E-learning for Graphical System Design Courses: A Case Study

Transcription

1 E-learning for Graphical System Design Courses: A Case Study Yucel Ugurlu Education & Research Programs National Instruments Japan Corporation Tokyo, Japan yucel.ugurlu@ni.com Hiroshi Sakuta Department of Integrated Information Technologies Aoyama Gakuin University Sagamihara, Kanagawa, Japan sakuta@it.aoyama.ac.jp Abstract In this paper, we introduce a new e-learning approach that supports graphical system design courses in engineering education. s are supplemented with this new e-learning technology to increase learning speed and teaching efficiency. Finally, the impact of the e-learning systems is evaluated on the basis of student survey results. Keywords-virtual instrumentation; LabVIEW; e-learning; engineering education; case study I. INTRODUCTION Presently, the challenges faced in the field of engineering are greater than ever. An engineer must not only innovate but also transform an innovative idea into a practical application. Therefore, prospective engineers should be trained to identify new opportunities; moreover, they should acquire the skills needed to marshal resources for realizing their ideas. Engineers of the 21st century must constantly gather information and decide on a course of action, including identifying the tools needed for a given task. In today s era of globalization, a comprehensive approach is required for the effective innovation of engineering education. Highquality and effective engineering educational processes must be established to ensure a global supply of competent engineering graduates, who can act locally and think globally [1-3]. It is vital to determine the optimal ways to use technology for improving the efficiency, effectiveness, and quality of knowledge presentation to enhance student learning. E-learning is defined as learning and teaching online via network technologies, and it has emerged as one of the most powerful approaches to address the growing need for education, especially during the last decade [4, 5]. However, no single e-learning method is suitable for all learning needs. Lecturers will probably require several e-learning technologies as well as traditional learning methods. A blended learning program combines e-learning and traditional learning methods. Blended learning can provide the convenience, speed, and cost-effectiveness of e-learning, with the personalized effect of traditional learning [6]. In this paper, we discuss the development of an online e-learning environment for supporting traditional classroom teaching in order to fulfill individual needs and to offer customized learning for self-paced study. We introduce the infrastructure of the system, and we apply it at an educational institution as a case study. Finally, we discuss the survey results that are used to evaluate the impact of the e-learning system. II. GRAPHICAL SYSTEM DESIGN PLATFORM Graphical system design is a modern approach to designing measurement and control systems that integrate system design software with commercial off-the-shelf hardware, thereby simplifying system development considerably. This approach combines user interfaces, models of computation, mathematics and analysis, input/output (I/O) signals, technology abstractions, and various deployment targets. The graphical system design approach allows students to use a single environment at all stages of design, which increases productivity, saves time, and enables them to apply the theory of engineering to the real world [7]. Graphical system design is an approach that integrates the elements of engineering using tools that accelerate innovation and discovery. This comprehensive approach combines purely simulated methods, such as model-based design, with purely test-based methods used by box instrument vendors to resolve the challenges facing system designers [8]. The main elements are the fundamental components of science and engineering education. The following six elements will be present in systems that require measurement and control: User Interface any visual or non-visual humanmachine interface. Input/output real-world signals or responses required by the system. Mathematics and Analysis any algorithm or computation required by the system. Models of Computation methods or approaches used in problem-solving. In graphical system design, this includes any programming approach (from state charts to textual/procedural to dataflow) required by the user, which is best suited to solve the problem. Commercial Technology exploiting the latest advances in market technology and architectures

