COLLABORATION FOR NONDESTRUCTIVE TESTING EDUCATION - EXTENDING THE REACH

Brian Larson and Lester Schmerr

Center for NDE, Iowa State University, Ames, IA 5001 1 USA

ABSTRACT. The development of NDT related educational materials has been the focus of the North Central Collaboration for NDT Education for the past four years. The Collaboration was started as a National Science Foundation (NSF) Advanced Technology Education (ATE) program and united a number of community colleges and Iowa State University. The Collaboration developed advanced teaching methods and new materials that have allowed students to learn NDT concepts better and in less time. These materials have been made available over the Internet and have been well received. The Collaboration has recently received a second NSF ATE grant to develop an Internet site that will serve as a national focal point for NDT. In this phase of activities, the collaboration will develop a coordinated, multi-level approach that 1) promotes NDT as a career field to students, teachers and counselors in junior and senior high schools, 2) serves as an educational resource for students and instructors of two-year NDT programs and their graduates who are working in the industry, and 3) supplies educational materials that will allow educators in other technology programs (such as manufacturing and welding) to introduce their students to NDT methods. This paper will review the current activities of the Collaboration.

INTRODUCTION

The Needs of Industry

The training of qualified technicians and engineers to serve the needs of industry in the area of NDTNDE is a growing problem. Shortages of human resources and the rapidly evolving nature of the field and the supporting technology base are stressing the educational system. Recent studies of the NDT workforce in the nuclear industry, for example, suggest that only 25% of the current workforce is expected to be available in the year 2010. The Industrial Advisory Board (IAB) to the Center for Nondestructive Evaluation (CNDE) at Iowa State University has also emphasized this need. CNDE is a member of the NSF IndustryNniversity Cooperative Research Centers program and its IAB members consisting of representative of 22 major industries and government agencies. In a recent action of the IAB, enhancing education of technicians was identified as the highest educational priority. The IAB also stressed that future employees must increasingly become knowledge-based workers that are more comfortable with a broader range of problems.

Because of its great breadth and because the field has primarily grown out of a needs-driven industrial base, NDT/NDE does not have a traditional, recognized place in the educational spectrum. For example, no university departments of NDT/NDE exist and

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only a few universities offer a significant set of NDE-related courses. In addition, NDTcommunity college programs are geographically scattered throughout the country, oftenarising out of the specific NDT needs of local industry. Professional society support ofNDT/NDE is also diffuse. The American Society for Nondestructive Testing (ASNT) isthe primary contact for the field and is the natural professional affiliation for technicians.However, due to the highly interdisciplinary nature of the field, new technologies andapplications are often reported and debated in a number of other professional societies,including AWS, ASME, IEEE, ASM, TMS, ASCE, and AIAA. Each has a legitimateinterest in the development and/or utilization of NDT/NDE techniques. However, thismultiplicity diffuses and fragments the overall NDT/NDE field.

This fragmented nature of NDT activities in education institutions and theprofessional societies is closely related to another problem, the lack of awareness of careeropportunities and the corresponding shortage of sufficient students entering the NDT/NDEeducational pipeline. There are many attractive jobs in this field, but these often go toindividuals who are less qualified than desired because a sufficient number of students donot enter college NDT/NDE programs. A contributing cause is a basic lack of information.It is not an exaggeration to say that virtually all middle and high school students and theircounselors are totally unaware of the important, satisfying careers possible with a technicaleducation in the NDT/NDE field.

There is an additional unfilled need that goes beyond the need for NDT technicalstaff. NDT is often conducted as part of manufacturing operations. Therefore, it isimportant that individuals in manufacturing have a general knowledge of NDT so that theycan understand when and how it can be used. By knowing the ways NDT can positivelyaffect the reliability and cost-effectiveness of manufactured goods, manufacturing technicalstaff will know when to involve an NDT/NDE specialist in a project. Thus, there is astrong need for science-based NDT/NDE materials for curricula such as those found inmanufacturing programs like welding. There are currently no readily available, science-based course materials for teaching NDT fundamentals in such technology programs.

