1. Curriculum (re)development in electrical
and computer engineering programs
B. Pejcinovic, L. Zurk, M. Siderius, M.
Holtzman, D. Duncan, R. Bass, R. Kravitz,
J. Morris
Electrical and Computer Engineering

2. Classroom in 1910

3. 1930

4. 1960

5. 1990

6. 2012

7. So, you want to (radically) change your
curriculum?
• WHAT
• WHY
• HOW
• Why should you care and join us?

8. WHAT
Identify and transform at least one
ECE course on each level of study for
a total of 4-5 courses
Use tested and practical techniques,
suitable to our environment
Use this experience to transform the
rest of the curriculum

9. WHY
• Plenty of research  we can radically improve
our students’ learning
• Many effective pedagogical approaches have
been proposed and tested, but adoption of
these methods in engineering is sporadic
• Engineering is very well suited for many
techniques involving problem-solving and
project-based learning

10. Opportunities and challenges
Research Based Instructional • Faculty know about RBIS
Strategies (RBIS) but:
• Active Learning • 25% discontinue their use
• Case-Based Teaching
• 25% use only 1-2 RBIS
• Collaborative Learning
• Concept Tests • Lack of continued support
• Cooperative Learning for adopters
• Inquiry Learning
• Just-In-Time Teaching • “… engineering faculty
• Peer Instruction members indicate that
• Problem-Based Learning time to apply these
• Service Learning … approaches is the largest
barrier to use.”

11. HOW
• Stages:
1. In depth analysis of learning outcomes,
2. Catalogue available teaching best-
practices (both in general and specific to a
given course),
3. implement these in a classroom
4. assess the results
5. Tightly integrate curriculum across years

12. HOW
• Investigate and implement (1st year):
– Flipped-classroom approach
– Electronic portfolios
– Proficiency testing
– In-class active learning
–…
• Document and share
• Expand to the rest of the curriculum (2nd year)

13. Join us if
• You are facing similar challenges and want to
implement similar curriculum-level changes
• You want to find out how well these
techniques work in practice and learn from
our mistakes
• You can provide feedback from your
experience