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Deploying this Case Study in the Classroom

The instructor should have a complete copy of the full WJE report [We still need TennDOT permission for this, don't we?] with the understanding that the students will be given access only to the appropriate sections as the case is being developed.

The instructor is to be a guide to keep the students focused on finding the solution to the problem and developing good functional teams. However, the instructor should limit specific details so as not interfere in the students’ discovery of the probable cause of the failure.

The instructor may need to review or extend basic structural theory to the class, but being careful not to give the solution to the case. Students should have a basic understanding of the theory of structural analysis and design including Shear and Moment Diagrams for determinate and indeterminate structures, elastic and inelastic buckling, etc.

The instructor should establish criteria determining what, when and how the results of the teams and the class as a whole should be. The detail of the reports will depend upon how much time is available to study the case and somewhat on the enthusiasm generated by the students. It might be appropriate to allow a team to continue looking at more details of the case while other teams concentrate on different parts of the case.

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Assignments

Notes To the Instructor

The estimated number of one hour class periods to allocate to the assignment or sub-assignment in the following discussion items is represented by a capital 'I' followed by a number within parentheses [e.g., I(2) would mean two in-class hours]. Likewise, the out of class time effort (research, planning, preparation etc.) expected of the students during the case study is represented by a capital 'O' followed by the estimated number of hours [e.g., O(3) would be three out-of-class hours].

An overview of the deployment of this case study can be found here to aid you in using this case.

 
Case Study Preparation & Installation
[A few days prior to deploying case in classroom]
 
 
Instructor Tasks
 		  
Student Tasks
 
Reading Instructor Information Page  O(1)    
Installing case study  O(1)    
Case/documentation familiarization  O(2)    
 
Assignment 1
 
 
Instructor Tasks
 		  
Student Tasks
 
 
[Day 1]
 
  • Introduce the case study
  • Demonstrate case study navigation;
  • Discuss assignments & schedule;
  • Cover outcomes expectations & grading guidelines;
  • Break class into teams of 3-4 students; and
  • Review team etiquette and participant expectations
 I(1)    
   
  • Read WJE Report Chapters 1-3
  • Review engineering documentation
 O(3-4)
 
[Day 2 or electronically (via E-mail)]
 
    Brainstorm potential construction loads that may have caused the structural failure and potential resources for establishing the likelihood of the listed loads. I(1) &
O(1)
 
[Day 2 or 3]
 
    (Orally) present all team findings to the class I(.75)
Provide discussion on students' conclusions and specific findings by WJE I(.25)    
 
Assignment 2
 
 
Instructor Tasks
 		  
Student Tasks
 
 
[Prior to class]
 
Update WJE Chapter 3 for student access O(.25)    
    Review WJE Chapter 3 & Engr Data O(1)
 
[Day 1]
 
    Team brainstorm: list possible failure mechanism mode(s)
Develop a short description of the most likely scenario
Prepare and present an oral discussion of the team's conclusion		 I(.5)
    Reach a class consensus of not more than 2 scenarios I(.25)
Depending upon the background of the students and the amount of time available to allocate to this case, the instructor may elect to share the WJE conclusion with the students and terminate the case study
-OR-
Continue to Assignment 3		 I(.25)    
 
Assignment 3
 
 
Instructor Tasks
 		  
Student Tasks
 
 
[Day 1]
 
Review the results of Assignment 2 and appropriate support from WJE report to ensure students have clear understanding of agreed upon scenario. I(.25)    
    Team is to list suggested steps required to evaluate the proposed scenario. This evaluation should include details of loading, methods of analysis, and significant variables to be considered. I(.75)
 
Assignment 4
 
 
Instructor Tasks
 		  
Student Tasks
 
 
[Day 1]
 
Discuss detailed requirements of Assignment 4 I(.1)    
    Team is to develop a proposed general lab setup to demonstrate the assumed failure scenario. I(.5)
    Teams are to present their proposed lab setup to class. I(.25)
Facilitate discussion on team lab setups. I(.15)    
 
[Day 2 to 3]
 
    After class discussion, teams are to design a detailed laboratory setup including detail dimensions, loads etc. O(3-4)
    Develop materials including documentation for brief presentation to instructor. O(1)
Direct conference with each team to discuss and critique design before team undertakes construction. O(.5) per team    
 
[Day 3 to 4]
 
    Review and implement instructor's suggested changes to design. O(1)
    Construct proposed laboratory setup. O(3)
    Video the tests and compare with the expected results. O(3)
 
[Day 5]
 
    Present results to the class either using the videos or actual tests. I(.25)
After presentation, facilitate class discussions in order to make recommendations for improvements to the lab setup. I(.1) per team    
Provide WJE Chapter 8 conclusions and more detailed data from Chapter 7 if appropriate. I(.25)    

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Updating WJE Chapter 3

In an effort to make it difficult for the students to "look ahead" in the case, it is necessary to hide portions of Chapter 3 of the Wiss, Janney, Elstner report until after they complete Assignment 1. The following are instructions for updating Chapter 3 to include data concerning wind, temperature, and seismic activity (i.e., the full version).

The students will access WJE Chapter 3 from the file wje-rpt3.htm contained in the directory WJE which is a sub-directory of the case study's root directory.

There are two HTML files contained in this directory (the directory that you are viewing this instructor's guide from).

To set the appropriate chapter for the students to view, you will need to copy the desired chapter to the WJE sub-directory of the case study's root directory. The following set of steps should do this for you.

  1. The list of files above contains a hot link for each of the versions of the WJE Chapter 3. Right-click on the version that you wish to have the students view.
  2. In the menu that appears, click on "Save Link As..." in Netscape or "Save Target As..." in Internet Explorer.
  3. In the window that appears, navigate to the WJE sub-directory of the case study's root directory.
  4. In the "File Name:" text box of the window, enter the new file name WJE-rpt3.htm.
  5. An alert box will appear asking you if you want to replace the existing file. Select "Yes".
  6. The correct version of Chapter 3 should now be available to the student. Using the case study site, navigate to the Chapter 3 page to verify this.

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