The past decade has seen pedagogical transformations that are changing the landscape of engineering education. The emphasis on active learning, critical thinking, and problem-solving has permeated engineering programs world-wide. However, with the rapid adoption of new technologies and applications, there is an alarming skills gap in the engineering workforce. Traditional engineering education tends to be more knowledge-based, and often task-oriented. In order to bridge the gap between theory and practice, it is crucial that students are provided the opportunity to develop, practice, and test technical skills and competencies that are transferable to the workforce.
In this work, the authors will explore the feasibility of integrating design-oriented modular experiences related to trending technologies, within the undergraduate ECE curriculum. In particular, a framework based on Simpson’s Psychomotor Domain will be used to design learning experiences for skills related to Connectivity, Data Analytics, and Visualization (CAV). While the choice of CAV is geared towards preparing students for a data-driven world, the framework could be adapted to include other technology trends that are pervasive and ubiquitous. Assessment strategies will be identified to gauge the impact of these interventions on students’ perception of competence. The underlying goal of this work is to combine the traditional knowledge-based curriculum with skills-based experiences to broaden students’ horizons, while helping them develop transferable knowledge and skills. Skills-based learning also opens up opportunities for hands-on learning in which experimentation plays a key role – also known as Experiment Centric Pedagogy. This is based on the idea that engineering education should have plenty of activities that enable students to act like engineers.
Shiny Abraham is an Assistant Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Seattle University. She received the B.E. degree in Telecommunication Engineering from Visveswaraiah Technological University (VTU), India in 2007 and Ph.D. from Old Dominion University, Norfolk, VA in 2012. Her research interests span the areas of Wireless Communication, Internet of Things (IoT), Optimization using Game Theory, and Engineering Education Research. She is a member of the IEEE and ASEE, a technical program committee member for IEEE Globecom, ICC, ICCCN and VTC conferences, and a reviewer for several international journals and conferences.
http://orcid.org/0000-0002-4216-763X
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
[biography]
Kenneth Connor is an emeritus professor in the Department of Electrical, Computer, and Systems Engineering (ECSE) at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) where he taught courses on electromagnetics, electronics and instrumentation, plasma physics, electric power, and general engineering. His research involves plasma physics, electromagnetics, photonics, biomedical sensors, engineering education, diversity in the engineering workforce, and technology enhanced learning. He learned problem solving from his father (who ran a gray iron foundry), his mother (a nurse) and grandparents (dairy farmers). He has had the great good fortune to always work with amazing people, most recently the members and leadership of the Inclusive Engineering Consortium (IEC) from HBCU and HSI ECE programs and the faculty, staff and students of the Lighting Enabled Systems and Applications (LESA) ERC, where he was Education Director until his retirement in 2018. He was RPI ECSE Department Head from 2001 to 2008 and served on the board of the ECE Department Heads Association (ECEDHA) from 2003 to 2008. He is a Life Fellow of the IEEE.
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