Work in progress — A Concept Map for Mechanics of Materials

The Mechanics of Materials course is fundamental to all areas of solid mechanics in engineering. It is commonly a “gatekeeper” course and generally considered “difficult” by students. Educators across several engineering disciplines have attempted to improve learning through efforts such as: developing physical demonstration models for classroom use, writing computer programs for independent learning, and conducting concept inventory studies to uncover the underlying cause of learning difficulty. This paper describes the development of a Concept Map for Mechanics of Materials. The map serves as the focal point for discussions and questions, and is simple enough so that anyone can re-create its salient features as a hand-drawn sketch. This concept map has been used and assessed as a tool to review the Mechanics of Materials course before administering a gateway exam in the next-level course, and as a tool for the Fundamentals of Engineering Exam review course. Preliminary assessment results indicate this concept map is an effective tool to use for teaching or reviewing Mechanics of Materials.