2 MIDFIELD Institute 2019
MIDFIELD Institute
June 3–4, 2019
Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana, USA
Neil Armstrong Hall of Engineering
Room B-098 (basement)
Contact: Russell Long, ralong@purdue.edu with questions
Registration: http://www.conf.purdue.edu/MIDFIELD.
2.1 Description
We are offering the first Multiple Institution Database for Investigating Engineering Longitudinal Development (MIDFIELD) Institute on Monday June 3 and Tuesday June 4, 2019 in West Lafayette, Indiana.
We welcome faculty, staff, and graduate students.
Our learning objectives can be categorized in two broad classes: qualitative and computational. Qualitatively, by the end of the workshop participants should be able to:
- Describe the data available in MIDFIELD
- Describe how the MIDFIELD data are organized
- Describe key principles of effective data visualization
- Identify deficiencies of common graph types
Computationally, participants should be able use midfieldr, an R package specifically designed for use with MIDFIELD, to:
- Calculate and evaluate educational metrics
- Produce a table of data that addresses a research question
- Explore and tell a story from MIDFIELD data
2.2 Before you arrive
- MIDFIELD Workshops for an introduction to MIDFIELD and the workshop facilitators.
- Getting started for pre-workshop software installation instructions—assuming you plan on using your own laptop. If not, we will have computers available onsite.
- Optional: For several years now, we have been using R to explore and present the stories in the MIDFIELD data. To see a sample of our data graphics, you can follow the links in the publications section.
2.3 Sunday agenda
2019-06-02
This is an optional session designed for R novices.
| Time | Activities |
|---|---|
| 4:30–5:30 pm | Optional. Time to help anyone needing assistance with the software installation. |
| 5:30–6:00 pm | Introductions. Introduce presenters, participants, and learning objectives. Verify that software is installed. |
| 6:00 | Pizza should arrive |
| 6:00–6:50 | R basics. The RStudio environment and R objects, functions, and scripts |
| 7:00–7:50 | Graph basics. Meet ggplot, geom layers, aesthetic mappings, and facets. Writing graphs to file. |
| 8:00–8:50 | Data basics. Data import, data structure, and data transformation. Writing data to file. |
| 9:00 | Adjourn |
2.4 Monday agenda
2019-06-03
| Time | Activities |
|---|---|
| 8:30–9:00 | Breakfast. Provided in the workshop room. |
| 9:00–10:00 | Introductions. Introduce facilitators, objectives, MIDFIELD. Introduce participants. |
| 10:00–12:00 | Guided practice. Introduction. Self-paced tutorials using midfieldr and midfielddata. |
| 12:00–1:00 | Lunch. Provided in the workshop room. |
| 1:00–1:30 | Metaphors and metrics. Pipelines, pathways, and ecosystems. |
| 1:30–2:00 | Defining your question. Examples of things to look out for and consider when exploring research questions. |
| 2:00–4:30 | Self-directed practice. Define a problem involving the data that interests you. Form impromptu pairs around research areas. |
| Break | |
| 5:00–6:00 | Reception. Purdue Union, Anniversary Drawing Room |
| 6:00 | Adjourn. Make your own dinner plans. |
2.5 Tuesday agenda
2019-06-04
| Time | Activities |
|---|---|
| 8:30–9:00 | Breakfast. Provided in the workshop room. |
| 9:00–10:00 | Data visualization. Elements of effective graphs. Expanding your graphical repertoire. |
| Break and group photo | |
| 10:15–10:45 | Explore data. Finding and presenting stories in the data. |
| 10:45–12:15 | Self-directed work. Continue the collaborative work from Day 1. Produce data displays that address your research question. |
| 12:15–3:15 | Lunch and poster preparation. Lunch provided in the workshop room. Participants make posters to display their work-in-progress. |
| 3:15–4:00 | Poster session. |
| 4:00–4:15 | Conclusion. Summarize objectives. Plans for proposed 2020 FIE Special Session to showcase participants’ work. Assess MIDFIELD Institute. |
| 4:15 | Adjourn |