My T-SHIRT Memories -Part 7 (Visiting University Moments)

 Part of my task as a professor is to visit universities abroad as a visiting researcher or professor or to promote networking and collaborative activities between my university and other universities. Buying souvernir shirts from the university cooperative store is one of my "things to do" whenever I visit a university. 

Nagoya University. I consider Japan as my second home. For five and a half years (1988-1994), I stayed at Nagoya, Japan to pursue my graduate studies (M.Eng. and D.Eng) in civil engineering at Nagoya University, Concrete Engineering Laboratory under the mentorship of Prof. Tada-aki Tanabe. Japan is my first trip abroad and living in Japan is my first experience to live alone outside of the comfort of home. Living in Japan then is very different now. Memories of Nagoya includes doing research with Japanese Lab members (Now Prof. Hikaru Nakamura, Dr. Denzil, Dr. Farahat, Dr. Wu, Dr, Yu and more), studying with foreign students (Dr. Suparat, Dr. Jerry Velasquez, Dr. Ge Hanbin) and surviving and enjoying life with Pinoy students and friends - Daisy, Mel, Cynthia, Pilo, Bong, Gilbert, Lani, Tess, Noemi, Nonoy, Edu, Prime, William, Glen, Sally, Jummy, Biboy, Arnel, Erwin, Indette, Ruth, Renan, Gerry, Roger, Ichie, Joe (+) and more. Whenever I visit Nagoya, memories of good times always come to me: hearing mass at Nanzan University Chapel and Mikokoro Church, volleyball games at Meidai Gym, Pinoy food get-togethers at Kaikan and our apartments, biking around Nagoya (Sakae, Osu, Fujigaoka), Midnight shopping for used goods, overnight outing at Gifu and Toyohashi, the Golden Week adventure trip at Fukui, Kanazawa and Nagano, the midnight mahjong games, AFSA trips and more. My family visited Nagoya in 2013 & 2014. Thank you friends for the memories!

Nagoya University

Tokyo Institute of Technology. I was a visiting scientist at Tokyo Institute ofTechnology through the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) Core University Program on Environmental Engineering for the following programs:

• “Research Topic::  Public Awareness Initiatives on Natural Disasters and the Environment”), April 30 – May 13, 2008,  Host: Prof. Hideki Ohta
• “Research Topic:: Photo Archives on the Impact of Natural Disasters on Infrastructures and the Environment”, March 2006 (30 days),  Host: Prof. Hideki Ohta
• “Research Topic: Application of ANNs on Confined Circular RC Columns”,  Jan – April, 2001,  Host: Prof. Kazuhiko Kawashima 

It was at Tokyo Institute of Technology that  I met Professors - Kawashima, Ohta, Hirose, Miki, Otsuki and more. Through the JSPS program, DLSU CE Department  was able to sustain collaborative and cooperative activities like the students exchange visits, co-sponsoring conferences like WOW and TIT and DLSU professors serving as resource speakers in conferences and workshops. Through these visits I was able to discover interesting places at Tokyo City. 

Tokyo Institute of Technology

Kyushu University. I was a visiting professor through the AUN/SEED-Net Short Term Research in Japan (SRJP) with my host: Prof. Hemanta Hazarika at Kyushu University, Japan  on June 26-July 10, 2017 with my research topic: “Making Cities Resilient to Disasters: Learning and Adapting Best Practices from Japan." Fukuoaka was my entry city to Kysuhu. My 14-day stay including with my family who followed me in the last five days was both fun and challenging. Fun, because I was able to visit Fukuoaka landmarks, eat the famous Kyushu ramen and meet my co-student and now host, Prof. Hazarika. It was challenging because during my last days there when my family was arriving, there was astrong typhoon that affected the trains; hence cancelling our plan to visit sites outside of Fukuoka. Still the Kyushu trip was enjoyable for it gave us an opportunity visit the less busy places of Japan (very different with Tokyo and Osaka).

