of this interface, all of these features involved emailing the development team. For instance, the instructor previously had to email the desired problems, their solutions, and points awarded, as well as wait for the developer to email back student scores to be able to see how students were doing. While sketch recognition has long been the key draw to using Sketch Mechanix, the addition of the instructor interface will aid in the project’s sustainability as it nears the end of the grant period. This paper and poster describe the instructor interface, including screen shots, share feedback from instructors who tested the interface in classes, and detail the future of the program.

Authors

Dr. Kimberly Grau Talley, P.E. http://orcid.org/0000-0002-6235-0706 Texas State University [biography]

Dr. Kimberly G. Talley, P.E. is an associate professor in the Department of Engineering Technology, Bobcat Made Makerspace Director at Texas State University, and a licensed Professional Engineer. She received her Ph.D. and M.S.E. from the University of Texas at Austin in Structural Engineering. Her undergraduate degrees in History and in Construction Engineering and Management are from North Carolina State University. Dr. Talley teaches courses in the Construction Science and Management and Civil Engineering Technology Programs, and her research focus is in student engagement and retention in engineering and engineering technology education. Contact: talley@txstate.edu
Jeron Tyler Rogers
Justin Keeper
Dr. Kristi J. Shryock Texas A&M University [biography]

Kristi J. Shryock, Ph.D., is the Frank and Jean Raymond Foundation Inc. Endowed Associate Professor in Multidisciplinary Engineering and Affiliated Faculty in Aerospace Engineering at Texas A&M University. She also serves as Director of the Novel Unconventional Aerospace Applications iN Core Educational Disciplines (NUA2NCED) Lab and of the Craig and Galen Brown Engineering Honors Program and National Academy of Engineering Grand Challenges Scholars Program. She has made extensive contributions to the methodology of forming the engineer of the future through her work in creating strategies to recruit, retain, and graduate engineering students. The network of transformational strategies she has developed addresses informing early, preparation for success, increasing diversity of the field, establishing strong identity as an engineer, and enhancing critical thinking and professional skills.

Download paper (3.9 MB)

Are you a researcher? Would you like to cite this paper? Visit the ASEE document repository at peer.asee.org for more tools and easy citations.

» Download paper

« View session