Sample size This is the total number of students in the study. In studies that involved comparison or experimental groups, it is the sum of the treated and untreated students. Some articles stated the sample size in the text, in others, it was found in tables. In some cases, the number of students was estimated based on information on the number of groups/teams and students per group.
Section {definition to be developed}
Self-assessment Self-assessment asks students to review their work to determine what they have learned and what areas of confusion still exist. Although methods of self-assessment vary, all include time for students to consider and thoughtfully evaluate their progress.
Self-paced instruction Self-paced instruction is a teaching method that allows students to progress through a course at their own pace. Examinations and quizzes help insure that students have obtained the necessary skills and knowledge. Instructors are available to help students as needed.
Simulated companies Simulated companies are used to engage students in a real-world application of typical team problem-solving. Simulated companies are often used in conjunction with the teaching of economic aspects of engineering design.
Simulation A simulation is an imitation of some real device or state of affairs. It attempts to represent certain features of the behavior of a physical or abstract system by the behavior of another system... Simulation is an important feature when engineering systems�Most engineering simulations entail mathematical modeling and computer assisted investigation. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Simulation [Accessed 09/07/05]
Site visits Students travel to business and industrial sites to gain firsthand knowledge of the work of professional engineers.
Skill enhancement Additional instruction is given to students, at-risk students, in particular, to increase their academic achievement and retention.
Small group Small groups are groups of ranging in size from three to usually no more than six.
Social arrangement This category provides information about how students were arranged or organized during the intervention. These arrangements include individual, pair, small group, team, whole class, or cluster. The coding is based on statements made in the articles and not the coder�s interpretation of them. For instance, if an article said that students worked in teams, then the article was coded as "team," which connotes a division of roles and responsibilities, when, in fact, the social arrangement may really have been loosely formed small groups.
Social sciences This category includes business and social science disciplines that served as the context or subject matter for an engineering-related course in which an intervention took place.
Software packages A software package is a bundle of one or several files that either are necessary for the execution of an educational computer program, or additional features for a program already installed on the computer or network of computers.
Special Engineering These institutions award most of their bachelor's or graduate degrees in technical fields of study.
Special Other Institutions in this category include graduate centers, maritime academies, military institutions, and institutions that do not fit any other classification category.
Special engineering institutions These institutions award most of their bachelor�s or graduate degrees in technical fields of study.
Special other institutions Institutions in this category include graduate centers, maritime academies, military institutions, and institutions that do not fit any other classification category.
Specific population An article was only coded "Specific Population" if the research targeted a specific group for study and/or that group was singled out in one or more analyses. Selecting "Specific Populations" will produce outcomes for articles coded Gender, Underrepresented Minority, Disability, At-risk/high-risk. However, because many articles contain many results, the verbatim result presented in the outcomes section may not necessarily refer to the specific group. Website users should consult the original article for more specific results.
State system The intervention took place in all colleges/universities in a state system.
Student assessment (evaluation) This subcategory is still underdevelopment. It will include the various methods used to assess the efficacy of innovative forms of student assessment. Currently, there are too few studies on student assessment to develop a representative list. Consequently, the methods have been entered under
Student community Communities of students organized to assist new and continuing students in their acclimation to the university environment by providing support for the social, bureaucratic, and administrative hurdles they might encounter in the future.
Student learning (outcome). Outcomes were coded as student learning if the results were presented in terms of student knowledge, understanding, or learning.
Student retention (intervention) This subcategory codes interventions designed to increase student retention or decrease student attrition in a course, major, or the college/university.
Student retention (evaluation) This subcategory provides information on the method(s) used to assess the efficacy of interventions related to student retention.
Studio {definition to be developed}
Studio approach {definition to be developed}
Study Characteristics This category provides basic information about each study. It answers the questions Who (grade level(s), population, sample size), Where (location of the study, type of institution, locus of application), and How (theory, nature of the research, duration of the intervention, length of the study, social arrangement).
Subject/Content area This category captures data on the subject, content, and/or context of the learning environment in which the intervention took place. Items in this category are limited to overarching knowledge areas. Specific courses and course titles are not included. Many articles were coded to more than one category and many were coded to more than one item within a category. The category is divided into seven major subcategories: engineering major, engineering fundamentals, design, laboratories, laboratory courses, basic sciences, social sciences, and humanities.
Supplementary instruction Supplementary instruction programs are learning enhancement programs that target high-risk courses (not students) and offer assistance on an outreach basis in regularly scheduled, out of class sessions.
Supplementary/remedial coursework Supplementary and remedial coursework targets potentially at-risk students by providing additional attention and materials in order to help them better prepare for classroom coursework.
Synchronous Communiciation technologies and learning environments/technologies that allow users to communicate with each other and /or work together at the same time.