Engaging High School and Engineering Students: A Multifaceted Outreach Program Based on a Mechatronics Platform

If we aim to enhance the interest of students in engineering and therefore produce the best engineers, it is essential to strengthen the pipeline to high school education. This paper discusses several outreach activities undertaken by the Faculty of Engineering and Faculty of Education, University of Ottawa (UO), Ottawa, ON, Canada, to help the transition between high school and engineering education and to make students aware of the engineering profession. At the heart of these activities is mechatronics education, which demands an interdisciplinary approach, connects to fundamental math and science concepts, and promotes collaborative project-based learning (PBL). Connected to this focus, a multifaceted program of outreach activities has been initiated. The program includes creation of design-simulate-and-build projects by engineering and high school students, as well as an interactive presentation program whereby engineering students connect with high school students through the sharing of projects that they create in their engineering courses. The survey results indicate that for the high school students, these programs promote students' awareness of engineering and how the mathematics and science they take in school connects to engineering concepts. For the engineering students, they are provided with a meaningful context within which to share their projects and explain their own understanding of engineering principles.

[1]  Memis Acar.  Mechatronics challenge for the higher education world , 1997 .

[2]  A. Srinivasa,et al.  A Project-Based Approach To First-Year Engineering Curriculum Development , 2005, Proceedings Frontiers in Education 35th Annual Conference.

[3]  Dan Budny,et al.  The Freshman Seminar: Assisting The Freshman Engineering Student's Transition From High School To College , 2001 .

[4]  T. R. Hsu,et al.  Mechatronics. An overview , 1997 .

[5]  Lone Kørnøv,et al.  Individual activities as an integrated part of project work - an innovative approach to project oriented and problem-based learning POPBL , 2006 .

[6]  William K. Lebold,et al.  Factors Influencing the Choice of an Engineering Career , 1985, IEEE Transactions on Education.

[7]  Ming Huang,et al.  Choosing an Optimal Pedagogy: A Design Approach , 2006, Proceedings. Frontiers in Education. 36th Annual Conference.

[8]  Audra E. Kosh,et al.  Linear Algebra and its Applications , 1992 .

[9]  J. Cortes,et al.  Education - A High School-Level Course in Feedback Control - A Matlab-Based Introduction Requiring Only Algebra and Trigonometry , 2007 .

[10]  Martin Grimheden,et al.  Mechatronics Engineering Education , 2006 .

[11]  Egon Moesby.  Curriculum Development for Project-Oriented and Problem-Based Learning (POPBL) with Emphasis on Personal Skills and Abilities* , 2005 .

[12]  Marcelo C. Borba,et al.  The Mathematics of Motion, Sensors, and the Introduction of Function to Eight Graders in Brazil. , 2001 .

[13]  Javier Macías Guarasa,et al.  A project-based learning approach to design electronic systems curricula , 2006, IEEE Transactions on Education.

[14]  Yaron Doppelt,et al.  Assessment of Project-Based Learning in a MECHATRONICS Context , 2005 .

[15]  Mark Hedley,et al.  An undergraduate microcontroller systems laboratory , 1998 .