Engineering Education, Sustainable Development, Community Engagement
As an educator for over 16 years, I have experimented with a lot of things in and out of the classroom. It became clear that experimentation isn’t enough without a pedagogical framework and assessment tools to evaluate the outcome of the changes I made. This section describes some of the research papers in engineering education in and out of the classroom.
Development, Implementation and Assessment of Thermodynamics Lab Kits for Remote Lab Instruction
The pandemic presented challenges across the curriculum and laboratory exercises were especially vulnerable. This project shows how a Thermodynamics lab that is a core requirement of the Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering curriculum was transformed to be carried out remotely and synchronously while allowing much needed hands-on experience. The goal is to develop modifications to the lab course that allow for remote learning while ensuring students attain the learning outcomes of the lab.
Implementation of Sustainable Integrated Aquaculture, Aquaponic, and Hydroponic Systems for Egypt’s Western Desert Through Global Community Engaged Research
The participatory project addresses the need to design and test affordable renewable energy solutions for community based, circular farming models, enhancing food production while saving resources. Students partnered to study aquaponic and hydroponic growing systems and to construct a solar-powered, integrated aquaculture and vegetable greenhouse system for a real-life oasis community in Egypt’s Western Desert.
Offering Engineering Student Global Perspective Through Experiential Learning Project in Wind Energy and Sustainability
Students from Princeton University partnered with students from the American University in Cairo in a three-week intensive hands-on field experience in Egypt. The project was to assemble, install, and test a wind- driven pump used for irrigation and to survey communities across Egypt in the Delta and Red Sea coast to assess water needs in these communities.
