NDT

A s the current population of nondestructive testing (NDT) practitionersages, it becomes necessary for the industry to recruit and train newpractitioners. Most potential NDT professionals have little or no directconnection to NDT, and many NDT personnel report that they entered

the field “by accident,” without knowing much about it in advance or reallyseeking it out. Therefore, active recruitment of young people into NDT isnecessary.

One challenge presented by this requirement is that of giving NDT presenta-tions to young people. “Young people” as used in this paper means children ofelementary school age through undergraduate university students. This papergives an overview of how to prepare, practice, and present an introductorylesson in NDT suitable for a school classroom with students who are notcurrently actively preparing for an NDT career. Three cases from the author’sexperience are examined.

wx ME FEATURE

S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 5 • M A T E R I A L S E V A L U A T I O N 1165

Introducing Young People to NDTby Phillip W. Trach

INTRO

how to prepare, practice,and present an introductorylesson in NDT suitable fora school classroom

ME FEATURE wx introducing young people to ndt

1166 M A T E R I A L S E V A L U A T I O N • S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 5

BackgroundIn a recent study, it was found that the average ageof an NDT technician is 48 years old with 21.6 yearsof experience (PQNDT, 2013). This puts the averagestarting point for an NDT career at age 26. At 48years old, this average technician is 17 years from atypical retirement age of 65, well past the halfwaypoint in his or her career. This also indicates that, onaverage, technicians are starting their careers wellafter their school careers end. This indicates a lackof information within schools; a student who learnedabout the NDT industry and had an interest in itwould not wait until his or her mid-20s to begin acareer in NDT.

Numerous papers and editorial columns in NDTpublications have highlighted the need to recruitnew personnel (Allgaier, 2010; Peloquin, 2013).However, there has been little activity in educatingor training existing NDT practitioners to present NDTinformation to young people. Furthermore, the skillsand experience of a skilled NDT practitioner do notusually include classroom teaching beyondconducting specialized training classes for existingemployees, usually in a workplace setting. Theseclasses also do virtually nothing to generate publicinterest in the field. In short, training a new hire, no matter how well it is done, does not generateinterest in NDT by students outside the workplace.

Furthermore, by the time a student has enteredhigh school, he or she has already made a number ofchoices regarding his or her education, which will havea strong influence on available options later on. Ninthor tenth grade, or sooner, is not too early to introducea young person to NDT (Sander, 2014).

Composing the ProposalNearly every professional teacher uses a lesson plan.A lesson plan is an outline of the content of the day’slesson, along with specific information regarding theobjective of the lesson, the core information of thesubject for that day, the materials and activities thatwill be used, and usually some kind of assessment forhow well the students understood and retained thelesson.

The author does not intend to give comprehen-sive instruction in lesson planning. Knowing theessential elements of a lesson plan will allow an NDT professional to begin crafting an NDT lessonaccording to a format that a professional educatorcan understand, and from which a workable lessonplan can be made (with some assistance from theclassroom teacher). Furthermore, following anexisting template can help ensure that nothing getsmissed.

The following is a typical lesson plan structure(Sander, 2014).l Lesson: what you intend to teachl Grade: obtain student grade level from the teacherl Overview: explain why it is important and how it

relates to the subjectl Objective: why your lesson is importantl Essential question: what your lesson answersl Materials: equipment and supplies you needl Activities: things you and the students will do as

part of the lessonl Assessment: how you will know the students under-

stood your lessonThe initial goal for constructing this lesson plan

is to be prepared to discuss your proposal with ateacher. It is far more productive to discuss aconcrete plan with a teacher and make changes to it,than to begin the conversation with only a vagueidea of giving a lesson on NDT, particularly when theteacher knows little more about NDT than thestudents.

The goal of this initial discussion is to answer thequestion, “Why is it worthwhile to me to have mystudents learn about it?” (Sander, 2014). The betterprepared you are to answer this question, the betteryour discussion will go. It has been the author’s expe-rience that teachers are generally receptive to havingguest lecturers, especially when the guest brings real-world applications of the subject into the classroom.This puts an NDT practitioner in the position of givinga concrete answer to the constant student question,“Why do we have to learn this?”

The author has found that taking a “Six W’s”approach to crafting an NDT lesson works well forcompleting a lesson plan form such as the aforemen-tioned one. The Six W’s are:l Whol Whatl Whenl Wherel Whyl How (the author counts the “w” at the end)

Who will you be teaching? You will take a differentapproach to a third-grade science class than youwould with a high school social studies class. Ingeneral, older students, and mathematics andphysical science classes allow a more technicalapproach.

What will you be teaching? This is more than theNDT method you choose; this will include how youintend to connect your NDT experience to theclassroom subject.

When will you teach it? You may need to beflexible. For example, an ultrasonics lesson with lots

of trigonometry will need to wait until the studentshave developed the mathematics skills to perform thecalculations. You will also need to work within theavailable class time.

Where will you teach it? Some portions of yourlesson may not lend themselves to a typicalclassroom. You will also need to know whatequipment is available in the classroom, whatequipment you will need to bring, and how to set up your equipment in the room.

