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Engineering Education for Todays Classroom
The Infinity ProjectSM Bringing Engineering
Education to Schools across the Country
infinity-project.org
The Institute for Engineering Education
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Interest in Engineering in the U.S. has declined
for 20 Years
And, over the last ten years there has been

• 50 decline in student interest in engineering
• 14 decline in engineering degrees awarded to US
  students

Source National Science Board Science and
Engineering Indicators 2002
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Without new engineers we will continue to face a
perpetual shortage
4M jobs
Engineering and Tech jobs
To meet current job forecasts, we need to add
100,000 engineers every year for a decade. The
U.S. currently graduates 60,000 engineers per
year.
3M jobs
2000
2010
Source Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2001
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The Rest of the World Recognizes the Value of
Engineering

• Europe graduates 3 times as many engineers as the
  US, Asia graduates 5 times
• 46 of the degrees awarded in China are
  engineering degrees
• Only 5 of US college degrees are in engineering

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The Bottom Line - Future U.S. Engineers are
Scarce

• Likelihood that a High School graduate obtains an
  engineering degree
• All students 2.1
• Women 0.9
• Minorities 0.8
• In a Typical High School Graduating Class of 400
  students
• There will be 8 engineers
• 5 will be white males, 2 women, 1 a minority

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Some of the Causes

• Why arent students interested in pursuing
  engineering?
• Lack of preparation
• engineering is all numbers, and Im not good at
  math
• Lack of exposure
• what is engineering?
• Lack of interest
• engineering is boring and geeky

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High School Preparation is Lagging

• Less than 10 of high school students take math
  through calculus and science through physics
• Standard for successful engineering applicants
• Only 6 of minority high school students meet
  this level of preparedness
• And most importantly, today almost no high school
  student has any meaningful engineering classroom
  experience to motivate them for further study

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Lack of Exposure

• Fact How do we expect students to be interested
  in engineering if they have never even seen it?
• Society expects students to be exposed to and
  know
• Biology - Algebra I, II
• Geometry - Pre-Calculus
• Economics - Physics
• Isnt technology-based engineering just as
  important to the future of our students?

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The Infinity ProjectSM
Exciting and Relevant Engineering Education for
Todays Students
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What is The Infinity ProjectSM?

• Award winning high school and early college
  engineering education program
• Based in The Institute for Engineering Education
• Created by nationally recognized engineering and
  educational leaders from across the country
• Supplies schools with everything they need to be
  successful
• Working with classrooms in 34 states today

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The Infinity Projects Grand Educational Challenge

• Expose young students to the excitement and
  relevance of modern high-tech engineering (early)
• Make math and science relevant and fun with hands
  on, and exciting educational experiences.
• Increase the number of students pursuing
  engineering degrees at colleges and universities.
• Create educational and economic opportunities for
  underrepresented groups.
• Connect kids to the 21st century and increase
  their technical literacy.

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Parents want Engineering Exposure for their
Children

• In recent national survey, parents choose
  engineering as first choice for children
• 75 say engineering is more important than
  business.
• 72 say engineering is more important than
  medicine.
• 58 say engineering is more important than law.
• (Source 2001 Los Angeles Times National Survey)

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Target Audience

• The Infinity Project curriculum was created as a
  conventional everyday course with extensive and
  exciting hands on engineering design activities
  and great applications of math and science.
• Infinity is appropriate for
• High School Students Sophomores - Seniors
• Early college students (Freshman engineering
  majors)
• Prerequisites Algebra II and one lab science
  course

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Classroom TechnologyThe Infinity Technology Kit

• The Complete Classroom Technology Solution
• Turns a standard PC into an engineering design
  platform.
• Integrated extensively throughout the curriculum.
  
