Work in progress - pilot of foundational engineering education course

In spring 2005, implementation of a significant redesign of the first semester introductory engineering course (EngE1024) occurred in support of the enhanced research mission of the Department of Engineering Education (EngE). This redesign produced changes to course curriculum, the format of the course, and the use of faculty and graduate teaching assistants (GTAs) resources. A pilot course was offered to about 240 students in a new format; this format involved one lecture and a workshop session every week. The lecture consisted of a 50-minute session team taught by the first two authors in a class of 120 students. The 32-seat workshop session was 110 minutes, and primarily conducted by a GTA. The intents of new format were to allow students more in-class time for group/design projects, allow faculty members introduce research/contemporary engineering topics, and give graduate students meaningful teaching experiences. Preliminary analysis of course assessment data indicates a 2-1 preference by students for the new format to the old format used until fall 2004.