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EOLES Project...Teaching Unit experiences
The Eoles project is a three-year European Tempus initiative aimed at developing a fully online Bachelor's degree in Electronics and Optics for embedded systems, involving 15 institutions from Europe and North Africa. The course includes 14 technical units covering fundamental and applied sciences, complemented by soft skills, with asynchronous lectures and virtual remote labs for practical experience. The program was accredited by multiple national educational authorities and has successfully enrolled students, delivering a joint diploma recognized across the European higher education area.
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EOLES Project...Teaching Unit experiences
- 1. EOLES Project... Teaching Unitexperiences Manuel Gericota, A. Fidalgo, P. Ferreira - School of Engineering/Polytechnic of Porto, Portugal Denis Barataud, Guillaume Andrieu - Université de Limoges, France Renaat De Craemer - KU Leuven University, Ostend, Belgium Mihai Cristea - University Politehnica of Bucharest, Romania Abdelhalim Benachenhou - University of Mostaganem, Algeria Mohammed Ankrim - University Cadi Ayad of Marrakech, Morocco Karim Bouchlaghem - University of Kairouan, Tunisia 1This project has been funded with support from the European Commission. This publication reflects the views only of the author, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.
- 2. The EOLES project •a 3-year European TEMPUS project • from October 2012 to October 2015 • 15 institutions • 4 from Europe – France, Portugal, Belgium and Romania • 11 from North Africa - Algeria, Morocco, and Tunisia • the goal L3-EOLES (Electronics and Optics e-Learning for Embedded Systems) course a fully on-line 3rd year Bachelor’s degree in Electronics and Optics for Embedded Systems 2
- 3. Course preparation • Programdefinition • Technical units content and schedule definition • Functional e-Learning 2.0 framework definition • Development of the virtual and remote labs • Preparatory courses for instructors and technicians • Preparation of class and study materials • Preparation of the practical and lab assignments • Course accreditation • Students’ selection and enrolling 3
- 4. Technical units contentand schedule definition • 14 technical units (TUs) divided in three groups • fundamental sciences – including mathematics and physics • applied sciences - digital and analogue electronics, electromagnetic waves, digital signal processing, instrumentation and optics • complementary soft skills - communication techniques in English and business management • 3 optional units • preparatory TUs to level students’ knowledge in critical topics for the course • students with very different knowledge backgrounds may apply to be enrolled in this program 4
- 5. Preparation of classand study materials 5 • asynchronous (prerecorded video) lectures • instructor explains the theoretical basis of a subject • interspersed with self-evaluation questions • multiple-choice, fill-in-the-blanks, matching exercises • main goal to keep students’ attention • students may review the material anytime, any number of times, without restrictions • different sources of information • supporting materials for lectures • freely downloadable companion book • web links → specialized information + complementary data
- 6. TU05-Digital Electronics for EmbeddedSystems • 21 pre-recorded asynchronous classes with a duration never exceeding 20 minutes • Interspersed with self-evaluation quizzes, composed of multiple-choice, fill-in-the-blanks, matching exercises. 6
- 7. TU05-Digital Electronics for EmbeddedSystems • A range of other materials is also available to support the study • Tutorial classes were synchronous classes based on the use of a web conferencing tool. 7
- 8. TU05-Digital Electronics for EmbeddedSystems • Students are more used to interactive classes • Recorded classes are more time efficient • Interactive classes are required to clarify doubts • Student participation in interactive classes is very diverse, • Additional asynchronous resources (forums, emails) are necessary 8
- 9. Development of thevirtual and remote labs • remote laboratory → two kinds of Practical Works • virtual experimentation using professional software accessible in an application server or in open access • real remote laboratory experiments → real-time monitoring and control of technical equipment at distance • the most innovative part of the remote laboratory • each hardware setup (function generator or oscilloscope, for instance) is connected to the internet • from TU’s Moodle page students have access to the related lab’s webpage and to the TUs’ proposed lab works 9
- 10. Development of thevirtual and remote labs • students change the hardware configuration in real-time, having an immediate feedback of their actions 10 • via remotely deployed virtual instrument interfaces • through a high-definition camera (or other interface)
- 11. Course accreditation • L3-EOLEScourse was accredited by the national educational authorities of France, Morocco and Tunisia 11
- 12. Students’ selection andenrolling • number of applicants for the first edition • 660 candidates from Morocco, 15 from Tunisia, 10 from Algeria, one from Senegal and one from France • all students are enrolled in the University of Limoges + one of the accredited Universities of their choice in their home countries all successful students received receive the Joint Diploma 12
- 13. The first edition2014-15 • 24 students from Morocco and 1 student from Tunisia enrolled on the course • 11 students successfully concluded the courses and got the diploma • 42 teachers were involved 13
- 14. Conclusions • L3-EOLES course •first fully on-line undergraduate course in Electronics and Optics for Embedded Systems recognized by the educational authorities in several countries at the same time • first to deliver a Joint Diploma recognized in the whole European Higher Education Area • EOLES consortium successfully addressed the lack of a framework for remote experimental labs • enables on-line undergraduate degree courses in Electrical and Computer Engineering 14
- 15. Conclusions • the officialrecognition of L3-EOLES course • permits to ensure its financial sustainability • with the accreditation it became part of the educational system for which institutional funds are available • agreement signed by all partners of the EOLES consortium established the rules regarding • the Joint Diploma • the access to the learning resources • the use of the remote laboratory • the maintenance of the equipment 15 beyond the end of the EOLES project
- 16. 16 http://www.eoles.eu/ engineering a brighterfuture anywhere
Editor's Notes
- #2 Hello, thank you for the presentation Mr. chair. I’m here to present the EOLES course, as far as we know, the first accredited on-line degree course in Electronics and Optics for Embedded Systems.