Responding to the Needs of Industry

In 1996, four Midwest community colleges (Cowley County, KS, Northeast Iowa,IA, Ridgewater, MN, Southeast, NE) and Iowa State University joined to form the NorthCentral Collaboration for Education in Nondestructive Testing. This collaboration wasstarted as a National Science Foundation ATE program to enhance the quality of NDTtechnician education and strengthen the ties between these Midwest institutions. Thisprogram has successfully developed advanced teaching methods, new science-basedmaterials at the junior/senior high school and community college levels, and conductedprofessional development through summer programs for both community college studentsand faculty.

A major part of the Collaboration's efforts has been the development of new,science-based course materials for community college students. These materialssupplement the materials already in use and help student learn important concepts withvisual and interactive tools. These materials are made available to the students, as well asthe general public, over the Internet. Community College instructors use the materials in avariety of ways. Some instructors use the materials in the lectures by projecting them andusing the interactive applets to visually demonstrate difficult to grasp concepts. Otherinstructors provide homework assignments that make use of the Internet materials. Since

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the materials are always available to the students, they also serve as a quick referenceresource.

Another Internet-based project of the North Central Collaboration was to developscience-based materials for both middle/high school and community college students.These materials have been very well received and are being used by individuals and groupsacross the nation. These materials discuss the basic scientific principles used in NDT.While learning about electricity, magnetism, sound and X-rays, students are alsointroduced to the field of NDT. It is hoped that these materials will serve as a resource tojunior and senior high science teachers and there use will heighten awareness of NDT as acareer field.

The Collaboration also took advantage of the unique capabilities of the Center forNDE at Iowa State University for conducting computer-based simulations of X-rayinspections. A set of X-ray course materials were developed that allowed students toperform simulated X-ray procedures with a computer before actually performinginspections in the X-ray inspection laboratory. This approach is both cost-effective andlearning-effective. It engages the students in a highly graphical way that maintains theirinterest while teaching them about the variables that must be addressed when making aradiograph.

Extending the Reach

The feedback received from industry and lessons learned from previous efforts todevelop and distribute educational materials is that there is a very receptive audience forinformation and materials concerning NDT technical education. This audience is spreadacross the middle/high schools, community colleges, industry and other organizationsinterested in NDT. However, it has been learned that it is difficult to make users aware ofthe materials. Therefore, to meet the needs previously outlined and to build on lessonslearned, a new project has been undertaken with funding from the National ScienceFoundation to develop a highly visible Internet-based national focal point for NDT. ThisInternet site will provide information, materials, and opportunities for interactions ofstudents, educators, counselors, and NDT employers.

PROJECT PLANS AND ACTIVITIES

The previous group of collaborators has been expanded by one and is now simplytitled the Collaboration for NDT Education. The collaborating institutions include; CowleyCounty Community College, Arkansas City, KS, Iowa State University, Ames, IA,Northeast Iowa Community College, Peosta, IA, Ridgewater College, Hutchinson, MN,Salt Lake Community College, Salt Lake City, UT and Southeast Community College,Milford, NE. This expanded team along with contributions from industry has work toproduce the Internet site. Each team member has been given responsibility for a portion ofthe development efforts. Additional details on the efforts of the Collaboration are providedin the following sections.

Project 1: Web-based NDT/NDE Focal Point

The development of a Web-based national focal point for NDT is the primary focusof an effort lead by Cowley County Community College and Iowa State University. Thisproject is building on a set of existing web-based materials developed under our previous

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ATE program. The content of the site is partially summarized in Table I. For middle andsenior high school students and their teachers and counselors, the Internet materials provideinformation about careers in NDT, backgrounds required and education options. Thematerials contain pages dedicated to explaining how NDT is used for certain applicationssuch as inspecting railroad rail, welds, and aircraft. It is hoped that contributions fromindustry experts will help to complete more sections on NDT applications. Materials alsoderived from industry contacts, will describe special challenges, opportunities and uniquefeatures about working in the field of NDT. Information for community college studentsregarding important issues such as professional certification and pathways that exist forthem to further their education at the university level have been added to the site. The sitealso provides links to other NDT areas of importance, such as inspection codes andstandards, and to on-going NDT activities at many different levels. It is hoped that theNDT community will adopt the site, and that the site will continue to grow and increase invalue based on their recommendations and contributions. Two URLs have beenestablished for the site: www.ndt-ed.org and www.nde-ed.org. Site usage has increased

TABLE I. Major Elements of the Internet Focal Point Site for NDT.

