2023 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Peer Mentorship Model to Enhance Design Engineering Education

Presented at Design in Engineering Education Division (DEED) Technical Session 11

This paper presents the design, implementation, and impact of a simultaneous curricular intervention in freshman and senior capstone design courses at an undergraduate Mechanical Engineering program. The two primary objectives of this intervention were to i. Enhance students’ understanding of the design process, emphasizing the importance of end-users and stakeholders, and ii. To create an opportunity for students to be rewarded for learning and teaching their peers. This study lays the foundation for a long-term longitudinal study to understand further the impact of peer mentorship and socio-technical projects from freshman to senior years. Published literature indicates that undergraduates teaching other undergraduates is one of the most effective methods for achieving both cognitive and attitudinal goals of undergraduate education. The paper will present the benefits and challenges associated with engaging seniors and freshmen while solving an authentic design challenge through surveys and focus groups. These results will help develop the framework to build vertical integration within the curriculum for effectively teaching engineering design.

Authors

Dr. Amit Shashikant Jariwala http://orcid.org/0000-0002-3851-9161 Georgia Institute of Technology [biography]

Dr. Amit Jariwala is the Director of Design & Innovation for the School of Mechanical Engineering at Georgia Tech. Dr. Amit Jariwala develops and maintains industry partnerships to support experiential, entrepreneurial, and innovative learning experience within the academic curriculum of the school. He is a Woodruff School Teaching Fellow and strives to enhance education by developing classes, workshops, and events focused on implementing hands-on, collaborative learning through solving real-world problems. He directs the operations of the Institute-wide Georgia Tech Capstone Design Expo, which highlights projects created by over 2000 Georgia Tech seniors graduating students on an annual basis. He serves as the faculty advisor for the student organization of over 100 student volunteers who all train, staff, and manage the operations of Georgia Tech’s Flowers Invention Studio – one of the nation’s premier volunteer student-run makerspace, open to all of the Georgia Tech community.

Dr. Jariwala’s research interests are in the field of makerspaces, evidence-based design education, and advanced additive manufacturing process. During his Ph.D. studies, he was also a participant of the innovative TI:GER® program (funded by NSF:IGERT), which prepares students to commercialize high impact scientific research results. He has participated and led several research projects funded by the U.S. Department of Energy, U.S. Department of Education, the National Science Foundation, the State of Georgia, and Industry sponsors. He currently directs a cross-disciplinary Vertically Integrated Project team on SMART^3 Makerspaces focused on research and development to enable the creation of intelligent systems to manage and maintain makerspaces.
Dr. Raghu Pucha Georgia Institute of Technology [biography]

Dr. Raghu Pucha is a Principal Lecturer at the Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, in the area of CAD/CAE and Manufacturing. He teaches computer graphics, design, mechanics and manufacturing courses at Georgia Tech., and conducts research in the area of developing upfront computational tools for the design, analysis and manufacturing of advanced materials and systems. His current research includes analysis of nano-filler composites for structural and electronics applications. Dr. Pucha has three provisional U.S. patents, co-authored over 70 research papers in peer reviewed Journals, Book articles and Conference Proceedings. He is honored with Inaugural College of Engineering Outstanding Teacher Award in 2022, Scholarship of Teaching and Learning Award in 2020, Geoffrey G. Eichholz Faculty Teaching Award in 2015 and Undergraduate Educator Award in 2012 at Georgia Tech.
Terrence Pleasant
Shivani Kundalia Georgia Institute of Technology
Amanda Nolen Georgia Institute of Technology
Devesh Ranjan Georgia Institute of Technology

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