A System-of-Systems Inspired Framework to Enhance Aerospace Structural Mechanics Education

Abstract

We initiated a System-of-Systems inspired framework (i.e., Definition, Abstraction, and Implementation) to enhance aerospace structural mechanics education. The proposed framework has a possibility to become an active learning pedagogy in mechanics education since the difficulty level may be adjusted for students to fit right in the Zone of Proximity Development. The framework can also promote healthy collaboration among the students as well as between students and instructors for critical thinking and engagement. The framework is a streamlined version of “the big picture to the small picture” approach, so the students can always see the big picture, which helps them to understand how everything fits together and fosters creativity. In the framework, we created specific examples of how structural mechanics educators can start using the approach immediately (i.e., a summary table and a two-table approach) to solve cross sectional properties (i.e., a centroid location, area moments of inertia, and product of inertia). Finally, as a future work, combining the System-of-Systems inspired framework with digital teaching techniques like virtual lab could be an exciting topic since the interactive and multimedia environment appeals to today's students who are comfortable using digital media as an active learning tool.