Why will you teach it? This question should beanswered in terms the teacher understands and canapply to the students.

How will you teach it? You, as a potential guestlecturer, need to display the connection between NDTand the subject; the teacher will want details on howyou intend to do that. This will generally be the longestportion.

Once these questions are answered, any lessonplan form can be at least partially completed. Oncethat is done, the details of the lesson can bediscussed with the teacher and modifications can be made. The more prepared you are for this initialdiscussion, the more likely your proposal will be wellreceived.

Proposal to the TeacherIdeally, you should get a copy of a typical lesson planfrom the teacher of the class you intend to visit, ordiscuss your intentions with the teacher, being open tosuggestions on how best to fit your ideas into theexisting curriculum. This allows you to adapt yourinitial answers to the Six W’s to best meet the needsand objectives of that specific teacher.

Be prepared to give an introductory explanationof both the importance of NDT in today’s world, aswell as a brief overview of any NDT method(s) youintend to use (Trach, 2013). In the words of oneteacher, “We’re not technical people. We likepictures” (Sander, 2014).

Also be prepared to adapt your lesson to anyspecific needs the teacher has. Keep in mind that youwill be an interruption to the teacher’s curriculum.While the author’s experience has been that teachersare generally quite willing to have guest lecturers, youwill be making some extra work for them. Be ready toaccommodate their needs. Be ready to both ask andanswer the question, “Are there other ways NDT canbe tied to the curriculum?”

Preparing the LessonOnce you and the teacher have worked out the basicsof your approach to your lesson, you can begin craftingthe details of your lesson. You will refer often to your

lesson plan, always keeping in mind the centralquestion: “Why is this important?”

The central theme of your lesson will be theanswer to this question. The author has found that asingle sentence is most effective for focusing the otherparts of the lesson. Each statement or activity can thengenerally be linked to this sentence (Trach and Trach,2012).

A comprehensive description of all the possiblelesson approaches is beyond the scope of this paper;indeed, it would be tantamount to several semesters’work in educational theory and curriculum develop-ment. However, a few simple approaches are worthmentioning.

Telling StoriesParticularly with younger students, or with olderstudents who would benefit from “real-world applica-tions,” telling stories of your experiences can generateinterest in your lesson. The challenge here is to beexciting. Your story is familiar to you, but brand-new toyour class. Be lively; emphasize the skill and tech-nology in your story, especially to older students. Eventhe most technical paper is, at its base, a story.

DemonstrationsDemonstrations can be very effective, especially whenthe students can try the equipment for themselves.However, this requires additional time; make certainyou will have enough time both for demonstrationsand for the explanation of what you show the class.The danger here is to give merely a demonstration of“cool science stuff” without connecting it to the worldin which the students live.

It is important when considering a demonstrationin a classroom to remember the limitations of theclassroom. For example, it may not be possible to geta classroom dark enough for a fluorescent penetranttest to be easily visible. Radiography using a portablesource would be extremely difficult (if not impossible)to perform inside a school building. The small screenon most portable ultrasound units may not be visibleto the entire class.

Consider also the time it takes. Waiting 15 minutesfor liquid penetrant to dwell on a part may not be thebest use of time. In general, you will be illustratingprinciples more than conducting NDT training, so itmay be better to have specimens prepared for viewingwithout spending classroom time performingprocessing.

First PrinciplesStarting with the basics and showing how a fewsimple physical phenomena can be connected to

S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 5 • M A T E R I A L S E V A L U A T I O N 1167

MEFEATURE wx introducing young people to ndt

1168 M A T E R I A L S E V A L U A T I O N • S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 5

make a system that reveals amazing material condi-tions can be effective and thorough, provided you cankeep the students’ attention. Particularly in a mathe-matics class, showing the expressions that governcertain aspects of a nondestructive test, thenexplaining the effects when various variables aremanipulated, can give a compelling aspect tootherwise dry equations, especially when combinedwith a demonstration.

Coordination With the Existing CurriculumNo matter how the lesson is crafted, it is importantthat the lesson generate specific outcomes. “What willthe students learn?” is the key question. “How will youknow?” is an important secondary question. Your taskis to make sure that what the students learn from yourpresentation is a natural extension of what they arealready learning in their regularly scheduled class.

This is an area where flexibility on your partcombined with communication with the teacher willhelp. Be open to suggestions; the teacher is the expertat teaching. Use that expertise and rely on it, but doas much preparation as you can beforehand to help. Ifnecessary, review the subject so that you can bettercraft your own lesson to match what the students havealready learned and will learn in the lessons followingyours.

Organizing the LessonOnce you have answered the Six W’s and have someidea how you want the lesson organized, you mustexpand your lesson plan to include the specific detailsof your lesson. This includes elements such as:l Introductory statementsl Storiesl Questions for the class to attempt answeringl Demonstrationsl Participatory exercises

You must plan each step of your lesson from theteacher’s introduction of you all the way to answering

the last question from the last student. You will losethe attention of your audience if you are unprepared ordisorganized.

Each step should have some connection to theprevious step and to the next step. The nature of theseconnections will depend on the steps themselves,your teaching style, and other factors that will bespecific to a particular lesson and presenter. It is farmore important to have a systematic and logicalprogression in place than to adhere to any particularstyle of progression. Have a plan, even if it is not anoptimum plan.

