Collaborative Research: Authoring tool for a hands-on, on-line, lab curriculum for engineering technology students

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Engineering - Electrical (55)This collaborative project between the University of Massachusetts Amherst and the Massachusetts Maritime Academy is evaluating and dissemination a new interactive instructional circuit analysis computer environment (CIRCE) for college physics and engineering laboratories. CIRCE includes interactive, on-line software that provides immediate feedback, which is known to increase student learning and mastery of concepts. It also provides students with hands-on experience with electrical measurements and their interpretation. CIRCE includes an authoring tool that allows faculty to modify the environment to fit their own laboratory apparatus and curriculum goals. The project seeks to improve student learning by (1) providing immediate feed-back of the laboratory report and an opportunity for students to correct their errors, (2) freeing instructors from the task of checking student work so they can provide higher-level supervision of the laboratory exercise and (3) supporting the educational community by enabling flexible creation of new laboratory software. A consortium of faculty from 4-year colleges and the University of Massachusetts Amherst are introducing the software into their circuit analysis classes and evaluate its efficacy.