Applying Lean Six Sigma to Improve Engineering Technology Students' Math Skills

摘要

We incorporated experiential learning projects into the undergraduate Lean Six Sigma Engineering Technology course at the university, where the students work on real-world community-based projects to engage with community organizations to design process improvements. One of the areas for improvement that was identified was to investigate opportunities for improving the math skills of the Engineering Technology (ET) students. The ET program within the university requires a solid background in math. Students should at least have basic knowledge in topics like calculus, trigonometry, and statistics. It has become apparent that the ET students lack the appropriate math skills. The department added a math preparatory course in which students are currently struggling. Over 21% of the students that completed the math preparatory course received a D, or F grade in the Fall 2018 semester. The Fall 2018 math scores for the ET students had a 46% D, F, W (withdraw) rate. Improvement ideas were generated that will be investigated for future implementation by the ET department. The improvement ideas included: 1) incorporate an online math preparatory program to help students practice math skills prior to taking the math preparatory course; 2) revise and enhance the math preparatory course to include reduced course topics, and incorporating expectations to help students understand how the math skills relate to engineering applications and knowledge further in their program of study; 3) incorporate additional support services such as tutoring, and academic coaching; 4) incorporate class incentives to perform additional practice problems, achieving perfect attendance and other appropriate elements that could enhance motivation and study skills. Lean Six Sigma DMAIC and the tools applied were highly effective in extracting the root causes and improvements that can enhance the Engineering Technology students' math skills.