Development of an integrative biomechanics course for STEM majors

Abstract

Initiatives aimed at creating and offering specialized courses for STEM (Science, technology, Engineering and Mathematics) majors are generally not supported at Predominately Undergraduate Institutions (PUI). However, it is imperative that our future scientists have opportunities to experience a broad and integrative scientific education. In the growing STEM environment at various universities around the globe, an interdisciplinary course attracts students from a number of STEM disciplines, offers cross-disciplinary innovative features, and provides training to prepare students for the demands of modern science and biomaterials technology. This paper details about developing and implementing an integrative biomechanics course for STEM majors. The aim of the proposed course is to provide students with an understanding of basic structure/function relationships of biological tissues and systems, mechanical principles governing animal locomotion, and mechanics of biofluids by engaging students with hands-on experiences in computational, demonstrational, and experimental laboratories. This innovative and interdisciplinary course is expected to broaden the experience of our STEM majors towards successful careers in STEM related fields. STEM students can also be engaged in peer mentoring and learning from each other. For example, engineering students may facilitate biological sciences students learning about mechanical principles of solids and fluids, while biological sciences students may facilitate engineering students learning about anatomical features of animal tissues and systems. Integrative courses broaden the educational experiences of STEM majors, and may serve as a general model for developing interdisciplinary STEM curricula at PUIs. Assessment for the course at instructor, institutional and external levels is to be conducted with respect to student learning objectives (SLO) through both formative and summative evaluations. © 2012 American Society for Engineering Education.