Sensors and structures: Outcomes from a project-based multidisciplinary graduate course

Abstract

The goal of this paper is to assess the effectiveness of a project-based, multidisciplinary course in a small engineering program with BS and MS students. At engineering programs without doctoral degrees, limited faculty resources and small student numbers present challenges in offering graduate courses that provide hands-on learning experiences in multidisciplinary environments-the same experiences often gained in graduate level research at larger research intensive universities. Therefore, during the Spring semester of 2011, we offered a multidisciplinary course combining civil structural health monitoring (SHM) and sensor networks. Recent research trends have tied these two topics together with an increase in the use of sensor networks for SHM and an increase in monitoring structures in sensor networks. Combining these two classes offered a unique opportunity for senior undergraduate students and graduate students to engage in multidisciplinary learning, to design and implement complicated systems spanning both fields, and to explore new research boundaries. The Sensor Networks for Infrastructure Systems course provided a combination of depth and breadth to both undergraduates and graduates. The course consisted of two hours of lecture and three hours of laboratory time each week with content divided into three topic areas each incorporating a multi-week lab project. The final weeks of the course were devoted to large-scale final projects where student teams monitored actual structures on the university campus. The course was assessed in comparison to two other courses offered concurrently: a graduate course in networking for ECPE/CS students and a mixed course in water resource engineering for civil engineering students. Assessment consisted of entrance and exit surveys combining Likert-scale questions, open-ended questions, and concepts maps. Additional assessment within the course included the submission of concept maps before and after each topic area. The assessment revealed key benefits and challenges for both faculty and students. All had difficulties translating knowledge and terminology outside of their discipline. The faculty found that providing breadth to all students introduced challenges to maintaining course flow and interest while providing sufficient depth to successfully complete projects. Team management and dynamics differed greatly from traditional project classes due to specialized skill requirements (no one student could completely implement any project), challenging the faculty to determine new models and the students to learn new skills. However, students appreciated the opportunity and uniformly identified multidisciplinary projects as interesting and useful. Overall, the course identified a need for increased multidisciplinary interactions in the graduate curriculum and suggested models for how that might be achieved. © 2012 American Society for Engineering Education.