Presenting the LessonThe lesson plan at this point is essentially complete.Discussion with the classroom teacher has happened,ideas have been investigated, and the Six W’s havebeen answered in an organized format.

The task then becomes answering, in person, thecore question that the students (ideally) will have:“Why is this important?”

The novelty of a guest lecturer helps with gainingattention at the beginning of the lesson. A lively andenergetic delivery can help to hold the students’attention, though it is important not to sacrificecontent for the sake of being merely entertaining.Practicing the lesson, even to an empty room, will helpwith timing and delivery.

Practicing also includes practicing any demonstra-tions you may have. Do not skip over them or merelyrehearse them in your mind. Pick up and use eachtool, prop, and system you plan to use. This will showyou if anything is missing, or if anything should beprepared beforehand, and allow you to get used tohow your lesson flows when you start demonstratinginstead of merely talking.

Above all, know your material, know your plan,and then follow the plan.

Demonstrations can be very effective,especially when the students can trythe equipment for themselves.

S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 5 • M A T E R I A L S E V A L U A T I O N 1169

ExamplesThe author presents three examples of classes he hastaught, at the elementary, junior high school, andundergraduate levels. Each presented its own chal-lenges. In all three lessons, ultrasonic testing (UT) wasthe NDT method used.

Elementary LessonThe lesson was presented at an evening boys’ groupat a local church. The one-sentence summary of thelesson was “What’s inside counts.” Several aluminumblocks, some with holes drilled in varying orientations,were covered with tape to obscure the hole locations.A portable UT system was used to demonstrate thedifferences between a “good” block (with no holesdrilled in it) and a “bad” block (that had holes drilledin it). The kids saw that even though several itemsmay look identical on the outside, it is the thingsinside that really make the difference.

Junior High School LessonThe lesson was presented in a sixth-grade mathe-matics class at a nearby private school (Figure 1).The one-sentence summary of the lesson was “Wordproblems happen in real life.” The basic equation,“distance equals rate times time,” was presented asa common word problem about a car driving fromone place to another. Each aspect of the wordproblem was replaced by an element of ultrasonicthickness testing until the students saw that thiscommon word problem had a real-world application

that is used every day. Students then performed athickness test (Figure 2), including manually calcu-lating the part thickness from the acoustic velocity ofthe material and the measured time of flight of theultrasonic signal.

Undergraduate LessonThe lesson was presented several times at a nearbyuniversity. The one-sentence summary of the lessonwas “How to make a living doing NDT.” A number ofshort stories of the author’s experience in NDT, frominitial training to developing new internal practices,were told. Additionally, classroom descriptions anddemonstrations of typical materials testing situationswere displayed. These acted as an adjunct to andextension of the students’ work on system calibrationearlier in the semester.

ConclusionIn order to foster and encourage the next generation ofNDT practitioners, educational presentations in theclassroom by experienced NDT practitioners areneeded at all grade levels. Thorough and thoughtfulpreparation is extremely important, both for a practi-tioner to be welcomed into a teacher’s classroom, andfor the practitioner to effectively introduce youngpeople to NDT. wx

AUTHOR

Phillip W. Trach: ASNT NDT Level III; Laboratory Testing, Inc.,2331 Topaz Dr., Hatfield, Pennsylvania 19440; (800) 219-9095; fax (215) 997-8294; e-mail ptrach@labtesting.com.

Figure 2. Aided by a guest nondestructive testingpresenter, sixth-grade students carried out a basic ultrasonic thickness test.

Figure 1. Sixth-grade students were taught how a basicequation (“distance equals rate times time”) could beused for nondestructive testing.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

The author wishes to acknowledge the support of thefollowing: Laboratory Testing, Inc.; Michael Sander, socialstudies department, William Tennent High School, Warmin-ster, Pennsylvania; Vladimir Genis, Ph.D., engineering tech-nology department head, Drexel University, Philadelphia,Pennsylvania; New Life Presbyterian Church, Glenside,Pennsylvania; and Calvary Christian School, Fairless Hills,Pennsylvania.

REFERENCES

Allgaier, M., “NDT Education and Training: Today and in the Future,” Materials Evaluation, Vol. 68, No. 9, 2010, pp. 972–977.

Peloquin, E., “Education Fosters Growth in NondestructiveTesting’s Future,” Materials Evaluation, Vol. 71, No. 10,2013, pp. 1034–1039.

PQNDT, “Salary Survey 2013,” PQNDT, Arlington, Massachu-setts, 2013.

Sander, M., interview by author, Hatboro, Pennsylvania, 24 June 2014.

Trach, P., “Introducing NDT to Visitors,” ASNT Fall Confer-ence, Las Vegas, Nevada, 4–7 November 2013.

Trach, F., and P. Trach, “Developing Presentation TrainingSkills,” ASNT Fall Conference, Orlando, Florida, 29 October–1 November 2012.

1170 M A T E R I A L S E V A L U A T I O N • S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 5

MEFEATURE wx introducing young people to ndt