Comparison Of Education Models For Increasing Student Exposure To Engineering In Developing Countries

The challenge of increasing the exposure of undergraduate engineers to the opportunities for, and constraints on, working in developing countries has resulted, at the University of Notre Dame, in the examination of three models for providing appropriate learning experiences. Experience with a multidisciplinary experiential seminar on water supply in Haiti (involving students from multiple colleges at the University of Notre Dame) is compared both with a cross-disciplinary elective course on water supply development (again, involving students from multiple colleges at the University of Notre Dame) and with an REU (Research Experience for Undergraduates) site focused on water resources in developing countries (involving students from a number of universities and focused on research in Benin, Haiti, Honduras, and Chile). The Haiti seminar and the REU program both involve travel to, and interaction with, locals in the developing country. Impact of these three models on student learning is examined through application of surveys to students participating in each of these models, the pool of students applying to the research projects, a control group of senior engineering students, and representatives from industry. Both entrance and exit surveys were administered to the students in the elective course and students participating in the REU program. Among the similarities observed among students in all three groups was an increased perception (in particular, compared to the industry representatives) of need for education on international issues and the liberal arts. Differences among the groups were correlated to the primary learning objectives of the three models. Additionally, the Haiti and REU models attracted a disproportionately large percentage of women. Introduction The Department of Civil Engineering and Geological Sciences at the University of Notre Dame has dedicated effort to increasing awareness among undergraduates of the role of the engineer as a significant contributor within a multidisciplinary team for addressing water resources in developing countries. This effort is related closely to the recognition at Notre Dame, as well as at other institutions of higher education1, that there is an increasing need to expose undergraduate engineering students to the social, political and cultural components of engineering practice. Three models of learning experience (summarized in Table 1) have been utilized in at Notre Dame with various levels of commitment of financial resources, faculty time, and risk: P ge 807.1 “Proceedings of the 2003 American Society for Engineering Education Annual Conference & Exposition Copyright @ 2003, American Society for Engineering Education” Model 1: A classroom experience taught entirely at Notre Dame on development of • international water resources (enrollment included a combination of engineering and nonengineering students), Model 2: An experiential seminar involving an interdisciplinary team of Notre Dame • students who train at Notre Dame and then travel to Haiti to work on hand-pump repair, and Model 3: An REU site on water resources in developing countries (supported by the NSF • Research Experience for Undergraduates program) involving students from multiple universities who train at Notre Dame and then join faculty from Notre Dame, the University of New Mexico (Dr. Michael Campana), or the University of Nevada, Reno (Dr. Scott Tyler) for research experiences outside the United States. The classroom experience involves students from a variety of disciplines who study the technological, economic, political and social aspects of developing water resource projects (of various magnitudes) in developing countries. The course involves student projects completed in cooperation with contacts in developing countries. This course requires commitment of one faculty member for the semester in which the course is offered. There are no significant financial issues (either to the student or the university) related with this learning experience. The classroom experience is limited to no more than 20 students per semester. The experiential seminar involves 5-10 undergraduates from Notre Dame (including both engineers and non-engineers) who train two-hours per week over 8-12 weeks on hand-pump repair and then travel with a faculty member to Haiti. In Haiti, this group works with the local population in training on hand-pump repair and sustainable maintenance of water wells. The majority of the costs associated with this seminar are borne by Notre Dame (through internal funds and private donations). The course requires a commitment of one faculty member, as well as travel time to Haiti for that same faculty member (usually 10 days to 2 weeks). In addition to the financial commitment required for this seminar, there are a number of risks to the students and faculty in this seminar. These include travel within the U.S., air travel to Haiti, ground transportation in Haiti, the risks commonly associated with fieldwork on wells, and the lack of availability of medical care in Haiti. Risks associated with housing, food, and vehicle care are minimized, in this seminar, through long-term association of this seminar with a missionary compound in northern Haiti. The REU (research experience for undergraduates) site involves 8 students (supplemented with additional funding to include additional students) who participate in general training at Notre Dame, followed by project-specific preparation at one of the three participating schools (Notre Dame, University of New Mexico, and University of Nevada Reno). Each student then joins a faculty member on a short-term research project in a developing country. Following return from the developing country, the students present results of their effort at a student research symposium. This experience represents the highest cost of the three learning experiences in terms of faculty commitment, financial requirements, and risk. The training portion of this REU requires full time effort of one faculty member for approximately 4 weeks. The international P ge 807.2 “Proceedings of the 2003 American Society for Engineering Education Annual Conference & Exposition Copyright @ 2003, American Society for Engineering Education” Table 1: Models examined for a learning experience related to engineering in a developing country. Model 1 is the classroom experience. Model 2 is the Haiti seminar. Model 3 is the REU program. Model Limited to Notre Dame Students? Limited to Engineering Students? Travel to Developing Country? Approximate Group Size When Offered Minimum Number of Faculty Required Estimated Cost Estimate Of Risk 1 Y N N 10-20 Semester 1 Low Low 2 Y N Y 10 Semester 1 High High 3 N N Y 10 Summer 3 High High