Blended Learning by Gamification in a Second-Year Introductory Engineering Design Course

Abstract

With the rapid development of engineering and new demands of contemporary employers, post-secondary institutions have to adapt, improve and enhance engineering curricula to ensure that recent graduates possess appropriate levels of technical and professional skills and multilateral abilities for a successful start in industry. As industrial technologies, tools, and processes evolve, so must teaching methodologies and approaches, which significantly changes the structure of engineering courses. To ensure that students not only master technical knowledge but also develop their professional, interpersonal, cognitive and computer skills, engineering curricula have begun to shift from a classic instruction format to a blended learning format. Blended learning, the strategy of combining regular face-to-face instruction with online learning and/or other out-of-class-activities, is increasingly used in post-secondary education and disciplines and can take different forms depending on the course needs and desired learning outcomes. This paper reviews the recent implementation of blended learning in the form of gamification of a second-year introductory engineering design course using a commercial online learning platform. The reasoning, methodology, process and the results of student surveys before and after the online game are discussed along with suggested improvements.