- #3 The EOLES course was developed by a consortium of 15 Universities, 4 from Europe, France, Portugal, Belgium and Romania, and 11 from the North African countries of Morocco, Tunisia and Algeria, under a 3-year TEMPUS project that will finish next October. The development of the EOLES course, a fully on-line 3rd year Bachelor’s degree in Electronics and Optics for Embedded Systems, is the main goal of this project financed by the European Commission under the TEMPUS program.
- #4 The preparation of the course was divided in several tasks that I’m going to describe a little bit: Program definition Technical units content and schedule definition Functional e-Learning 2.0 framework definition Development of the virtual and remote labs Preparatory courses for instructors and technicians Preparation of class and study materials Preparation of the practical and lab assignments Course accreditation Students’ selection and enrolling
- #5 The program is divided in fourteen technical units (TUs) and in three optional units. The optional units are preparatory TUs provided at the beginning of the 1st semester to level students’ knowledge in critical topics for the course – electronics and optics, since students with very different knowledge backgrounds may apply to be enrolled in this program. The TUs cover a broader list of topics. The first mandatory TU - Virtual Learning environment – is aimed to introduce the student to the learning environment platform and to the interactive tools that supports the course dynamics. The remaining thirteen TUs may be divided in three groups: fundamental sciences – including mathematics and physics applied sciences - digital and analogue electronics, electromagnetic waves, digital signal processing, instrumentation and optics, and complementary soft skills units, like communication techniques in English and business management
- #6 The lectures are mainly pre-recorded asynchronous classes with a duration never exceeding 20 minutes and where an instructor explains the theoretical basis of a subject supported by different types of visual materials, interspersed with self-evaluation questions – multiple-choice, fill-in-the-blanks, matching exercises –, whose aim is to keep students’ interest and attention, breaking long expositive classes. Additionally, these self-evaluation questions provide students with an immediate feedback about their degree of understanding of the subjects being taught. Students may progress at their own pace, viewing or reviewing this visual material anytime, any number of times, without restrictions. However, the student may only proceed to the next lecture after the successful completion of the self-evaluation questions associated to the previous one. A range of other materials is also available to support the study, including: companion books freely downloadable from Internet web links to other sites containing specialized information and other complementary data, depending on the TUs subject
- #7 The program is divided in fourteen technical units (TUs) and in three optional units. The optional units are preparatory TUs provided at the beginning of the 1st semester to level students’ knowledge in critical topics for the course – electronics and optics, since students with very different knowledge backgrounds may apply to be enrolled in this program. The TUs cover a broader list of topics. The first mandatory TU - Virtual Learning environment – is aimed to introduce the student to the learning environment platform and to the interactive tools that supports the course dynamics. The remaining thirteen TUs may be divided in three groups: fundamental sciences – including mathematics and physics applied sciences - digital and analogue electronics, electromagnetic waves, digital signal processing, instrumentation and optics, and complementary soft skills units, like communication techniques in English and business management
- #8 The program is divided in fourteen technical units (TUs) and in three optional units. The optional units are preparatory TUs provided at the beginning of the 1st semester to level students’ knowledge in critical topics for the course – electronics and optics, since students with very different knowledge backgrounds may apply to be enrolled in this program. The TUs cover a broader list of topics. The first mandatory TU - Virtual Learning environment – is aimed to introduce the student to the learning environment platform and to the interactive tools that supports the course dynamics. The remaining thirteen TUs may be divided in three groups: fundamental sciences – including mathematics and physics applied sciences - digital and analogue electronics, electromagnetic waves, digital signal processing, instrumentation and optics, and complementary soft skills units, like communication techniques in English and business management
