2023 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Work in Progress: Impact on Students Dropout rates of Introducing a First-Year Hands-on Civil Engineering Course

Presented at First-Year Programs Division (FYP) - WIPS 1: Programs & Curricula

Engineering dropout is a complex construct because it involves many dimensions, some of which come from societal status quo. There is significant research on understanding the barriers, both personal and institutional, that cause student desertion throughout the major. One of these barriers is the lack of understanding of the areas of knowledge of the different engineering majors. These papers highlight a pedagogical application of an introductory course for first-year students and the contrast of the dropout numbers. The study showcases the design of the courses, student learning outcomes, and the perceptions of students about what each specific major entitles. Specifically, the study analyzed 79 first-year civil engineering students distributed among five sections of the Introduction to Civil Engineering course, two years ago. The authors reflect on the design of the intervention and explore the avenues academia could take to form new pedagogical approaches to reduce student dropout in civil engineering schools. Implications for research and practice are provided.

Authors

ALEJANDRA ESTEFANIA CERVANTES
Dr. Miguel Andres Andres Guerra http://orcid.org/0000-0002-7496-3753 Universidad San Francisco de Quito USFQ [biography]

MiguelAndrés is an Assistant Professor in the Polytechnic College of Science and Engineering at Universidad San Francisco de Quito USFQ. He holds a BS in Civil Engineering from USFQ, an M.Sc. in Construction Engineering and Project Management from Iowa State University as a Fulbright Scholar, a Ph.D. in Civil Engineering from Virginia Tech, and two Graduate Certificates from Virginia Tech in Engineering Education and Future Professoriate. MiguelAndrés's research includes sustainable infrastructure design and planning, smart and resilient cities, and the development of engineers who not only have strong technical and practical knowledge but the social awareness and agency to address global humanitarian, environmental, and social justice challenges. For him, social justice is a concept that should always be involved in discussions on infrastructure. Related to STEM education, Miguel Andrés is in developing and applying contemporary pedagogies for STEM courses, teaching empathy studies in engineering as a tool for innovation, and assessing engineering students' agency to address climate change. Currently, MiguelAndrés is validating his framework of a Blended & Flexible Learning approach that focusses on STEM courses and its practical adaptation to overcome barriers brought up by the COVID-19 pandemic.

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