This paper reports the effects of program characteristics and faculty activities on students' experiences and, ultimately, the development of students' analytical and group skills. Data come from nationally representative samples of 4,330 seniors, 1,243 faculty members, and 147 engineering program chairs on 39 campuses nationwide. Findings…

This paper asserts that the continuing decline in admissions to science and engineering graduate programs may lead to a shortage of skilled professionals that undermines the U.S. economy and to a shortage in higher education faculty. The Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation (LSAMP) provides academic activities and retention services to…

The study was carried out within the framework of a project that provided afterschool mathematics tutorial sessions to 10th-12th grade students by engineers in an informal setting. The participating students were selected from advanced level mathematics classes according to their need for additional support. The main goal of the study was to…

Since 1992, the Southeastern University and College Coalition for Engineering Education (SUCCEED) has been funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) to improve undergraduate engineering education. Faculty from eight southeastern colleges of engineering have developed innovations in key focus areas such as freshmen engineering, design, tools…

The data in these tables are collected biennially through the National Science Foundation's (NSF's) Congressionally mandated Survey of Scientific and Engineering Research Facilities. The 1999 survey was sent to research-performing colleges and universities in the United States and to U.S. biomedical research institutions that received National…

This guide was developed to help teachers use the 14th season of NEWTON'S APPLE in their classrooms and contains lessons formatted to follow the National Science Education Standards. The "Overview,""Main Activity," and "Try-This" sections were created with inquiry-based learning in mind. Each lesson page begins with…

The College of Engineering at the University of Washington conducted a portfolio evaluation project to better understand the nature and effects of its writing project. The project was implemented to address two needs: (1) the need expressed inside and outside the college for graduates with better communication skills; and (2) the need to…

The Fundamentals of Engineering (FE) project involves gaining access to data on student learning from the National Council of Examiners for Engineers and Surveyors (NCEES) that schools and programs do not normally have. This document contains an executive summary in addition to the full length report on the accomplishments of the project. The…

The tables contained in this document present data on the characteristics of men and women who received a bachelor's or master's degree in a science or engineering field from academic institutions in the U.S. during the 1992-93 and 1993-94 academic years. The data were collected in 1995 and 1996 and reflect the status of individuals as of April…

This learning packet provides background information about Hoover Dam (Nevada) and the surrounding area. Since the dam was built at the height of the Depression in 1931, people came from all over the country to work on it. Because of Hoover Dam, the Colorado River was controlled for the first time in history and farmers in Nevada, California, and…

This digest presents information on the state of sex equity in the fields of science and engineering. Featured articles include: "Becoming a Scientist" (Shirley Malcolm); "Gender Equity Issues in Science Careers" (Sue V. Rosser and Julie Montgomery); and "Innovations in Intervention Settings" (Katherine Darke and Beatriz Chu Clewell). A list of…

This report is based on a 1999 National Science Foundation (NSF) summit on the future of minority leadership in science and engineering. The summit examined what it would take to create, from among members of ethnic or racial minority groups, leaders with scientific, mathematical, and engineering skills and credentials. The purpose of the summit…

Factors influencing the achievement and retention of ethnic minority students were studied, focusing on 38 ethnic minority students in a college engineering program. Of the 38 students, 12 were African American, and 26 were Hispanic of Mexican American origin. Students were participants in the university's Equal Opportunity in Engineering program,…

A 3-year follow-up evaluation was conducted of an experimental problem-based learning (PBL) integrated curriculum directed to students of the first 2 years of engineering. The PBL curriculum brought together the contents of physics, mathematics, and computer science courses in a single course in which students worked on real-life problems. In…

In this activity, students construct bird nests and birdhouses. Students research a bird of their choice in order to design a house that will meet that bird's specific needs. The activity works well in conjunction with a high school level woodshop class where students would partner up. This activity requires an 80-minute time period for…