Innovations in Education Improving Engineering Education Worldwide Through Evidence-Based Learning Research

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Innovations in EducationImproving Engineering
Education Worldwide Through Evidence-Based
Learning Research
Autar Kaw Professor of Mechanical
Engineering University of South Florida Tampa,
USA

• World Engineering Education Forum
• Wednesday, September 25, 2013

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How many students are enrolled in higher
education?
Source Making the Indian higher education
system future ready FICCI Higher Education Summit
2009
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How many education institutions are available?
Source Making the Indian higher education
system future ready FICCI Higher Education Summit
2009
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What proportion of students are in tertiary
education?
Gross enrollment ratio (GER) is the ratio of
total enrollment, regardless of age, to the
population of the age group that officially
corresponds to the level of education. 
Source Making the Indian higher education
system future ready FICCI Higher Education Summit
2009
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Gross enrollment ratio for tertiary education by
regions
Gross enrollment ratio is the ratio of total
enrollment, regardless of age, to the population
of the age group that officially corresponds to
the level of education 
Source UNESCO Institute of Statistics, 2009
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MOOCs
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Definition of MOOCs

• Massive Open Online Courses
• Course It is a course
• Online It is offered online
• Open Do not need to pay a fee or be registered
  student
• Massive Designed to support indefinite number
  of students

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How do MOOCs fit in?
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Will MOOCs help?

• How are they evolving?
• cMOOCs
• xMOOCs
• bMOOCs

Image Courtesy of hastec.org
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Learning Approaches
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Two extreme approaches that work!
Guided Discovery
Fully Guided Instruction
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A simple recipe for optimal learning!

• Follow the evidence-based pedagogy of Universal
  Design Learning (UDL) of giving multiple forms of
• Perception
• Expression
• Engagement

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Rote vs Understanding Method
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Rote method
h
b
Areabh
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Understanding method
h
b
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Understanding method
h
b
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How does it transfer?
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Solvable and unsolvable problems
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Which Learning Techniques are Best?
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Ten common learning strategies

1. Elaborative interrogation
2. Self-explanation 
3. Summarization
4. Highlighting/underlining 
5. Keyword mnemonic 
6. Imagery for text 
7. Rereading 
8. Practice testing 
9. Distributed practice 
10. Interleaved practice 

Low Low Low Low Low
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Ten common learning strategies

1. Elaborative interrogation
2. Self-explanation 
3. Summarization
4. Highlighting/underlining 
5. Keyword mnemonic 
6. Imagery for text 
7. Rereading 
8. Practice testing 
9. Distributed practice 
10. Interleaved practice 

Moderate Moderate Low Low Low Low Low Moderate
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Ten common learning strategies
Moderate Moderate Low Low Low Low Low High High Mo
derate

1. Elaborative interrogation
2. Self-explanation 
3. Summarization
4. Highlighting/underlining 
5. Keyword mnemonic 
6. Imagery for text 
7. Rereading 
8. Practice testing 
9. Distributed practice 
10. Interleaved practice 

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QUESTION What is the Biggest Hindrance to
Learning?
MULTITASKING!
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The two circuits in the brain
Circuit 1 This one is for reactive
attention Circuit 2 This one sets our mind to
concentrate on something
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Multitask learners (Circuit 1)

• Multitaskers fire up striatum needed for routine
  learning. Not bad if you want to be on an
  assembly line.

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Focused learners (Circuit 2)

• Focused learners rely on hippocampus that is
  needed for learning abstract rules to novel
  problems. Needed for learning mathematics and
  programming based work.

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Negative consequences of multitasking while doing
college work

• Time Spent
• Mental Fatigue
• Memory Failure
• Inept Deep Learning

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Adaptive Learning
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Personalized learning makes learning more
effective

• Adapts digital lessons and assessments
• Empowers educators with tools
• We can do this now using the learning management
  systems quizzing options, flash cards, etc.

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Advising
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Improve retention of students

• Non-cognitive factors are crucial
• Improve direction via online tools

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A Learning Taxonomy
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What is Blooms Taxonomy?
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Six Levels of Blooms Taxonomy

• Knowledge (repeating verbatim)
• List, State
• Comprehension (demonstrate understanding)
• Explain, Interpret
• Application (applying learned info to solve
  problem)
• Calculate, Solve

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Six Levels of Blooms Taxonomy

• Analysis (breaking things down, formulating
  mathematical models)
• Derive, Explain
• Synthesis (creating something, combining
  elements)
• Formulate, Makeup, Design
• Evaluation (making and justifying judgments,
  selection from alternatives)
• Determine, Select, Critique

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Lets Review With a Video

• A short video on Blooms Taxonomy

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ACTIVE LEARNING
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Flipped Classroom

• Transmission in class and Assimilation at home
  TO Transmission at home and Assimilation in
  class.
• Image Courtesy of University of Washington

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Peer-To-Peer Interaction
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Concluding Remarks

• To improve the well-being of the society, bring
  socio-economic equality to higher education.
• First think of the pedagogy and then figure out
  if technology can help you to implement it.
• Use mostly evidence-based techniques in your
  class such as Universal Design Learning.
• Develop atmosphere of no complex multitasking in
  and out of the classroom for studying.
• Practice some version of an established taxonomy
  and incorporate active learning.

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END