About NDTRail InspectionAircraft InspectionWelding Inspection

Opportunities in NDT/NDEFor High School Students-The NDT Educational Spectrum -

community college, universityopportunities

What to studyWhat do "NDTers" do?Job opportunities in the fieldWho to contactFor Community College students -The NDT Educational Spectrum -

Community college, universityOpportunitiesWhat to studyJob opportunities in the fieldWho to contact

NDT CareersPersonal profiles of NDT personnelJob descriptionsLinks to Industrial, Organizational Sites

Science and Math in NDTThe physics of NDT methodsNDT and Math

How much math and physics doI need?

NDT/NDE EducationFor studentsSome community college NDT

educational pathwaysSome university NDE educational

pathways

The community college/university interfaceFor community college faculty-Recommended core courses for a

community college NDT programBackground, knowledge, skills

Professional CertificationCertification - what is it and why is it

important?How do I get certified?

StandardsWhat are standards and how do they affect

me?NDT Standards and PracticesWho sets standards?Where do I get information on standards and

recommended practices?

Available Materials and ReferencesBooks, manuals, on-line resources, etc.

NDT in Other Technology AreasManufacturing, Metallurgy, WeldingMachining, Airframes and Power plants

Links of InterestLinks to NDT/NDE around the worldLinks to Centers, Educational Institutions

What's NewFaculty, student opportunitiesMeetings, activitiesNDT/NDE items in the news

NDT/NDE On-LineDemonstrations/simulationsPublications - NDT BasicsInteractive Tutorials

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^^

&

FIGURE 1. Screen capture of the new NOT Resource Center, which will serve as a focal point for NDTeducation on the Internet.

steadily since going on-line in June 2002 and now attracts over 4,000 visits each month.

Project 2: NDT Educational Materials for Other Technology Programs

Southeast Community College with support from Northeast Iowa CommunityCollege is working on a project to develop material that instructors can use to provide theirtechnology students with an "Introduction to NDT." There are many technical programs inareas such as welding, whose students would benefit greatly from an introductory to NDTif suitable materials were available for both students and instructors. This effort isdeveloping a modern introductory NDT course for technology courses such as welding,machining and mechanics. The new education materials combine text, graphics, audio andvideo to address all modes of learning. Guidance and introductory presentation materialsfor instructors are being developed to help them make effective use of the course materials.These course materials are being developed in electronic form using modern computer-based tools so the materials can be easily revised and updated. They also will be easilytailored to meet area specific educational needs. Once completed, the materials will beavailable through the web-based national focal point and/or through distribution on CD.

Project 3: Professional Development and Continuing Education

Iowa State University is leading this third effort to develop materials suitable foruse by community college instructors for their professional development and continuingeducation. These materials will be delivered at an instructor's home institution, using Web-based materials placed on the focal point Web site coupled with video lectures on tape orwith streaming video over the Internet. These materials will provide the instructors with areview of the physics of NDT technology, training on instructional material development,and hands on experience with advanced inspection techniques. This project will draw onother efforts in progress at Iowa State University to assemble videotape materials ofvarious NDT methods.

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SUMMARY

The Collaboration for NDT Education has undertaken a new effort aimed atimproving NDT education. This effort is divided into three projects. Project one involvesthe development of a major resource for NDT education related information on theInternet. Project two involves the development of electronic materials that instructors oftechnology courses such as welding can use to provide students with an "introduction toNDT." The third project involves the development of materials that community collegeinstructors can use to continue their professional development. The primary goal of thiseffort is to enhance learning in NDT technician training programs at community collegesand to introduce primary school students and counselors to the field of NDT. In addition, itis hoped that the material will prove useful to students in NDE programs at universities andto the general NDT community at large.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Support for this work was provided by the National Science Foundation's Division ofUndergraduate Education through grant DUE 0101709.

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