2 to leverage the performance benefits of Moore s law. Deployment Targets multiple hardware form factors that can provide an acceptable minimum function set for the system. LabVIEW provides these six elements for various applications and system development. The LabVIEW graphical system design platform enables the domain expert to design the system and to validate the design via real world implementation. It tightly integrates off-theshelf hardware with modular I/O and provides the capacity to deploy custom hardware designs. This system design approach combined with the tight integration of I/O hardware provides a more efficient development process that can easily adapt to changing requirements or unforeseen issues during system development. III. COURSE OVERVIEW We have been teaching a LabVIEW-based graphical system design course at Aoyama Gakuin University for the last two years. This class is included in multi-disciplinary engineering courses, and students from multiple departments have enrolled. We have organized the class to provide both theoretical and hands-on experience of graphical system design [9]. Every student used his or her own PC in the classroom, and a demo-oriented lecture was conducted. Students used LabVIEW Student Edition as the programming environment and a National Instruments portable data acquisition device (USB-68) as a hardware platform (Figure 1). The following topics are covered in the LabVIEWbased graphical system design course: Virtual instrumentation LabVIEW basics (front panel, block diagram) Structures (for loop, while loop, case structures) Arrays and clusters SubVIs (subroutines) Charts and graphs Strings and file I/O Data acquisition and analysis Programming LEGO Mindstorms NXT robots Practical applications of LabVIEW Figure 1. USB-68 portable data acquisition device Project-based learning is a highly efficient method for polishing programming skills in engineering education [1]. Therefore, we initiated five design projects for a group of students, and we allocated presentation time to them every week. The design project topics varied from computer simulation to real data acquisition and control systems. In the data acquisition projects, students acquired their own voice signals using a microphone, and they applied filtering and signal processing during speech recognition. We used the LabVIEW add-on toolkit to program a LEGO Mindstorms NXT robot for control and robotics applications. The overall course spanned 1 weeks, with 3 h of teaching time. Initially, we mainly focused on a traditional method of teaching graphical system design. However, this year, we supplemented the same course with e-learning technology to facilitate better understanding and to enhance the efficiency of the programming environment. Table I lists the number of students enrolled in traditional and e-learning supplemented courses (in all, 27 and 54, respectively). Students from various departments were enrolled, and they had no previous experience in the LabVIEW graphical programming environment. IV. TABLE I. STUDENT ENROLLMENT Traditional E-learning course supplemented course Intelligence information 1 18 Electrical electronics 2 12 Mechanical engineering 8 11 Material science 4 Fundamental science 6 4 Biological science 1 3 Management technology 2 Total students DESIGNING E-LEARNING SYSTEM The e-learning system enables students and researchers to login to the server anytime and anywhere, which is the main benefit of web-based training. For this purpose, a cooperative e-learning system was constructed on the basis of two different structures. First, the Moodle course management system (CMS) was used to share the teaching materials of the course, such as power point slides, sample programs, and design projects introduced in the classroom. Then, weekly updates and e- mails were sent from the system. Second, video-based on-demand e-learning modules were developed for self-paced study and practice in order to extend the programming details and to teach advanced programming techniques using real examples. This system was developed on a separate server, and it included sample programs and exercise files. In this paper,

3 Number of students Number of students we mainly discuss the video-based learning management system (LMS) when we refer to the e-learning system. A. E-learning System Development Initially, an HTML-based website was designed to introduce the e-learning content. Users were required to have user profiles to log in and gain access to the learning materials. We utilized Adobe Connect to stream the video data. Adobe Connect e-learning provides novices and experts with the ability to easily create and deliver compelling, self-paced online courses, conduct highly interactive virtual classes, and efficiently manage training programs. The e-learning system contained 15 chapters that covered the following topics. LabVIEW environment Troubleshooting and debugging Execution of VI Data types Text file I/O Modular application development Variables Common design techniques and patterns Synchronization techniques Event programming Error handling Controlling user interfaces File I/O techniques Improving existing VIs Distributing applications Each chapter in the e-learning system includes several sub-topics; in all, 65 topics were prepared by another lecturer who had extensive teaching experience. The length of the videos varied from 1 to 15 min, and the system provided exercise