Background Many students may not respond strongly to instruction that they do not perceive as engaging. One pedagogical approach to help engage students involves the use of games. Educational games can provide students with a motivating and stimulating environment while providing them with immediate feedback to promote learning.Purpose This systematic review examines research focused on the implementation of games to teach undergraduate engineering students; it summarizes prevailing features and cites examples from a variety of engineering disciplines. Scope/MethodThe systematic review was conducted through a detailed search of Science Direct journals and the Scopus, Web of Science, Compendex/Inspec, and ERIC Education Research Abstract databases using terms pertinent to games in engineering education. A total of 191 papers was included after application of the inclusion/exclusion criteria. After screening those to determine if assessment of student learning outcomes was performed, 62 papers were found suitable for more detailed analysis. ConclusionsResearch on the implementation of games in undergraduate engineering classrooms has shown that, despite diverse forms of assessment applied, there is a general trend that both student learning and attitudes are improved by game-based activities. However, since only a relatively small subset of the literature demonstrates a systematic, validated approach in assessment, significant opportunities remain for future research.Despite many advances in active learning techniques and their dissemination, the predominant method of student instruction remains the transmission model: information is a quantifiable resource, and the instructor's role is to transmit that information to learners, who must store and act upon it (Tishman, Jay, & Perkins, 1993). While the transmission model can be effective when teaching for understanding, it may be less effective in developing skills and providing experiences, such as communication, teamwork, and creativity.Recently, game-based learning has come to the forefront of potential pedagogical methods for educating students and providing them with the motivation and opportunities to practice Journal of Engineering Education V C 2016 ASEE.

The two-point boundary value problem (TPBVP) occurs in a wide variety of problems in engineering and science, including the modeling of chemical reactions, heat transfer, and diffusion, and the solution of optimal control problems. A TPBVP may have no solution, a single solution, or multiple solutions. A new strategy is presented for reliably locating all solutions of a TPBVP.The method determines narrow enclosures of all solutions that occur within a specified search interval. Key features of the method are the use of a new solver for parametric ODEs, which is used to produce guaranteed bounds on the solutions of nonlinear dynamic systems with intervalvalued parameters and initial states, and the use of a constraint propagation strategy on the Taylor models used to represent the solutions of the dynamic system. Numerical experiments demonstrate the use and computational efficiency of the method.

Dynamic process models frequently involve uncertain parameters and inputs. Propagating these uncertainties rigorously through a mathematical model to determine their effect on system states and outputs is a challenging problem. In this work, we describe a new approach, based on the use of Taylor model methods, for the rigorous propagation of uncertainties through nonlinear systems of ordinary differential equations (ODEs). We concentrate on uncertainties whose distribution is not known precisely, but can be bounded by a probability box (p-box), and show how to use p-boxes in the context of Taylor models. This allows us to obtain p-box representations of the uncertainties in the state variable outputs of a nonlinear ODE model. Examples having two to three uncertain parameters or initial states and focused on reaction process dynamics are used to demonstrate the potential of this approach. Using this method, rigorous probability bounds can be determined at a computational cost that is significantly less than that required by Monte Carlo analysis.

Chemical engineering thermodynamics is a core course in the undergraduate curriculum, but its seemingly unintuitive nature makes it a challenge for novices to understand. At our institution, student feedback for the past several years has included complaints about having to "know" too many equations, the existence of an apparent disconnect between theory and real world examples, and a textbook they do not enjoy using. We believe that focusing on how students understand their own work with the textbook addresses not only the last complaint, but also the other two, and to that end have modified our thermodynamics course structure with an emphasis on reading activities and self-reflection. Now in class, students practice regular reflection through a short weekly assignment that we call "the reflection paragraph," which supplements the regular problem solving homework. Students are instructed to write 200 words to explain what they have learned and to provide evidence of that learning. They are also given a series of prompts designed to explore the way they study for the course and to encourage them to make more direct connections between theory and their own experiences and learning. Students also self-assess their reflection using a provided rubric. The course instructor provides comments as feedback for the first few iterations of this assignment without an impact on the grade before starting to numerically assess the student responses and self-assessment for the rest of the semester. Further, in-class activities include regular use of a reading activity, in which students take time to explain to one another the most important details of the week's textbook reading, then discuss why those details are important and relevant. This reading activity leads into a short assignment of listing what points are unclear about the current problems worked in class, which helps to guide the examples and mini-lectures conducted by the course instructor. In this paper, we discuss in more detail the logistics of administering, collecting, and assessing student reflection exercises, as well as discuss the importance of self-reflective activities. We will explore the correlations between student self-assessment and instructor assessment on the reflection paragraphs, and provide the results of an attitude survey regarding the incorporation of reflection exercises into the course. Most importantly, we will report the impact of this required reflection activity on traditional exam performance in thermodynamics.

In her role, Amy works collaboratively with K-12 science and engineering teachers to develop and implement standards-based curricula and assessments. She also provides mentoring and coaching and co-teaching support to K-12 teachers across the entire trajectory of the profession. Her research focuses on teacher education, classroom assessment, and P-16 environmental and engineering education.