This CCLI Phase 1 project is threading kinesthetic blacksmithing activities into a Metallurgical Engineering Program to improve student learning and motivation. The project is redesigning sophomore- through senior-level laboratories to include metalworking components to help students develop a better understanding of how microstructural development relates to mechanical properties. Additional project activities include: 1) expanding a weekly open forge time for all interested campus science and engineering students, 2) establishing an annual exhibit featuring undergraduate student work at the campus art gallery, 3) building and equipping a mobile trailer for outreach activities, and 4) training undergraduate student in technical communications. The project includes strong outreach to Native American high schools and two-year colleges. Program outcomes are being measured through five interrelated assessment instruments including materials concept inventories, longitudinal student tracking, the Teamwork KSA inventory, and the Hermann Brain Dominance and Kolb inventories. A blueprint teaching and implementation strategy for other schools and a web-based seminar are being used to disseminate the project.