- #9 The program is divided in fourteen technical units (TUs) and in three optional units. The optional units are preparatory TUs provided at the beginning of the 1st semester to level students’ knowledge in critical topics for the course – electronics and optics, since students with very different knowledge backgrounds may apply to be enrolled in this program. The TUs cover a broader list of topics. The first mandatory TU - Virtual Learning environment – is aimed to introduce the student to the learning environment platform and to the interactive tools that supports the course dynamics. The remaining thirteen TUs may be divided in three groups: fundamental sciences – including mathematics and physics applied sciences - digital and analogue electronics, electromagnetic waves, digital signal processing, instrumentation and optics, and complementary soft skills units, like communication techniques in English and business management
- #10 The main originality of the L3-EOLES course is the remote laboratory used to perform on-line practical works. Two kinds of practical works are included in the remote laboratory: • Virtual experimentation using professional software accessible in the application server or in open access from different companies and universities • Real remote laboratory experiments intended for students to perform real-time monitoring and control of technical equipment at distance. The remote lab is the most innovative part of the project and of the course. Each hardware setup (function generator or oscilloscope, for instance) is connected to the internet. From each TU webpage, students have access to the lab’s webpages and to the proposed lab works.
- #11 Students are able to change the hardware configuration in real-time, having have an immediate feedback of their actions, via the virtual instrument interfaces that are deployed remotely and through a high-definition camera or other interface, depending on the specificities of each lab work. A multi-user approach is implemented allowing a group of students to work and interact in real time over the same practical work, guaranteeing a strong collaboration among them during the training.
- #12 This article was published in “The New York Times” two-weeks ago and talks about the need for course accreditation for courses to succeeded. In early 2012, leading scientists from Harvard, Stanford and M.I.T. started three companies to provide Massive Open Online Courses to anyone in the world with an Internet connection. The courses are free. Millions of students are signing up everyday. A true revolution. But today, enrollment in traditional colleges remains robust, and undergraduates are still paying high tuition fees. Why? The failure of MOOCs to disrupt higher education has nothing to do with the quality of the courses themselves, many of which are very good and getting better. However, the only thing MOOCs provide is access to world-class professors at an unbeatable price. But they don’t offer official college degrees, the kind that can get you a job. And that is mostly what college students are paying for. So, having the EOLES course accredited was essential for its success. And we managed to have it accredited by the national educational authorities of France, Morocco and Tunisia.
- #13 The number of applicants for the first edition of the course, albeit highly concentrated in one of the EOLES partner countries, largely exceeded the initial expectations with a total of 660 candidates from Morocco, 15 from Tunisia, 10 from Algeria, one from Senegal and one from France. After a careful selection 24 students from Morocco and 1 student from Tunisia are currently attending the course. All students are simultaneously enrolled in the University of Limoges and in one of the accredited Universities of their choice in their countries of origin, and thus, in this first year, all successful students will receive the Joint Diploma.
- #14 The first semester is now over, and the second semester started a month ago. Therefore, it is already possible to analyze the first semester results. 25 students started the course in September. Thirteen successfully concluded the 1st semester, roughly 50% of them. 9 may try to conclude it during the make-up session in July, albeit some are in great trouble. 3 abandoned the course for different reasons. We expect that between 14 and 16 students will be able to conclude the course and get their joint diplomas, a percentage of around 60% of the initial students.
- #15 Conclusions As far as we know, this course is the first fully on-line undergraduate course in Electronics and Optics for Embedded Systems to be recognized by the educational authorities in several countries at the same time, and the first to deliver a Joint Diploma recognized in the whole European Higher Education Area The EOLES consortium successfully addressed the lack of a framework for remote experimental labs, something that now enables the existence of on-line undergraduate degree courses in Electrical and Computer Engineering.
- #16 The sustainability strategy of the project relied on the diploma accreditation process. The official recognition of the course permits to ensure its financial sustainability since with the accreditation it became part of the educational system of each country, and for which institutional funds are available. An agreement signed by all partners of the EOLES consortium established the rules regarding the joint diploma the access to the learning resources the use of the remote laboratory and the maintenance of the equipment beyond the end of the EOLES project
- #17 And that’s all I had to say. Thank you very much for your attention!