Nagasaki University. My visit at Nagasaki University was short but productive. I accompanied Apple in her trip on August 2019 to Nagasaki and I grab the opportunity to contact a professor at Nagasaki University for networking purposes. I was introduced to Prof. Horiyuki Nakahara (Human and Engineered Environmental Science, Division of Decision Science, Nagasaki University). I made the visit in August 10, 2019. The university was in vacation then. So it was a one-on-one meeting with Prof. Nakahara. We shared our research interests during the meeting. One of the outcome of this meeting was Prof. Nakahara accepted my invitation for him to be a keynote speaker in the ASEP SHAKE Conference in November 2019. I love Nagasaki. Life is slow and simple. Apple and I were able to visit the WWII Nagasaki Bombing museum and park and the museum for the Christian missionaries killed in Nagasaki. 

University College London. Through the PRISMH Project (System Resilience of School Infrastructure in the Philippines Exposed to Natural Hazards) funded by the Newton-Agham Institutional Links Grant Agreement 2016, I was able to visit the University College London (UCL) at London, UK in many occasions for meetings and workshops. With my DLSU colleagues, Dr. Lessandro Garciano and Engr. Ricahrd De Jesus and XU collaborator and advisee, Engr. Dexter Lo we visit UCL to meet our partners led by Prof. Dina D'Ayala, Dr. Carmine Galasso and more. In one visit in 2019, Apple was able to join me. London is a different city compared to Tokyo, Nagoya or Osaka which I have frequently visited. Going around is also very convenient through the Double Decker buses and the Tube (Underground Train). London is a place for meeting experts and shopping of fashion goods at discount prices at outlet malls. Food is relatively expensive and grocery is usually via TESCO. Of course, London is the place to visit museums and parks and landmarks like the Big Ben which we often see in movies.  Visiting London becomes convenient and fun because I meet my friends Art and Gina Fabia, London residents who always drive us around London and nearby cities like Portmouth and Coventry during our visits. This shirt is a souvenir given by our UCL colleagues. Thanks!

My T-Shirt Memories - Part 6 (DLSU CE Shirts)

It has become a tradition at the DLSU CE Department during  the College of Engineering Christmas Party to wear a CE Department shirt for the department presentation. Joenel Galupino and Daniel Valerio are usually assigned to design the shirts. Maybe the shirts are the lucky charm that inspires the CE Faculty members to perform well usually in dance number during the college X'mas presentations. Ever since, the CE Department has always been judged as the winner in the inter-departmental X'mas presentations. 

CE-Star.  Tala, tala, tala. Ang ningning ng mga tala'y nakikita ko sa 'yong mga mata. Tala, tala, tala. Ang ningning ng 'yong mga mata'y nahanap ko sa mga tala. These were part of the lyrics of the song when the CE  Faculty performed the dance rendition. I believe the expert dance and instructur of the dance number was Paolo Lucero, a former Animo Squad Cheer Leader. 

CE Zorro.  The theme of the CE Dance number was Zorro. I can't remember now the background music played but the CE faculty members were all in black with masks doing their thing in front of the captured audience. Of course, the dance number was led by the junior faculty members like Pao, Joe, Danny, Cheryl, Maricel. et al. And the senior faculty - the young once - do a little jiggle for audience impact and to get the judges' nod! As always, the winner is ..... CE Department!

There are more CE Department shirts in my collection as shown below. I think some of them were used for the Department Team Building Workshops.

 

My T-SHIRT Memories - Part 5 (ASEP Engagements)

This series of My T-Shirt Memories is related to ASEP or the Association of Structural Engineers of the Philippines.  Read more on My T-Shirt Memories Part 1 & Part 2. 

Struct-Whiz Challenge.  Quiz contests are popular activities for students. The Struct-Whiz Challenge is ASEP's quiz contest to promote interest on structural engineering to the students. The team of ASEP members composed of Rannie Ison. Ariel Santos, Joseph Manalo and I conceptualized the quiz which we termed, "Struct-Whiz Challenge." The quiz is supposed to select a Structural Engineering Wizard among the contestants who will first take a written qualifying exam in the morning (to qualify, a cut-off score is specified) and then if selected, has to sit in an oral competition. The top 3 contestants are awarded. But to be a Struct-Wizard, the contestant are challenged to score at least 75% or more.  In the seven editions of the quiz, no contestant has met the required minimum score to be a wizard. This shirt designed by Ariel Santos (Compliments of RI) is a souvenir of the last edition of the quiz. The lightning symbol is my idea; an inspiration from Harry Potter. When will the next "Struct-Whiz Challenge" be? Is there a wizard among the civil engineering students waiting to be judged as the 1st wizard of ASEP's Struct-Whiz Challenge?