files and a discussion forum for posting questions and messages. The total video content corresponds to nearly 1 h of teaching time. B. Integration of E-learning System In most cases, traditional courses cover only the fundamental features of programming because of time limitations and the difficulties in building complex systems with a large group of students. Therefore, we offered e-learning content to our students in addition to the traditional course. We also provided some guidelines and mentorship on topics that they could study by themselves. Thus, students could cover certain ambiguous or advanced topics, depending on their personal interests or requirements. In the classroom, students were encouraged to use the e-learning content, especially to understand topics and to master the programming environment. Design projects definitely stimulated students to learn advanced techniques and to revise certain features of the e-learning portal. C. Student Surveys In order to evaluate the effectiveness of the e-learning environment, we conducted a student survey, and 5 of the 54 students provided feedback. First, we asked each student to report the number of topics they viewed, as shown in Figure 2. The mean view rate was around 1/65 topics during one month of total access time. On average, the overall e-learning time corresponded to almost 2 h of training on the 1 topics. The actual usage of the e- learning site was slightly lower, but this was mainly caused by the time limitation of one month and an overlap with the university examinations. Furthermore, students indicated their satisfaction with the e-learning environment on a scale from one to five, where one corresponded to the lowest level (poor), and five, to the highest level (excellent). Figure 3 shows that most students evaluated the system as good or better. The mean satisfaction level was 3.5, which was calculated using the equation where is the level of satisfaction with e-learning content and is the number of students corresponding to the satisfaction level More than Number of topics viewed Figure 2. E-learning topics viewed by students Content satisfaction (1 = poor, 2 = fair, 3 = good, 4 = very good, 5 = excellent) Figure 3. E-learning content satisfaction (1)

4 Number of students Student ratio Before e-learning After e-learning LabVIEW programming skill (1 = poor, 2 = fair, 3 = good, 4 = very good, 5 = excellent) Figure 4. Evaluation of programming skills 7% 6% 5% 4% 3% % 1% % Figure 5. Overall course evaluation Next, we measured the efficiency of the e-learning approach by asking each student to report his or her proficiency level, which was an indication of selfconfidence, before and after e-learning. Prior to e-learning, the students programming skills varied from one (poor) to four (very good), with a mean value of However, their programming skills increased to a mean of 3.6 after using the e-learning content, which represented a 35% improvement. We calculated the mean values using Equation (1); the survey results are given in Figure 4. As shown in Figure 4, the e-learning approach provided a better learning environment and increased the students confidence in their programming skills. Traditional lectures focus on fundamental topics, whereas we focus on practical usage and project-based learning. The e-learning environment enabled students to meet their individual needs, and it provided information on more advanced topics when it was required. V. EVALUATING THE IMPACT OF E-LEARNING In order to understand the impact of the e-learning system, we compared the survey results of the traditional and e-learning-supplemented courses. For this purpose, we used the same survey questions in both classes. A. Comparison of the Student Surveys First, we used an online survey tool called Survey Monkey, and we set up five levels of evaluation criteria, where 5 corresponded to very good, and 1, to very bad. 18 of the 27 students in the traditional course and 25 of the 54 students in the e-learning-supplemented course participated in the survey. The survey participants are different in the traditional and e-learning supplemented courses; hence, we compare the results in terms of the student ratio to simplify the comparison. Figure 5 shows that the overall course evaluation did not change and its score remained around 4.1, which represented good. Using Equation (1), the mean values were calculated as 4.6 for the traditional course and 4.1 for the e-learning supplemented course. We should emphasize that the progress of the course and the teaching materials were exactly the same in both courses; therefore, the results were nearly equivalent. Second, we compared the programming skills of students by determining their comfort level and ease of programming using LabVIEW, as shown in Figure 6. In general, most students preferred the LabVIEW environment because of its graphical and data flow approach. However, the survey results suggested less confidence. Mean values in the survey results were 3.56 for the traditional course