Project Based Learning In Engineering Mechanics: Inspection And Analysis Of A Historic Truss Bridge

The civil engineering program at Western Kentucky University (WKU) is a project-based curriculum. Students have opportunities to engage in real project activities in order to develop an understanding of civil engineering practice. Projects are chosen that support student engagement, where the role of the students is as learners, observers, assistants and practitioners. For example, in a sophomore level mechanics course at WKU, engineering students worked in teams to perform a preliminary physical field inspection and analysis of a historic steel truss bridge located in Bowling Green, Kentucky. The focus of the paper is to present the work performed by the students and how the project was integrated into the course curriculum where the concepts of engineering mechanics discussed in class were related directly to the bridge. Students appreciated this approach to learning which offers a unique hands-on experience where students actively participate by working in the field on an existing structure.