Strict-Whiz Challenge

Creating your own T-Shirt Design is challenging. Some people like my son, Geof,  have the talent to draw their own images. In my case, my skills and talent in creating original drawings is very limited. So I just capture existing images and combine them with texts to come up with an "original design." 

Geof's City Design. The design shown was created by my son, Geoffrey when he was only six years old at Grade 1. He did a manual sketch of his idea of a city. I simply converted the sketch in digital form and added colors. Whoola! The design was used as the cover page of Proceedings of the 12th ASEP International Convention in 2007. ASEP T-shirts were also produced using Geof's design. Geof is now a college student taking Visual Communication at Ateneo de Manila University School of Fine Arts. 

Cover Design of 12AIC Proceedings with Geof''s Design

Geof's City Design in an ASEP Shirt

ACEE2004 Earthquake Designs. I gave an idea to  ASEP in 2004 (Engr. Rannie Ison was the president then) to organize an international conference where the advisory committee is composed of international experts and professors. The cocnept was accepted and the  Asia Conference on Earthquake Engineering or ACEE in 2004 was born. The founding advisers included Dr. Naveed Anwar and Prof. Pennung of AIT, Prof. Yamasaki of U. Tokyo, Prof. Kawashima of TIT, Dr. Solidum of PHIVOLCS and more. The ACEE has been continued by ASEP with cooperating institutions serving as hosts like AIT, TIT and NCREE. The latest or  7th ACEE was hosted by AIT on November 2018.  The 9th ACEE will be hosted by NCREE at Taipei, Taiwan probably in 2022. I created the ACEE2004 designs below by simply capturing existing images and added my own text. The first design shows different translation of "Earthquake" in Japanese, Filipino, Spanish and French. The second design has the message,"Earthquakes don't kill, Faulty design buildings do!" The message emphasized the need to practice seismic design of structures in earthquake countries like the Philippines.

ACEE2004 - Earthquake in various languages

  

ACEE2004. Earthquakes dont' kill ...!

SHAKE T-Shirt.  The final T-shirt is my own design for the ASEP SHAKE Conference held on November 2019.  SHAKE means Smart TecHnologies and Advanced Knowledge in Earthquake Engineering. I remember holding a brain storming at Century Plaza Hotel on the next ASEP conference with a committee led by Engr. Rannie Ison and some ASEP members, Mac Mendoza, Ariel Santos, GG Garciano and more. And in that brainstorming session, "SHAKE" was born. All  speakers to the conference were invited including colleagues and friends from Japan and NZ like Dr. Hazarika, Dr. Anil, Dr. Watanabe and Dr. Orense. To commemorate this 1st SHAKE Conference, I created my own design. I hope ASEP will continue to SHAKE the professional community with ground shaking and excellent conferences just like the ACEE. 

My SHAKE Shirt

Photos during the SHAKE Conference

My T-SHIRT Memories - Part 4 (CES Shirts)

My T-Shirt Memories - Part 4 like Part 3 will be posted in this blog. For Part 4, I will feature the T-Shirts I received from the Civil Engineering Society (CES), the CE student organization at De La Salle University Manila. CES started in 1987 and has evolved to be a very active student organization at DLSU. 

CES-01 Shirt.  I think this is the first T-Shirt I received from CES in 2008. If remember correctly, the design was done by Joenel Galupino, now faculty at the CE Dept. And the CES president then was Dan Aquino. I remember advising CES in their Popsicle Bridge Building Contest for several years. Read more about CES Bridge Building.  The Bridge Building Contest where bridges were constructed using popsicle sticks and glue was one of the traditional activities of CES that I supported. It is a contest of creativity and analytical thinking.

