Covid-19 - online classes - open book exams! How future will be for the engineering education!
This article is based on three different experiences I had with different people in the last 10 months. I realised that the world of education is changed and the future of engineering education is going to be completely transformed. Here are my thoughts based on my experience. These may be my rants but I am looking at the future which is not going to be the same as I am see now.
- Students of 2019,20 & 21 batches have to equip themselves with basics as most of their classes have been last due to Covid-19. The reason, last 3 months I have been meeting candidates who are from these batches as one of big company asked me to get some good embedded hardware and software engineers to be trained. My experience tells me every student has to be "Skilled" (remember I am not saying re-skilled) in basics first before they can be trained for advanced skills.
- Second is the challenge faced by the faculty to keep the students attentive to the "on line class". Having taught for undergraduate and graduate students we are all wired as "black or rather white board" teachers and moving to a virtual class room is a big challenge. I see as teachers we have to unlearn things and learn new things. Just to test, I took an online course on "creating on line courses". But that course was on Power Point and how to use Power Point.This only made me worry that current teaching materials have to be revamped to meet the virtual world and there is no escape from this I am yet to see a book or guide or a course to help in this especially for engineering education!
- Third I saw one of the oldest university to use open book exams. I already see challenges for both sides (Teachers & Students). The reason most of our engineering education was rote oriented and valuation was based based how closely you can reproduce the text book. Challenges will how to frame question and how the questions will be answered! To add some fun I am giving a few sample questions which I use for the interviews we conduct. See how easy or tough it is!
- How a NTC sensor can be used for a Analog Thermometer application?
- How do you measure the phase difference between current and voltage in a AC mains for power factor measurement (no microprocessor or DSP!)
- If there is only one digital out put is available in a microcontroller how will you generate analog voltage?
- Design the staircase switch circuit using digital logic
So finally the unless a collective effort is put these batches of students can face challenges as the join an organisation (which has no patience to train as they want ready to use engineers). Let me know what you think.
Srinivas and others reading this - I am going to say you have one point of view. Unlike a coin (two sides), this issue is a polyhedra with way too many sides and not sure if there is one right approach - IMHO. Depending on the class, on your student, on the personality of the teacher etc the approach will have to different. I have not used a black/white board for a long time. (Been Teaching or should I say facilitating learning since 1999. I switched to a combination of PowerPoint (I painstakingly create them and revise/update most years) + workbooks (with lots of blanks) + short quiz (generally < 5min, worst case < 10mins) at the beginning of class + projects (or exams) as a way to teach my classes. The transformation from chalk board started in 2001 and has never stopped. It takes a lot of conscientious efforts to make learning happen. My Powerpoint slides facilitate presenting fundamentals and discussions by putting in questions. These questions drives a lot of what happens in the class. The workbooks are used to derive the theory (where needed), present problems with lots of blanks. So with the combination of ppt and workbook we (students and I) derive equations, solve problems. I use a "stylus or e-ink based computer" (started with Compaq tablet in 2001, followed by Toshiba protege with pen and now Surface Book). In the F2F (face to face) classroom these workbooks lets me see quickly where my students are struggling. (We open the worksheet, a short discussion of approach to problem and then I give them a few minutes for "a few steps of the problem" and then I walk around seeing them work alone or together). Then I go to the front and solve the steps (projected on screen) and then I proceed to the next step and so on. The short quiz is typically from the material covered in the previous week. Immediately after the quiz is done and collected, I discuss the solutions in the class. (Yes they are given the answers and so I have to create new ones every time I teach the class) Projects are more open ended (make grading hard for me) but helps the students pull things together better. In class when I ask a question - I hear student answers and ask to mull over the answer given, ask for more input and continue this for a short time, before I finally consolidate and present "what we know is the correct answer at this point in time". I guess I will stop here. There is so much to talk and discuss in the topics you have presented. If anyone is interested in what people are doing here is one link to conference proceedings - https://peer.asee.org/ . I learn a lot every year I attend this 4 day conference. YMMV
Good PoV. I see more needs for industry to come forward and take up some of the training on tech skills while fundamentals are covered by universities.
So to add to this let me share something that we 5 faculties tried for our VI semester Mechanical students for the course Mechatronics. There are around 300 students in 5 sections. We asked students in each section (~60 in each section) to form a group of 3. So in a section there will be 20-21 groups. Then we introduced something called hands-on project. Two such hands-on project will be conducted and marks of these 2 hands-on will be considered along with the marks of the Quizzes for calculating Internal component. First hands-on they should choose any sensor, interface it with Arduino and show some output. Second hands-on, they have to either provide sensor output to any op-amp circuit (inverting, non-inverting or summing) and show output or demonstrate working of an actuator interfaced with Arduino. They can use internet materials and tutorials, but should demonstrate their circuit only (we have set rules so that they wont use internet videos). They should also study the working of the sensors or components that they are using and present it. They need to submit a 5 minutes video including Powerpoint presentation and demonstration for assessment We have completed first hand-on and I really have to appreciate the enthusiasm and efforts of the students. I think its a good way to make students (especially mechanical students) try hands-on.