• Supports hundreds of exciting engineering design
  projects.
• Low-cost kit manufactured by National Instruments
  includes
• Cutting Edge Texas Instruments DSP technology
• Visual Software (VAB for Infinity)
• All the peripherals you need

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Sample Design Examples

• Build digital music instruments
• Electric piano and guitar
• Create new special effects for movies
• Secretly encode messages between students
• Turn a PC into a Cell Phone

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Professional Development and Support

• The Infinity Project has a high degree of focus
  on supporting the teacher and the classroom
• The Infinity Project conducts intensive and fun
  weeklong summer institutes on the curriculum and
  technology.
• Teachers really begin to think and act like
  engineers
• On-line discussion groups with 24 hour response
  time.
• On-line materials to support classroom
  experience.
• Daily lesson plan guide
• Sample test questions with solutions
• Complete homework solutions
• Engineering Design Projects with solutions
• Chapter lecture already prepared in PowerPoint
  for instructors

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Infinity Professional Development Institutes
- 35 hours of professional development training
for new teachers offered during the summer -
Conducted by master teachers - Enriching,
relevant and fun - Hands-on and valuable
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Teacher Comments

• Every student in America should be exposed to
  this material.
• Best training I have ever seen.
• I want to run home and show this to my own
  children.
• My state needs this right now.

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Types of Schools that we areCurrently Working
With

• The Infinity Project has been proven successful
  in a wide variety of schools
• District-wide adoptions
• Large urban public schools
• Suburban public schools
• Magnet schools
• All-female schools (private)
• All-male schools (private)
• General private schools
• School for alternative learners

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Student Impact
Infinity is in place at schools in 34 states
today.

• 80 of students completing program report a very
  strong interest in pursuing engineering.
• 95 learned new math concepts
• Nearly 100 would recommend course to friend.
• Long-term, longitudinal impact studies underway

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Participating States Today

• Alaska
• Alabama
• Arkansas
• California
• Colorado
• Connecticut
• District of Columbia
• Florida
• Georgia
• Hawaii
• Iowa

• Illinois
• Kansas
• Kentucky
• Louisiana
• Maine
• Massachusetts
• Michigan
• Mississippi
• Missouri
• New Jersey
• New Mexico

• New York
• North Carolina
• Ohio
• Oklahoma
• Oregon
• Pennsylvania
• Tennessee
• Texas
• Utah
• Virginia
• West Virginia
• Wisconsin

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Joining the Infinity Project

• How Does My School Join The Infinity Project?
• It is easy.
• Winter/Spring Apply by filling out an
  application available on the Infinity website.
  (Deadlines are available on the website.)
• Follow-up interviews are conducted with teachers
  and administrators.
• New Infinity schools are announced at the end of
  spring
• Schools then acquire classroom technology and
  textbooks. Educators begin participating in
  discussion groups.
• Summer Teachers attend summer professional
  development institutes.
• Fall Teachers begin teaching course.
• Academic Year Infinity Project team supports
  classroom

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Criteria for Selection

• 1. Committed school administrators.
• 2. Motivated and qualified instructor(s) math,
  science, or technology certified instructors with
  moderate comfort level using computer programs.
  
• 3. Energetic students with the appropriate
  prerequisites sophomore, juniors or seniors who
  have completed Algebra II and one lab science
  course.
• 4. Sufficient lab equipment and space.
• 5. Community that will benefit from program.

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Typical Total Program Costs

• Professional Development for Teachers
• 750/teacher plus travel expenses
• Classroom Technology Acquisition
• Available through National Instruments
• 400/kit typically 10 kits per school
• Course Textbook Student Lab Manual
• Available through Prentice Hall
• 50/textbook Engineering Our Digital Future
• 15/student lab manual

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How do I learn more about the Infinity Project?

• www.infinity-project.org
• Visit the website to download this PowerPoint, a
  video describing the program, teacher comments,
  sample materials, and all the application forms.

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Current List of Partners

• Universities
• Created by Institute for Engineering Education at
  SMU
• Other participating universities include Georgia
  Institute of Technology, Rose-Hulman Institute of
  Technology, Rice University, Texas AM
  University, University of Texas at Austin,
  University of Texas at El Paso, Prairie View AM,
  University of Michigan, Santa Clara, University
  of Houston, and many others.
• Corporate Government
• Texas Instruments
• Department of Education
• National Instruments
• National Science Foundation
• Tyco, Compaq, Microsoft
• And others