CES-01

CES-02 Shirt. This is one of my favorite CES shirts. The designer created caricatures of the CE Department faculty members - Dr. Adajar,  Doc Nenad, Drs. Dungca, Tanhueco, Fillone, Lejano, Doc E, Dr. Terante and more.  Can you identify the faculty in the T-Shirt design?

CES-02. CE Faculty Featured

CES-03

CES-04

CES-03/04.  Two more shirts I received from CES. Thank you CES. Hope to receive more souvenir shirts before I retire from DLSU. 😃👍

My T-SHIRT Memories - Part 3 (Civil Engineering Shirts)

I am posting My T-Shirt Memories - Part 3 in this blog since it is about civil engineering. Read Part 1 (UP Shirts) and Part 2 (Apple Moments) at http://goodlife4less.blogspot.com. 

November is "Civil Engineering Month" and it is timely to post my CE related shirts.

PICE III Technical Conference T-Shirt.  Let me start with my PICE shirt. This shirt is one of the token given during the Philippine Institute of Civil Engineers Region III Technical Conference held on April 13-14, 2018 at Subic Bay Peninsular Hotel, Subic Bay Freeport Zone, Zambales. I remember giving two lectures then; one on "Seismic Assessment & Retrofitting Lessons from Japan" and "Making Cities Resilient." My lectures are very relevant to the T-shirt message of "Building Tomorrow, Today." Joining me as resource speakers were DLSU Faculty, Dr, Lessandro Garciano, Dr. Alexis Fillone and Dr. Marla Redillas. Dr. Romy Estanero, retired DLSU professor and now CE PRB member was also a resource speaker. Michael David, a DLSU BSCE alumnus was the organizer of the event.

PICE III Technical Conference Shirt

CE Changing the World.  I was a resource speaker at the Academe Session of the Philippine Institute of Civil Engineers (PICE) National Convention on October 29, 2019 at the SMX Convention Center. I presented a paper on "Implementing the CE Orientation Course in the Revised BSCE Curriculum" with co-authors L. Garciano, R. Mendoza, Jr. and K. Roquel.

During the break, I visited the exhibit area where various PICE shirts were sold. Most of the civil engineers were excited buying shirts with a PICE logo. In my case, I was looking for a unique design and this design caught my eye  - "CE: Changing the World: One Blueprint at a Time." Indeed, civil engineers are changing the world and contribute to building the quality of life. And that was the message on our Civil Engineering Orientation Course for Freshmen at De La Salle University.

CE Changing The World Shirt

MODULAR LEARNING OF MATRIX ANALYSIS OF STRUCTURES USING ONLINE RESOURCES

Understanding and applying “Matrix Analysis of Structures” using the Direct Stiffness Method (DSM) can be effectively learned not only in traditional classrooms but also in an open and online environment. Online resources and supportive open tools are readily available that can be tapped by civil and structural engineers who are interested in learning the theory and application of DSM, which is the algorithm used in standard structural analysis software. Even without a structural analysis software, civil engineers can implement DSM using readily available tools on matrix operations to analyze structures like beams, trusses and frames. What is important is that the civil engineer understands the concepts and formulas of the DSM which can be learned from various online resources (e-notes and videos) available in the internet. 

To understand, learn and apply DSM effectively, a modular approach in learning  is proposed. Each module is like a building block which is put in place one after the other until the whole coverage of the course is completed. This blog presents modules of  online resources that can be accessed by civil and structural engineers for learning matrix analysis of structures. 

MODULE 1A - MATRIX ALGEBRA - You need to review matrix algebra to be able to apply the direct stiffness method. The YouTube Channel on Matrix Algebra for Engineers by Prof. Jeffrey Chasnov (HKUST) has a complete set of videos. Khan Academy has also a collection of videos about matrix algebra. The most important matrix operations that you need to learn are addition, subtraction, multiplication, transposition and inversion. Go to these YouTube channels - explore, navigate and learn.

