A Project and Design Oriented Electrical Engineering Curriculum

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This planning grant for department level reform will create a new department of electrical and computer engineering at the University of North Texas. The establishment of the proposed program, coincident with the creation of a new College of Engineering at the University of North Texas, will result in the development of a model curriculum that represents a significant change in the way we educate Electrical Engineering students. This innovative curriculum will introduce students to integrated project-oriented industrial experiences at the freshman level, with additional project-oriented courses added each semester. Instructors recruited from nearby industries will help teach the project-oriented courses. Such university-industry collaboration will help students integrate theory and practice, ensuring that the engineering curriculum continues to be relevant, competitive, and directed towards future technological developments. While traditional programs in electrical engineering emphasize modular structures and specialty disciplines this approach combines insights from cognitive science with an appreciation of the practical challenges raised by focusing students' attention on projects in a class. Thus, we propose to integrate project-based learning throughout the curriculum. The expected benefits of our approach include increased student participation in the learning process (active learning and self-learning), enhanced communication skills, adaptation of pedagogies to a wider set of learning styles, and promotion of critical and proactive thinking. Major features of the approach are the partnership between industry and the university, the focus on active learning, the emphasis on teaming, and the importance of laboratory activities applied to real-world problems.