The Future of Education
E-learning and Face-to-Face Classes: A Mixed Approach for Engineering Education on Electromagnetic Compatibility
Maria De Lauretis, Luleå University of Technology (Sweden)
Jonas Ekman, Luleå University of Technology (Sweden)
Giulio Antonini, Department of Industrial and Information Engineering and Economics, Università degli Studi dell’Aquila (Italy)
Abstract
The Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge framework, or TPACK, emerged in 2006 [1] and highlighted the role of knowledge about technology in effective teaching. Technology has a direct impact on the subject under study and, ultimately, on student learning. The COVID-19 pandemic directly impacted education and teaching methodology, forcing a quick re-design of traditionally taught in-class courses. This work describes how we re-designed an engineering course in electromagnetism to meet the new demands. Due to the current circumstances, the course had a limited number of students. However, this helped us experimenting with new technologies and available tools and resources. We adopted a mixed approach that combined e-learning techniques, face-to-face classes, and laboratory activities with small groups. We used the Canvas platform and divided the courses into modules. As suggested in [2], each module contained a briefing that guided the student through the preparation material before the lecture. We added quizzes to be completed before the lecture. We used the Canvas built-in tools to record lectures and embed quizzes during the lecture to activate the students. The new platform allowed a proper usage of Web resources, following similar ideas as in the Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge – Web (TPCK-W). Relevant material from the Web, such as official Web channels for recognized engineering organizations, were used, when suitable, to introduce the topics for the students and to offer supplement material. During the course, we observed that the students performed either better or similar in the partials and lab activities. The course evaluation was performed as self-report measures, where the students were asked to numerically rate their agreement regarding teaching and the quality of the course. The re-designed course had more positive assessments than previous courses taught with a traditional format.
Keywords: educational technologies, active learning, e-learning, TPACK, TPCK-W.
References:
- Koehler, Matthew J., et al. "The technological pedagogical content knowledge framework." Handbook of research on educational communications and technology. Springer, New York, NY, 2014. 101-111.
- Gibbs, Graham, Sue Habeshaw, and Trevor Habeshaw. "Interesting things to do in your lectures." Bristol: Technical and educational services (53).