MODULE 1B - USING MS EXCEL FOR MATRIX OPERATIONS - MS Excel has commands for performing matrix operations.  MS Excel is a very useful tool for the course since the application of the DSM will result to matrices of large sizes which is not practical to be solved manually. Hence, MS Excel is an ideal supportive tool for matrix operations. Using MS Excel, the derived elements of the structural stiffness matrices can be easily inputted and appropriate matrix operations can be easily performed. 

MODULE 2 - STRUCTURAL ANALYSIS CONCEPTS - It is important to review basic concepts on structural analysis to understand the direct stiffness method. The YouTube channel for Dr. Structure has a collection of videos on structural analysis. One important concept that you need to understand is on Stability and Determinacy of Structures. There are more videos on basic concepts like truss analysis, beam analysis (shear and moment diagrams) and analysis of plane frames for deflections and more. 

MODULE 3 - ANALYSIS OF PLANE TRUSSES - The direct stiffness method has a common algorithm that can be applied to any type of structure but the elements of the matrices depends on the type of structure being analyzed. What you need to know are the stiffness matrix for each type of structural element. Let us start with the truss element where each node has two degrees-of-freedom (DOF) - the horizontal and vertical displacements. You need to learn how to transform the DOFs and matrices from  local axes (x-y) to global axes (X-Y) before you can apply the DSM to the analysis of trusses. The YouTube channel of The Efficient Civil Engineer by Dr. S. El-Gamal has video of two parts on Truss Analysis using DSM. A problem in the textbook by Hibbeler is solved. Dr. Structure has also videos on Matrix Displacement Method for Indeterminate Trusses.

MODULE 4- ANALYSIS OF BEAMS - The next element that you must understand is a beam element. Each node of a beam element has also two DOFs but these DOFs corresponds to the vertical displacement and rotation. You need to review the type of loadings applied to beams - concentrated load, uniform load, couple, etc - since these loadings have to be converted into equivalent nodal forces so that the DSM can be implemented. The YouTube channel of DCBA Online has a collection of videos on the direct stiffness method. Dr. Structure has also videos on Matrix Displacement Method for Indeterminate Beams. Explore navigate and learn.

MODULE 5- ANALYSIS OF PLANE FRAMES - For a plane frame, each node has three DOFs which consist of the horizontal displacement, vertical displacement and rotation. The stiffness matrix of a plane frame element is actually a combination of a truss and beam element. Watch and learn from the videos from DCBA Online and Dr. Structure.

MODULE 6- DSM APPLICATIONS ON PLANE FRAMES

Dr. Structure has two interesting videos on application of the direct stiffness method on two types of framed structures.

(a) Analysis of a Tea House Frame

(b) Frame Analysis under Wind Load (Airplane Hangar)

MODULE 7- MASTAN2

Now that you have learned the use of DSM to various types of structures and applied the procedure using MS Excel, you can verify your results using a structural analysis software. You can use MASTAN2 - a free software!

MASTAN2 is an interactive structural analysis program that provides preprocessing, analysis, and post processing capabilities that can be adopted in the course. MASTAN2's linear and nonlinear analysis routines are based on the theoretical and numerical formulations presented in the textbook Matrix Structural Analysis, 2nd Edition, by McGuire, Gallagher, and Ziemian.  

Download the software and tutorial at http://www.mastan2.com/

ENGAGING STUDENTS IN AN ONLINE CLASSROOM USING CANVAS

 Online Teaching and Learning via Learning Management Systems (LMS) has become the new normal in course delivery due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Hence, faculty members must learn new skills using LMS and adapt to an online classroom to successfully deliver their courses and effectively assess students’ performance and achievement of learning outcomes. Canvas is one Learning Management System that has been used in many universities including De La Salle University. Canvas has several tools that the teacher and the students can use so that the course learning outcomes can be achieved. This paper and video presents how Canvas tools are used by the author using the Community of Inquiry (CoI) framework in engaging with the students in online teaching and how students can be engaged in online learning and assessment. 

