The goal of this project is to research sustainability across contexts (environmental, economic, social, technical, and individual) in order to determine the best methodologies for teaching these contexts across academic disciplines (in our case: engineering, integrated science and technology, psychology, education, English, and communication studies). We are working to determine the most effective ways in which to assess these methodologies using behaviors as educational outcomes. This research has focused on creating cognitive dissonance by demonstrating to students the difference between their stated values and behaviors across sustainability contexts. Key studies have focused primarily on individual sustainability, but smaller catalyst studies have also focused on the self-knowledge that informs decision making and problem solving, cultivating mindfulness as an approach to sustainable living, understanding the self as a sustainable system, promoting sustainable student and reader behaviors in literature, and changes in metacognitive strategies and exam performance by attribution status (among others). The final deliverable will be the first iteration of a low-cost scalable and transferable global model for instructional integration that will allow students and faculty to engage in meaningful and intentional self-development of behaviors in specific sustainability content areas.
Dr. Robert Nagel is a Professor and Director of the Department of Engineering at Carthage College. Dr. Nagel, a mechanical engineer by training, performs research on engineering student learning and engagement with a focus on interventions, pedagogies, and design methodologies. He seeks to gain applicable knowledge for increasing student engagement and reducing barriers in engineering, design, and making.
Dr. Elise Barrella is an Assistant Professor of Engineering at James Madison University, who focuses teaching, scholarship, service, and student mentoring on transportation systems, sustainability, and engineering design. Dr. Barrella completed her Ph.D. in Civil Engineering at Georgia Tech where she conducted research in transportation and sustainability as part of the Infrastructure Research Group (IRG). Dr. Barrella has investigated best practices in engineering education since 2003 (at Bucknell University) and began collaborating on sustainable engineering design research while at Georgia Tech. She is currently engaged in course development and instruction for the junior design sequence and the freshman design experience, along with coordinating junior capstone at JMU. In addition to the Ph.D. in Civil Engineering, Dr. Barrella holds a Master of City and Regional Planning (Transportation) from Georgia Institute of Technology and a B.S. in Civil Engineering from Bucknell University.
Eric Pappas is Professor of Integrated Science and Technology at James Madison University and formerly a faculty member in the College of Engineering at Virginia Tech (1993-2003).
Jesse Pappas studied self-insight, intentional self-development, and the role of emotion in self-perception at University of Virginia, where he received a Ph.D. in social psychology in 2012. His dissertation project involved adapting established professional development tools to facilitate the personal and academic success of college students. Jesse currently serves as Assessment Director and Assistant Professor at Future Generations Graduate School. As a research fellow in the School of Engineering at James Madison University, he works to equip future scientists and engineers with the personal and social savvy they need to thrive in today’s complex professional environments.
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