Longitudinal assessment of the Integrated Curriculum in Engineering (ICE)

This paper describes the contents and results of a program designed to improve the experience of students in the freshman engineering curriculum. The Integrated Curriculum in Engineering (ICE) placed freshmen engineering student volunteers into specifically designed sections of the foundation courses required of all engineering students. These include the calculus sequence, the physics sequence, the humanities sequence, social sciences, and introductory engineering courses. The assessment of this program includes informal and formal components and longitudinal assessment of the program, as to the effect it had on the students´ success in their upper level courses. The formal and longitudinal assessment measures include attitudinal surveys about use of teams, use of active learning, use of computer technology, use of software, adjustment to the university, and a variety of other topics.