Enhancing Post-Covid Student Proficiency and Confidence in Using Laboratory Test Equipment

Because of the Covid-19 Pandemic during academic year 2020-2021, many of the classes and laboratories in our undergraduate Electrical Engineering (EE) program were conducted remotely, making tremendous use of videoconferencing technologies such as Microsoft Teams, and simulation engines such as National Instruments' MultiSimTM. As we began to move back to “in person” learning for the Fall of 2021, our EE faculty observed some early weaknesses in student achievement of ABET EE student outcome #6 (an ability to develop and conduct appropriate experimentation, analyze and interpret data, and use engineering judgment to draw conclusions). We found that while students demonstrated excellent proficiency in using modern tools such as MATLABTM and MultiSimTM (which had been used extensively during remote classes), they appeared considerably weaker in making independent measurements using laboratory hardware such as oscilloscopes, dynamic signal analyzers (FFT analyzers), RF analyzers, and even commonly used voltage and current meters (which had not been used much during remote learning). Here we highlight specific student shortcomings we observed in laboratory skills as students began their in-person lab experiences during the Fall 2021 semester. We then discuss our approaches to remedy these shortcomings during the Fall 2021 semester to improve student confidence and proficiency in the use of laboratory instrumentation. We also highlight the improvements we saw in achievement of ABET student outcomes. While computer simulation has its place in undergraduate education, practical testing and measurement of electronic systems does require physical measurement and interaction using modern test equipment, and we identified some areas for timely improvement. Our focus in this paper is on improved student performance in using laboratory test equipment in Linear Circuits and Antennas courses. In the Linear Circuits course, students use the Oscilloscope and Dynamic Signal Analyzer to identify the characteristics of several op-amps and circuits (e.g, op-amp open-loop frequency response, gain-bandwidth product, slew rate, output impedance, closed-loop frequency response of an inverting amplifier), and in the in the Antennas course students use the RF analyzer to characterize the behavior of RF circuits, transmission lines and antennas. We show how our increased emphasis on lab skills for the Fall 2021 semester, coupled with unique assessment tools, significantly improved achievement of student outcome #6. More specifically we share the successes we experienced in using oral individual quizzes during lab meetings, group classroom quizzes, individual student observation of setup and measurement, and adding questions related to lab skills and experiences on hourly examinations. © American Society for Engineering Education, 2022

Assessing Effectiveness of Different Teaching Modalities in Linear Circuits I

The four- and six-year graduation rates (~17.7% and ~64.5% respectively) of engineering (ENGR), are below the University's average graduation rates (~ 33.1% and 67.4%). The goal of this study is to seek solutions towards increasing the graduation rates and ultimately decreasing the time-to-graduation. There are several steps that could be taken to help the engineering students graduate earlier. Examples are summer bridge programs that focus on strengthening mathematical skills of students, encouraging students to attend tutoring sessions and practice problem-solving. One of the factors that add to the time-to-graduation of students is not being able to pass the lower division courses that serve as the prerequisite to other discipline courses. The result will be high DFW rate courses which students repeat several times before they can pass them and pursue other courses that rely on these high DFW courses. This can adversely affect the student's sense of belonging and decrease the retention rate. During the COVID-19 pandemic, all courses, including some of the high DFW courses, were taught in various modalities. This has created different results and perceptions by students. The Linear Circuits I is a high DFW rate course in the Electrical and Computer Engineering Department of CSU Chico. In this study, the author, who has taught this course in four different modalities, looks closely at the results of this class and compares the effect of different teaching modalities on the DFW rates. The author will also reflect on the effectiveness of each of the teaching modes, student engagement, and student feedback on each mode. The results could be used for the recommendation of teaching modalities if the course is offered online again due to a pandemic or other need. Additionally, the lessons learned and the technology related features of online instruction can be integrated with in-person instruction to increase the effectiveness of teaching. © American Society for Engineering Education, 2022.

Tools for simultaneous online and in-person teaching in a Linear Circuit Analysis subject

During the first semester of 2020–2021, classes for Linear Circuit Analysis subjects (Mechanical Engineering Degree, Miguel Hernandez University of Elche, Spain) were taught in a dual way because of the COVID-19 pandemic: students were able to attend in-person or online, as long as the in-person attendance limit was not surpassed. The same strategy was used for exams: each student decided whether to take the exam in-person or online. Specific software tools were used for the in-advance seat reservation and simultaneous online and in-person class attendance, and examination tools and strategies, with a special emphasis on avoiding online cheating. Online attendance was preferred by students (averaging 64.9% of global attendance for lectures and 84.5% for exams), with abrupt increases during the worst episodes of the pandemic. Video recordings of the lectures were made available to all of the students, with the most viewed video being accessed over 200 times. Concerning evaluation, no statistically significant differences were found between in-person or online average examination marks (p =.133), which may be an indicator of low online cheating. Student feedback showed their satisfaction with the dual teaching strategy, despite their initial doubts at the beginning of the course. © 2022 The Authors. Computer Applications in Engineering Education published by Wiley Periodicals LLC.