Video presented at the 

AnimoSpace Camp 2020, De La Salle University, 6 Oct 2020, Zoom Meeting

Read/Download the Paper here:

https://www.scribd.com/document/479013751/Engaging-Students-in-an-Online-Classroom-Using-Canvas

Mastery & Integrity in Online Quizzes and Assessments

 Watch my video webinar on Mastery & Integrity in Online Quizzes and Assessments presented at the 2nd Webinar on "Coping with the Challenges of the New Normal - Online Teaching and Learning"  hosted by the Philippine Association of Engineering Schools (PAES) held via ZOOM on 2 Oct 2020. 

Creating a Sense of Instructor Presence in the Online Classroom

Students need to see “evidence of engagement” and instructors need to show that they are active in the online classroom. Teachers should create a "sense of instructor presence" in the online classroom to effectively manage an online teaching and learning environment. Online teaching is not just "assigning" what the students should do at home but the teacher should "design" the activities to maximize the engagement of the students in the learning process with their teacher and classmates. If the students experience doing activities knowing that their teacher is ready to assist them, they will actively perform the learning tasks.

Here are some practices that promote instructor presence that I learned from “The Foundations for Excellence in Teaching Online” hosted by Arizona State University Continuing Professional Education (ASU-CPE):

• Sending out welcome letters
• Posting announcements
• Highlighting connections between course content, activities, and assignments
• Facilitating in-depth thinking through online discussions
• Providing detailed specific feedback
• Reaching out to struggling students and conducting consultations
• Making connections to real world applications and providing clarification when needed.

Some Engagement Strategies on Remote Teaching & Learning Using Canvas & Digital Tools

1.    Self- Introduction  - You need to know your students and the students need to know their online classmates too. You may do any of the following:

a)    Assignment @ Canvas or Google Form  - Require them to submit a one PPT slide (provide template) with their photo with self-introduction and expectations from the course. Share at FILES in Canvas.

b)    Conference @ Canvas – Conduct a conference where each student introduces himself or you may also display the file submitted by the students.

2.    Syllabus Quiz  - A syllabus quiz is a strategy to ensure the key concepts of your syllabus uploaded in Canvas or presented during the Orientation are understood by your students. You can require the student to answer a Syllabus Quiz using Quizzes @ Canvas or Google Form. Possible questions will be (a) what are the course learning outcomes, (b) What are the course requirements, (c) How will the final grade be computed, (d) What are the pre-requisite knowledge for the course

3.    Post-Lecture Survey -  After an online lecture, require the students to submit an Assignment @ Canvas or at Google Form where they answer the ff questions: (a) What is the “muddiest” or most confusing topic in the lecture? and (b) What is the most interesting topic?. Based on the survey, you may provide follow-up lectures online by Conference @ Canvas or through Discussions @ Canvas.

4.    Practice Quiz @ Canvas or Google Form-  A practice quiz will serve as a reviewer before the actual quiz. It also familiarizes them on the Canvas platform for quizzes. From the results of the practice quiz, the teacher can determine the common mistakes and then provide feedback to the students.

5.    Discussions @ Canvas – You can open a discussion about a problem or issue and ask students to reply. The students can read the replies of their classmates and the teacher can also comment on some replies. Just like in face-to-face, the teacher can reply directly to the student by mentioning the name in the reply.

6.    PPT with Audio – You can prepare your PPT slides and add audio per slide. You can share the PPT with Audio at Files @ Canvas. You can even convert the PPT with Audio into a video and upload at YouTube (but YT has size limitation for upload). This is an alternative to a recorded online lecture using Conferences @ Canvas. This will be useful in asynchronous learning for the students.

HOW DO I GET STUDENTS TO ENGAGE WITH THESE ACTIVITIES?

 (Ref. asuce.instructure.com)

1. Consider adding “low point incentives” (perhaps 1 point or 1 percent per activity) as an extrinsic motivator
2. Instructors can set “Canvas requirements” to require students to accomplish the activity before advancing into the next module or before they can open an Assignment, File or a Quiz.
3. Consider attaching eligibility for “grade bumps,” such as rounding or adding a value to the general average to get a higher final grade if they accomplish all or a majority of the activities. Example: A general average of 59.0 has final grade of 0.0, but will be bumped to 60.0 and the student will get a final grade of 1.0.