Teaching freshmen design, creativity and programming with LEGOs and Labview

For the past 3 years LEGOs have been used to teach design, creativity, and structured programming to freshmen mechanical engineering students at the University of Nevada, Reno. MECH 151 is a 3-credit hour course offered as the second semester of a first year mechanical engineering design sequence. The class utilizes a project-based learning environment, which consists of approximately 10 design projects of increasing difficulty and scope. The course culminates with a robot battle and a presentation to local K-12 schools. Assessment methods include student surveys, external evaluators, evaluation of projects, and enrollment data. The use of LEGOs was found appealing to the students while providing an excellent medium for teaching design, programming, and creativity. Student enrollment has grown over 2 fold since the introduction of LEGOs.