and 3.92 for the e-learningsupplemented course. These results indicated that the e- learning system contributed to the students confidence and improved their programming skills; e-learning increased student confidence by nearly 1% after around 2 h of learning time. Third, we compared the advance analysis functions of LabVIEW, which were not covered in the traditional course because of time limitations. We published some of the advanced functions on the e-learning portal, and the survey results are shown in Figure 7. The mean values were calculated as 3.23 for the traditional course and 4.1 for the e-learning supplemented course, which indicated a 24% improvement. The survey results also showed that the e-learning portal significantly enhanced the programming skills of students by giving them greater experience and by enabling us to teach some advanced topics. The survey results are summarized in Table II. TABLE II. Traditional course STUDENT SURVEY RESULTS E-learning supplemented course Improvement Overall course No change Programming skill % up Advance topics % up

5 Student ratio Student ratio 7% 6% 5% 4% 3% % 1% % 7% 6% 5% 4% 3% % 1% % Figure 6. Ease of programming with LabVIEW Figure 7. LabVIEW advanced functions the test results of students taking the traditional course and the e-learning-supplemented course. The students were required to score 7 points to pass the certification test. The student pass rate was 5.5% overall. The scores were low, but this was expected because the certification test required high proficiency in LabVIEW and students should ideally have had programming experience of more than six months. However, a comparison of the results showed that the mean scores improved by 13% when the students covered 1 topics in the e-learning modules. VI. CONCLUSIONS We designed a new e-learning platform to teach graphical system design, and the system was embedded in traditional teaching courses. Practical experience showed that this hybrid approach was easy to adapt, and it was well received by students because of its rich content, flexibility, and convenience. Student surveys indicated that programming skills improved when they covered specific topics according to their personal needs. A key achievement of the e-learning system was to teach some advanced topics, especially when it was necessary for student design projects. Thus, we focused on tools and resources for learning and further exploration, whereas traditional classes focus on the fundamental concepts of graphical programming. In the future, we plan to promote the application of e- learning technology and focus on system design projects to motivate and inspire students, thereby enabling them to meet various engineering challenges. B. Certification Test Thus far, we have evaluated the impact of the e- learning system on the basis of student surveys. To ensure greater accuracy, the students were asked to take an exam organized globally. Hence, we scheduled a LabVIEW certification test to evaluate the impact of the e-learning system. The certification test indicated a broad working knowledge of the LabVIEW environment, documentation best practices, and the ability to read and interpret existing code. We used this certification test to assess and validate the LabVIEW programming skills of students for the purposes of project staffing and career advancement. In practice, the certification test was globally implemented and evaluated by the National Instruments corporate office to make it more objective. Students were required to answer 4 questions in 1 h. Table III shows TABLE III. CERTIFICATION TEST RESULTS Class average Students passed ( >7) 43.17% E-learning-supplemented course 48.98% 3 REFERENCES [1] T.L. Friedman, The World Is Flat: A Brief History of the Twenty- First Century, New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 5. [2] Gretar Tryggvason and Diran Apelian, Re-Engineering Engineering Education for the Challenges of the 21st Century, Journal of operations management, pp.14-17, 6. [3] S. Hrastinski, A study of asynchronous and synchronous e- learning methods discovered that each supports different purposes, Educause quarterly, pp.51-55, No:4, 8. [4] M. Rosenberg, E-Learning: Strategies for Delivering Knowledge in the Digital Age, The McGraw Hill, 1. [5] S. Alexander, E-learning developments and experiences, Education + Training, Vol. 43 Iss: 4/5, pp , 1. [6] H. Singh, Building effective blended learning programs, Educational Technology, Vol. 43, No. 6, pp.51-54, 3. [7] National Instruments website [8] G. Wang, H.A. Andrade, LabVIEW: A graphical system design environment for adaptive hardware/software systems, NASA/ESA Conference on Adaptive Hardware and Systems (AHS), pp.82, 1. [9] Y. Ugurlu, Measuring the impact of virtual instrumentation for teaching and research, IEEE Global Engineering Education Conference, pp , 1. [1] J. E. Mills, D. F. Treagust, Engineering education Is problembased or project-based learning the answer?, Australasian Journal of Engineering. Education, 3.