Active Learning: Group Design Projects

该项目的目标是通过模拟工业环境的积极学习经验，培养学生终身解决团队问题的能力和沟通能力。这些经验创造了团队设计活动，整合了问题解决、项目计划、口头和书面沟通。项目目标要求课程改革，修改两门高级课程，开设一门新的高级项目设计课程。两门高级课程的教学技巧和内容都发生了变化，以使学生为新的高级项目设计经验做好准备。教学方法侧重于利用计算机控制技术辅以教师指导的协作学习。修订后的微控制器课程的课程内容介绍了现代技术，如C编程、逻辑分析仪的使用和嵌入式设计。工业电子学课程现在涵盖了可编程逻辑控制器、数据采集和测试仪器接口。这些课程内容的变化需要购买控制计算机、数据采集和逻辑分析板、测试仪器和软件。高级顶点设计课程加强了在两个修订课程中开发的团队方法的技能。高年级学生将在团队设计项目中使用新设备，模拟毕业生在工业领域的首次作业。在这三门课程中，学生将使用计算机相关项目作为学习团队沟通和解决问题技巧的工具。小组沟通技巧包括书面和口头考试、团队发现的交流、学生作品集的生成和期末报告。

The project goal is to develop students' life-long team problem solving and communication skills through active learning experiences that simulate industrial situations. These experiences create team design activities that integrate problem solving, project planning, and oral and written communications.The project objectives require curriculum reform that revises two upper level courses and creates a new senior project design course. Both the instructional technique and the content of the two upper level courses change to prepare the student for the new senior project design experience.The instructional method focuses on supplementing traditional lectures with instructor-guided collaborative learning using computer control technology. Course content in a revised microcontroller course introduces modern technology such as C programming, logic analyzer use, and embedded design. An industrial electronics course now covers programmable logic controllers, data acquisition, and test instrument interfacing. These changes in course content require the purchase of control computers, data acquisition and logic analyzer boards, test instruments, and software.The senior capstone design course reinforces the skills that are developed in the team approaches in the two revised courses. Senior students will use the new equipment in team design projects that simulate graduates first assignments in industry.Throughout the three courses students use computer related projects as a vehicle to learn team communication and problem solving techniques. Group communications skills include written and oral exams, communication of team findings, generation of student portfolios, and final presentations.