This project is a partnership between the Configurable Space Microsystems and Innovations Center at the University of New Mexico, Chandler-Gilbert Community College, Glendale Community College, Central Arizona College and J.F. Drake State Technical College to create a complete on-line curriculum, including laboratories, in the area of field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs) for electrical and computer technicians that is suitable for community colleges. The goals of this project include (1) development of an online core curriculum (including laboratory material) for FPGA technician education, (2) establishment of FPGA laboratories at four community colleges, (3) a series of educational workshops for 90 academic instructors to build teaching capacity at the community colleges, (4) increased use of hardware description language (HDL) design techniques in degree and certificate programs at community colleges with articulation to 4-year degree programs, and (5) the creation of an industry advisory council to establish skill standards for FPGA technicians. The project starts with four community colleges and ultimately expands to twelve institutions, thus ensuring that the project has statewide impact and that students from a variety of backgrounds and groups have the opportunity to participate. The course materials developed in this project are being made available electronically at no cost via an existing web portal hosted by the University of New Mexico. The project includes rigorous formative and summative evaluation plans with both qualitative and quantitative components coordinated by an independent evaluator. The evaluation plan is designed to establish the quality of the materials and to ensure the project goals are met.
This project was designed to create technicians with skills related to Field Programmable Gate Arrays and a specific Hardware Descriptive Language called VHDL.? The original plan of the project was to train instructors through a series of only a handful of workshops.?? However, the team quickly realized that there was a way to accomplish more workshops and quicker within the fiscal limits of the project.? The team found there was such a high demand for the workshop that there was no reason to pay attendees a stipend.? In addition, the team discovered it was more cost effective to travel to the instructors that needed the training than to have the instructors leave their schools for the training.? Finally, based on huge demand, the team also created an advanced two day workshop for instructors.? This advanced workshop gave instructors more than what would have been possible through a single two day workshop.?? DUE-1003736 was entitled ?Developing the Digital Technologist for the New Millennium? with dates of July, 2010 to June, 2014. The Sponsored Research Office (SRO) was the University of New Mexico and the Co-PI was Mr. Craig Kief (PI on this proposal). The goal of this ATE project was to affect specialized technology courses in digital electronics for technician instructors that contribute to the ATE Program?s central goals of producing more qualified technicians to meet workforce demands and improving the technical skills of technicians and the educators who prepare them. To accomplish this, the project presented thirteen two-day Basic FPGA and seven two-day Advanced FPGA Workshops using the VHDL language. The project prepared educators to transition from teaching digital electronics with fixed logic devices (e.g. TTL devices) to newer programmable devices. A library of tutorials and laboratory exercises were developed to support digital electronics instruction with VHDL. Participants in the Basic FPGA Workshops included 86 community college instructors from 66 different colleges in 18 states and 79 professors from 56 different four-year colleges/universities in 22 states. Of the 86 community college instructors, 33 instructors also attended the Advanced FPGA Workshop as did 32 of the 79 instructors from four-year institutions. Biannual follow-up surveys showed that 26 community college instructors integrated FPGA instruction into their digital electronics courses. A total of 1,214 hours of FPGA instruction were delivered impacting 824 students. This yielded a total of 25,274 student-hours of FPGA instruction. At the four-year technical college/university level, 32 professors integrated FPGA instruction into their digital electronics courses over the same period of time. A total of 999 hours of FPGA instruction were delivered impacting 1,521 students. This yielded a total of 22,112 student-hours of FPGA instruction. Survey data indicated that of the students receiving FPGA instruction, four had received certificates, 72 has received associate degrees, and 41 had received bachelor?s degree during the 2012-13 academic year. This project created FPGA tutorials for the VHDL language that were used to teach instructors across the country. This material is still widely in use today but, all materials are now almost four years old. The data presented here was gathered at the end of Project Year 3 and this was the first time any students who had received FPGA instruction had graduated. More students with FPGA skills and training will be graduating in future years (but tracking has ended since the grant ended).
