Learning from Engineering Disaster Gary Halada Stony Brook University Keywords: Ethics, values, authenticity, failure analysis, complexity, risk analysis

Why? What problem are you solving? – Need for authenticity in STEM education experiences (aside from internships and some research and design activities) – Response to ABET criteria (ethics and professionalism; contemporary issues; global context; multidisciplinary teams) – Enhancement of access and multicampus collaborations via online and hybrid course development What are your educational objectives? Students learn about: Causes of failure, including ethical issues and materials-related causes Psychology of failure Probabilistic risk assessment Enhancing reliability of complex, real-world systems Value sensitive engineering

When? Developmental history: – Classroom course taught for six years, evolving from simple lectures on case studies to more interactive problem-based learning – Recently received institutional support (Stony Brook Online Learning Development (S-BOLD) Initiative Award) to develop online version – Currently recording lectures and demonstrations – Interviews and site visits set up for module development – To be integrated into classroom course in Spring 2016, with full online version available Summer 2016

Where? Have you tried this in other institutions? – Not yet, but will be made available to seven local colleges (five four year, two community colleges) that are part of an NSF-supported multi- campus energy education initiative – Course includes energy and energy infrastructure case studies

What? What learning activities and materials have you developed? – Case studies and knowledge building modules for key concepts – E Portfolio based learning and assessment (Digication) – VoiceThread lectures (in development) – Video interviews and site visits (in development) – Quality Matters review What is your theory of change? – Authenticity via problem-based learning in an active, collaborative environment and focusing on relevant, dynamic problems – Role of narrative in motivating learning by students from diverse populations (as well as recruitment of students to STEM disciplines) – Accomplishing this in an on-line, widely available format What has worked really well? – Classroom version has proven successful for over 700 students from 18 majors (including all engineering disciplines). – Having students work in teams to analyze and report on a current engineering disaster throughout the semester

Prognosis? How are you documenting impact? – Assessment to include surveys by students and by faculty who adopt course – ABET feedback and assessment process How do you plan to scale-up? – Reach out to other SUNY campuses through Open SUNY What challenges are you currently facing? – Development of effective assignments and interactive learning activities appropriate for an on line environment What advice would you like from others at FOEE? – Best practices for online course development and delivery – Methods for dissemination beyond Open SUNY and local campuses