CAD review...
This was by far the worst class I have ever taken. I will offer what insight I can solely to prevent any other student from having the same experience as I.
The TAs that were in my session were less competent in SolidWorks than most kids. Every time I went to lab, I had to struggle to bring myself to even raise my hand, praying that the graduate TA (who had comparable ability to the undergraduates) would come over and grade my assignment so I could leave. I will recap a day in my lab, to provide more clear understanding. I had not learned from any video lecture or previous experience how to make an auxiliary view in the drawing mode and the quiz that I was completing required one to properly dimension the part. I raised my hand and one of the TAs came over to help. She decided to delete the coding in the dimension box () and hand input the correct dimension. She said never to do that again, but that it was okay for now, as she did not know how to make the view. When the next TA came by to grade the assignment, I asked him how to add the view. He at least understood that faking dimensions wasn't a good idea, but also didn't know how to make the view properly.
Not that any of this matters much, as none of the parts of the electric stapler are meant to work anyway. In the syllabus is instruction to add gear mates and other mates in order to make the pieces move as they truly would inside a real model. When I asked a TA why certain mates wouldn't work I was told that the stapler isn't really supposed to work, it's just supposed to look like a real one. I was also told to delete my quizzes before class was over, as to not provide dishonest advantage to the other students. Now, suddenly, the quizzes are required to be submitted at the end of the year? I cannot recreate them because I don't have the handouts that were collected during class. I have something else to mention on the topic of quizzes.
On the start quiz (which is the same as the final quiz - a clever way to truly test a students improvement), students are given questions related to the course material. Having never done any work with CAD in my life, I did not do well. Throughout the semester, I expected to learn all the material on that quiz, to come back at the end of the year and triumphantly succeed where I once had failed. Still, after having completed the course, I do not know a single thing about a full scale architectural drawing or about an engineer's scale. Never once was either mentioned during the entire semester.
I have spent more time restarting SolidWorks and restarting my computer than I have actually working on it. The program itself is unstable; while it is a well organized easy-to-use program, it causes more damage than it can repair. On the largest assignment of the year, the gear box part, SolidWorks gave a parent relationship to one of the most random parts possible while I was creating the item. None of my TAs knew how to fix it and I had to redo the entire thing. Knowing how time consuming that was the first time, I was not looking forward to completing it again. For only a 1 credit course, the amount of time I put into that one assignment was unbelievable.
I could go on but I feel there is no point. I need to allocate an incredible amount of time completing a project never designed to work with an inadequate knowledge of the material. This course has taken away from my education in other classes and has not helped me in the slightest bit.
I do not mean to attack anyone or point fingers by completing this survey. I am simply saying what needs to be said in order to fix some serious problems with this course. I love Rensselaer, and I wish to make her better.
The TAs that were in my session were less competent in SolidWorks than most kids. Every time I went to lab, I had to struggle to bring myself to even raise my hand, praying that the graduate TA (who had comparable ability to the undergraduates) would come over and grade my assignment so I could leave. I will recap a day in my lab, to provide more clear understanding. I had not learned from any video lecture or previous experience how to make an auxiliary view in the drawing mode and the quiz that I was completing required one to properly dimension the part. I raised my hand and one of the TAs came over to help. She decided to delete the coding in the dimension box () and hand input the correct dimension. She said never to do that again, but that it was okay for now, as she did not know how to make the view. When the next TA came by to grade the assignment, I asked him how to add the view. He at least understood that faking dimensions wasn't a good idea, but also didn't know how to make the view properly.
Not that any of this matters much, as none of the parts of the electric stapler are meant to work anyway. In the syllabus is instruction to add gear mates and other mates in order to make the pieces move as they truly would inside a real model. When I asked a TA why certain mates wouldn't work I was told that the stapler isn't really supposed to work, it's just supposed to look like a real one. I was also told to delete my quizzes before class was over, as to not provide dishonest advantage to the other students. Now, suddenly, the quizzes are required to be submitted at the end of the year? I cannot recreate them because I don't have the handouts that were collected during class. I have something else to mention on the topic of quizzes.
On the start quiz (which is the same as the final quiz - a clever way to truly test a students improvement), students are given questions related to the course material. Having never done any work with CAD in my life, I did not do well. Throughout the semester, I expected to learn all the material on that quiz, to come back at the end of the year and triumphantly succeed where I once had failed. Still, after having completed the course, I do not know a single thing about a full scale architectural drawing or about an engineer's scale. Never once was either mentioned during the entire semester.
I have spent more time restarting SolidWorks and restarting my computer than I have actually working on it. The program itself is unstable; while it is a well organized easy-to-use program, it causes more damage than it can repair. On the largest assignment of the year, the gear box part, SolidWorks gave a parent relationship to one of the most random parts possible while I was creating the item. None of my TAs knew how to fix it and I had to redo the entire thing. Knowing how time consuming that was the first time, I was not looking forward to completing it again. For only a 1 credit course, the amount of time I put into that one assignment was unbelievable.
I could go on but I feel there is no point. I need to allocate an incredible amount of time completing a project never designed to work with an inadequate knowledge of the material. This course has taken away from my education in other classes and has not helped me in the slightest bit.
I do not mean to attack anyone or point fingers by completing this survey. I am simply saying what needs to be said in order to fix some serious problems with this course. I love Rensselaer, and I wish to make her better.