2023 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Faculty-Led Videos of Real-World Industrial and Research Applications in a Materials Science Course

Presented at Materials Division (MATS) Technical Session 3

Current MEEN 360 course (Materials and Manufacturing in Design) instructors have noticed higher attention and interest level from students when they share their practical experience from industrial and research projects. There is always a natural tendency to pay more attention to personal work experiences than experiences we cannot relate to with theoretical examples. It is also easier and more interesting to teach based on personal experiences. These ideas triggered this study to see if including short, well-prepared videos of real-world problems and solutions would motivate and enhance students’ learning experience in this course. The idea is to engage and motivate students to learn the material by showing them how course topics have been applied by the faculty teaching the course to solve real-world industry and research problems. Two videos were produced with embedded information that links directly to the course textbook chapters and topics including annealing, quenching, tempering, yield strength, ductility, hardness, brittleness, precipitation hardening, steels, and corrosion resistant nickel-chromium superalloys. The videos were less than 9 minutes each and demonstrate how efficiently material can be covered when employing tightly scripted lectures using a storytelling narrative structure in conjunction with animated PowerPoint and stock library slide shows. The videos were shown in four sections of the course offered (350 students) in Spring 2022, and a five-question survey was administered to evaluate them. Faculty creating the videos are not necessarily the same instructors for all sections. Homework associated with the videos was also prepared to measure interest and motivation of the students. The process to produce the videos, key features incorporated in the videos to maximize student understanding, and advantages, disadvantages, and lessons learned will be presented.

This study is one of several projects in the department supported by the National Science Foundation under grant number EEC-2022275.

Authors

Dr. Carlos R. Corleto Texas A&M University [biography]

BS, MS, PhD in Mechanical Engineering from Texas A&M University. Experience includes 20 years in industry as a lab director, technical manager and engineering advisor, 8 years of academic experience at the assistant and tenured associate professor level, 4.5 years as a professor of practice, Undergraduate Program Director of the J. M. Walker '66 Department of Mechanical Engineering since June 2022, and active industry consultant. Author and contributing author of 10 patents and multiple publications/presentations at technical and engineering education conferences. Areas of expertise and research interest include, Deformation & Failure Mechanisms, Materials Science, Fracture Mechanics, Process-Structure-Property Relationships, Finite Element Stress Analysis Modeling & Failure Analysis, ASME BPV Code Sec VIII Div. 1 & 2, API 579/ASME FFS-1 Code, Materials Testing and Engineering Education. Professionally registered engineer in the State of Texas (PE).
Matt Pharr Texas A&M University [biography]

Matt Pharr is an Associate Professor and J. Mike Walker ’66 Faculty Fellow in Mechanical Engineering at Texas A&M University with a courtesy appointment in Materials Science & Engineering. His scientific research focuses on mechanics of materials in areas including energy storage and conversion, soft materials, irradiated materials, stretchable electronics, coupled electro-chemo-mechanics, and materials for neuromorphic computing. He teaches classes primarily in mechanics of materials and materials science. He has received an NSF CAREER Award, the Kaneka Junior Faculty Award, a Texas A&M Engineering Experiment Station (TEES) Young Faculty Award, the Peggy L. & Charles Brittan ’65 Outstanding Undergraduate Teaching Award, a Montague-Center for Teaching Excellence Scholar Award, and The Texas A&M Association of Former Students Distinguished Achievement Award in Teaching.
Bruce A Conway Texas A&M University [biography]

BA, in Telecommunications from Kent State University. Experience includes 6 years as Senior Learning Multimedia Producer, 10 years in cable broadcast advertising as a Creative Services Producer & Director and 20 years in Film & TV industry as a Writer, Producer & Director. Emmy Award for Best Commercial. Areas of learning design expertise include: Instructor tutorials (video and LMS based), 2-D and 3-D animated learning objects, faculty studio operations, high quality lecture capture, podcast production, graphic design/supplemental print media, website design, and marketing collateral.
Dr. Shadi Balawi Texas A&M University [biography]

Dr. Balawi is an Instructional Associate Professor in the Mechanical Engineering department at Texas A&M. He teaches in the areas of materials, manufacturing, and design. His interests are in the areas of Engineering Design for Disciplinary STEM Educational Research, Team Formation and Team Skill Education.
Prof. Bruce L. Tai Texas A&M University [biography]

Dr. Tai is an Associate Professor in J Mike Walker ’66 Department of Mechanical Engineering at Texas A&M University. His research in manufacturing focuses on machining processes, additive manufacturing, and data-driven surgical training. He has over a 15-year track record in manufacturing research and education. The recent research projects include machining non-traditional metal alloys, composites, hybrid manufacturing, and surgical drilling. Dr. Tai is a recipient of the Outstanding Young Manufacturing Engineer Award of SME and Blackall Machine Tool and Gage Award of ASME, both in 2017. He was elected to become an ASME fellow in 2022.

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