2025 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Using Portfolios in a Flipped Dynamics Class for Homework Documentation and Pre-Class Work Accountability

Presented at Mechanics Division (MECHS) Technical Session 2

In the Spring 2024 and Fall 2024 semesters, students at the United States Air Force Academy (USAFA) were required to create portfolios of their work in a flipped sophomore level Dynamics course. The decision to require portfolios was driven by three primary objectives: 1) to help students organize their coursework and recognize the value of such organization, 2) to ensure accountability, specifically by verifying that students completed the handouts associated with the course videos, and 3) to evaluate the neatness and documentation of handwritten homework. The last objective was necessary because in the Spring of 2024 we used McGraw-Hill Connect for the homework. When using Connect students are typically asked to put numerical answers into this system, but their process is not checked. Based on student feedback regarding the portfolio in the Spring of 2024, we decided to retain this requirement in the Fall of 2024 even though we decided not to use Connect. In this paper we will discuss 1) the structure of our flipped classroom, 2) the details of the portfolio assignment, and 3) student feedback on the portfolio assignment. In general, the assignment was rated positively by students, with over 55% indicating that it was a good use of their time, over 70% indicating that it motivated them to watch the videos, and over 80% indicating that it facilitated organizing their course work.

Authors

Dr. Phillip Cornwell U.S. Air Force Academy [biography]

Phillip Cornwell is a Professor of Mechanical Engineering at the United States Air Force Academy and an Emeritus Professor of Mechanical Engineering at Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology. He received his Ph.D. from Princeton University in 1989, and his current interests include structural dynamics, structural health monitoring, and undergraduate engineering education. Dr. Cornwell received the SAE Ralph R. Teetor Educational Award in 1992, the Dean’s Outstanding Teacher Award at Rose-Hulman in 2000, and the Rose-Hulman Board of Trustees' Outstanding Scholar Award in 2001. He was one of the developers of the Rose-Hulman Sophomore Engineering Curriculum and the Dynamics Concept Inventory. Additionally, he is a co-author of Vector Mechanics for Engineers: Dynamics, by Beer, Johnston, Cornwell, and Self. In 2019, Dr. Cornwell received the Archie Higdon Distinguished Educator Award from the Mechanics Division of ASEE, and in 2023, he was honored with the Ralph Coats Roe Award from the Mechanical Engineering Division of ASEE.
Ryan Carr U.S. Air Force Academy [biography]

Ryan Carr received his PhD from the Air Force Institute of Technology (AFIT) in 2017 focused on optimal control theory in guidance, control, and navigation or aerospace systems. He was an engineer and branch chief at the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL), a flight test engineer the Air Force Test Center (AFTC), and a program manager at the Air Force Office of Scientific Research (AFOSR). He joined the faculty at the United States Air Force Academy in 2023 as an Assistant Professor of Mechanical Engineering.
Dr. Brian P. Self California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo [biography]

Brian Self obtained his B.S. and M.S. degrees in Engineering Mechanics from Virginia Tech, and his Ph.D. in Bioengineering from the University of Utah. He worked in the Air Force Research Laboratories before teaching at the U.S. Air Force Academy for sev

Note

The full paper will be available to logged in and registered conference attendees once the conference starts on June 22, 2025, and to all visitors after the conference ends on June 25, 2025

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