1. Keywords: Laboratories, Open-Ended Problems, Teamwork, Communication, Professional Development
Students to Engineers: Scaffolding from Cookbook Labs to Open-Ended Problems
Katie Cadwell
Department of Biomedical & Chemical Engineering
College of Engineering & Computer Science
Syracuse University

2. Why?
ChemEng lab courses were boring and students weren’t gaining real-life skills
Objectives
Gradually move students from following explicit instructions to directing experiment choices and finally working through open-ended problems
Teach and reinforce team skills
Develop career-relevant communication skills
Develop self-efficacy in tackling open problems
Help students start thinking of themselves as real engineers and not just students

3. When?
Fall 2011 – Taught senior ChemEng lab course (SR Lab) 1st time, using “cookbook” format provided by previous instructor.
Spring 2012 – Similarly taught junior ChemEng lab course (JR Lab) 1st time, 100% cookbook-style. – Visited Dr. Harry Toups at LSU to observe how he runs the same two labs open-ended.
Fall 2012 – Adapted method and materials for my own resources and constraints in SR Lab, completely revamping 4/4 experiments to be delivered as open-ended, team-based projects with substantial focus on communication and teamwork skills.
Spring 2013 – Introduced small amount of experimental design and increased focus on communication skills in JR Lab.
Fall 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016 – Added a 5th open-ended experiment to SR Lab, continuing minor changes based on student feedback.
Spring 2014, 2015, 2016 – Increased focus on teamwork skills in JR Lab, introduced lecture component of lab in support.

4. Where?
Based upon: ChemEng 2-semester lab course sequence at Louisiana State University:
large program with substantial lab resources
50-60 students per semester, 11 pilot- or lab-scale units for senior lab, multiple dedicated faculty/staff, assistance from other faculty
Adapted for: similar lab sequence at Syracuse University:
small program with limited lab resources
~30 students per year, 5 lab-scale units for senior lab, one faculty with additional duties

5. What? Developed activities/materials Theory of change?
Junior ChemEng lab)
Revision of cookbook experiments to require (guided) experimental choices
Lecture/activities on how to write as an engineer, working in teams
Activities to develop formal presentation skills
Senior ChemEng lab)
2 open-ended problem statements for each existing & new equipment
Early deliverables designed to keep student teams on track over each 6-week project
Activities to reinforce good communication within teams
Activities to develop informal presentation skills, reinforce formal presentation skills
Theory of change?
Try something new (big or small) every semester. Explain your reasoning/motives to students; ask for their cooperation and feedback.
What has worked really well?
Students embrace “Learning Curve Consultants,” communications to/from (fake) clients, recommendations guided by clients’ needs
Lectures/Activities on team function
Mandating student reflection of my feedback on written reports and presentations, as well as team function

6. Prognosis?
Impact
Student comments refer to similarity to internship and first job activities and expectations
Senior capstone instructor has noted reduced time needed to teach communication and teamwork skills, increased quality of reports/presentations
This was a scale-down…talk to Dr. LSU re: scale-up
Challenges
Developing comparable workloads for vastly different experiments
Developing new open-ended projects for fixed resources
Some experiments don’t easily lead to a “realistic” design problem at the end
Grading load in CEN 311 is crushing
Advice?
How to manageably give quality feedback on individual writing assignments
Dealing with team conflict
See “Challenges” above