Systematic Thermal Science Course Development At The United States Military Academy

The mission of the United States Military Academy (USMA) is “To educate, train, and inspire the Corps of Cadets so that each graduate is a commissioned leader of character committed to the values of Duty, Honor, Country; professional growth throughout a career as an officer in the United States Army; and a lifetime of selfless service to the nation.” In order to accomplish this mission, USMA cadets endure 47 months of demanding training, which includes eight academic semesters. Each cadet receives a Bachelor of Science degree, upon graduation, and is commissioned as an officer in the United States Army. Currently, each graduate, regardless of major, is required to take a minimum of five engineering courses. These five-course engineering sequences are offered in seven disciplines; Computer Science and Civil, Electrical, Environmental, Mechanical, Nuclear and Systems Engineering. The five-course sequence is being restructured for the class of 2005. The resulting sequence will include an information technology course, an integrative experience, and a new three-course engineering sequence that progresses from predominantly science to mostly design content. The new three-course engineering sequences will be offered in the same seven disciplines. This change to the academic program has driven the requirement for the development of a number of new courses. The new mechanical engineering sequence includes an introductory thermal science course. This course, which introduces cadets to the fundamentals of thermodynamics, fluid mechanics, and heat transfer will be taught to non-engineering majors. This atypical group of students forces the development team to construct a completely new course. The engineering design process is used as a facility to drive the development of this course from problem definition, through design and analysis, to implementation. Unique aspects of this course include the identification of customer (Army) requirements, class size, and composition. Since all cadets enter the Army after graduation, we consider the Army our main constituent. Thus, the course is developed by focusing on typical Army thermal systems. Class size is limited to 18 students, in this case, all non-engineering majors. This class make-up has prompted a very active learning Page 7.052.1 Proceedings of the 2002 American Society for Engineering Education Annual Conference and Exposition Copyright ©2002, American Society for Engineering Education environment with multiple demonstrations, physical models, and laboratories. This paper presents a detailed discussion of how this thermal science course was developed at USMA. The West Point Environment The United States Military Academy (USMA), located in West Point, New York, is one of the premier commissioning sources of officers in the US Army. The Military Academy admits about 1,300 students each year from over 10,000 applicants. Each applicant’s file is screened for academic, athletic and extracurricular achievement. Furthermore, each candidate must pass a physical fitness test and examination. Finally they must receive a nomination from one of their state’s congressmen prior to admission. This stringent admission process is imposed to admit only those applicants who possess the potential to become outstanding officers in the Army. After gaining admission and completing an arduous summer of military training they are considered part of the Corps of Cadets (student body), a group of approximately 4,000 cadets.