A new didactic approach in engineering education for conceptual understanding of Euler's Formula

Abstract

The ubiquity of Euler's Formula is well-known in the field of engineering. The general application of Euler's Formula to all fields of engineering challenges each lecturer to present this topic in an appropriate way. The didactic importance of this formula is emphasized by the fact of its use at any level of the scientific research. In fact, Euler's Formula is often presented as definition tout court and strong critics arise from the students' side. The fundamental target of this contribution is to overcome barriers in students understanding and, in doing so, to improve the quality of engineering education. Based on constructivist learning theories this contribution presents a new lecture scheme just using a basic mathematical background already known by students after the second semester of standard mathematical courses. Moreover, the paper reinforces the application aspects of this formula to illustrate the practical meaning and the importance of Euler's Formula in different fields of engineering. The research-based concept and the implementation of the new lecture structure are to be presented as well as the results of the evaluation and the impact on teaching and learning mechanisms in Engineering Education.