A self-assessment of the use of evidence-based instructional practices in Engineering

The purpose of this paper is to describe the methodology and preliminary results used in a National Science Foundation (NSF) funded project whose purpose is to conduct a self-assessment of the instructional practices used in the College of Engineering at Pennsylvania State University. The project was funded in the fall of 2012 by the NSF WIDER (Widening Implementation and Demonstration of Evidence-based Reforms). The overall goals of the study are to 1) characterize the use of evidence-based practices in engineering undergraduate programs, 2) understand the major barriers that faculty and administrators see to wider use of evidence-based practices, and 3) identify faculty who are making exemplary use of evidence-based practices so that these practices can be celebrated and used to encourage others to adopt them. The multi-faceted study used a combination of quantitative and qualitative measures to answer research questions relating to the above project goals. This paper discusses the methodology used during each of four study stages (syllabi analysis, student survey, faculty survey, and interviews with faculty and administrators), provides preliminary results, and discusses next steps. Suggestions for others conducting similar studies at their institutions are provided, in terms of both methodology and study administration.