Meeting Minutes, September 26, 2006
Attending: Vogt, Thamvichai, Zheng, Deng, Petzold
1. We need to identify constituency to request needs to incorporate into the curriculum. We will work through the IAC, as it is reconstituted, to obtain those needs. This effort will be in parallel with and share data with the rewrite of the Educational Objectives. Action: Think of some questions or question phrasing to ask companies that would obtain the information we need. Everyone for next meeting.
2. We need to have a curriculum change ready to go by early next semester.
3. Outcome Assessment KEY ITEM: CLOSING THE LOOP
a. After reviewing the assessment data from Spring 2005, we have determined the following two actions should be taken:
i. Need more assessment data for outcome e. Kay and assessment committee will obtain this data, probably from ECE 201 (Petzold), ECE 202 (Glazos), ECE 221(Thamvichai), and ECE 311 (Vogt). More classes should have an outcome similar to e in their course outcomes. Outcome e is “Students will be able to design a component, system, or process while meeting realistic constraints.”
ii. We need to add technical writing to our curriculum to improve outcome f,
which states “Students will produce professional communications appropriate to the discipline and situation.” One idea on how to do this is to link a 2 – 3 credit tech writing class with a lab class (such as ECE 311). The tech writing would start at a proposal, and continue through to final report, with technical content coming from ECE 311 lab. ACTION: Talk to Jamie Heiman, Assistant Professor in the English department to discuss possibilities. Ultimately, this will need to go through English Dept. Chair, ECE dept. chair, and COFH Dean and COSE Dean. Assigned to Petzold.
b. Issue: Circuits I and II don’t transfer in or out well, and scheduling for multiple sections is problematic. One solution is to remove the lab from ECE 201 and 202, put it into a 1 credit lab course. This would free up time in 201 and 202 for other topics, such as op amps (201) and Laplace transforms (202). ECE 311 could then take Differential amps from ECE 312, and 312 topics moved to senior electives (stronger elective analog electronics). Will investigate further, for both programs.
c. Transferability of first two years from other institutions. Some thought will be given to how courses such as Chem II could transfer to our curriculum, so transfer students can transfer more credits into our program.
4. For next time: Develop proposals to open up credits for the various extra courses we are adding. Action item: For entire committee.
5. For next time: Philosophy of senior electives. How do we want to manage our senior electives, and develop the best engineers. Action items: For entire committee.
