2024 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

The challenge of convincing students to attempt homework assignment early and often is a perennial problem. This is exacerbated in higher level courses where assignments may deal with multiple technical concepts and may take hours to complete in a satisfactory way. A number of instructional and pedagogical tools have been written about that focus on taking advantage of students’ motivational strategies in learning activities. Over the past four years, a variety of strategies were explored in a 400-level Aircraft Structures, Dynamics and Aeroelasticity course specifically targeted at timely, thorough completion of homework assignment for understanding. Strategies explored include the use of late penalties vs early submission bonus points, flexible due dates, individual versus collaborative work policies and the use of homework templates to accomplish complex analyses. The effectiveness of these tools was evaluated through a combination of homework scores, overall course scores, submission data such as how far in advance the student attempted the assignment and the number of attempts to complete the assignment correctly. In addition, student perceptions were evaluated through voluntary, anonymous mid-term and final course surveys. Anecdotal faculty observations are also included. Initial results show that students were far more motivated by bonus points for early turn-in than by points deductions for late turn-in. Higher-level understanding of the key concepts also correlates to earlier starts and earlier completion of the homework assignment. Initial data is presented as well as recommendations for future work. This paper is a Work in Progress.