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Abstract
In many foundational courses in the electrical engineering discipline, a student's lack of
adequate mathematical and analytical skills is one of the primary barriers to effective
learning. To compound the problem, many courses are taught using the format of a
traditional lecture in which students are mostly passive listeners. To overcome these
problems, we are integrating state-of-the-art software for mathematical computing into the
classroom in order to facilitate and foster an active learning environment. Ultimately,
the goal is to enhance understanding of fundamental concepts. We believe this can be
accomplished through the increased use of computation and visualization.
Beginnings
In the past 3 years, in response to our students' needs, the use of software tools in
teaching selected courses in the signals and systems area, has steadily grown. MathcadŽ (MathSoft Inc.) had been used in Linear Signals and
Systems (ELE314) , Introduction to Communications
Engineering (ELE483) , and Digital Signal Processing (ELE486) . PV-WAVEŽ (Visual
Numerics Inc.) was used in Digital Image Processing (ELE489)
. Valuable lessons have been learned as how best to integrate mathematical software
into the teaching environment, how to structure classroom activities, how to write
instructional electronic documents and more. Close to 300 pages of Mathcad-based electronic documents had been written,
including interactive lectures.
Integrating Mathematica ...
The project's primary goal is to influence and improve how our students perceive and learn
electrical engineering by fundamentally changing the way we teach. The plan is to replace
the typical lecture with a closely supervised, interactive exploration of the subject
matter in a dedicated computer equipped classroom. The key features are:
- use of advanced computer technologies,
- systematic use of laboratory environment to study theoretical concepts,
- fostering active and collaborative learning.
This approach forces the student to be an active participant in the lecture. Through
continual practice it enhances their problem-solving skills.
To deepen understanding and further promote active learning, in-class exercises are
complemented by "take-home" assignments and extended computer projects. It has
been our experience that projects are an important learning instrument. Given a capable
computational tool, projects help to motivate the student, they reward initiative and
creativity, and prepare for independent, unassisted learning. Systematic use of writing
and revision is an important cognition tool, so an essential component of these
assignments and projects is the requirement that results be presented in clear, coherent
prose. Here are copies of two conference presentations on this topic:
ASEE 2001 and DSP 2006.
The Mathematica Classroom
The project is supported by a new classroom funded in part by
a grant from the National Science
Foundation, DUE-9650253. The new Mathematica classroom is a
combination traditional classroom and computer laboratory. The room
comfortably seats a maximum of 24 students at standard desks allowing the
instructor to hold a traditional lecture or exam. Additionally, it houses 9
engineering workstations running Mathematica, located around the perimeter of the room.
These are used as needed during interactive, computer-based lectures and laboratories.
Projection equipment and a network printer complete the equipment list in the classroom.
The room allows for efficient mixing of these two modes of instruction, combining their
strengths and eliminating the weaknesses. When not scheduled for regular classes, the room
serves as an open access laboratory for students working on their course related Mathematica-based
assignments and projects.
Course Development Calendar
The first course within the department to implement these techniques was ELE489: Digital
Image Processing, developed during the Spring'96 semester. A discussion of the project can
be found in Teaching Digital Image Processing with Mathematica.
The image processing courseware project and related course materials were awarded the 1996 Computational Science Award
given by the AMES Laboratory and the United States Department of Energy. The course
materials are now available online. For information on this and other courses and to reach
online documents use appropriate links from the table below (the table contains a link to
online materials, the year in which the materials were first developed, and the date of
the most recent revision).
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