Abstract
This study proposed an innovative instructional strategy for pre-college engineering education. Learning topics on electrical engineering education in a laboratory setting were selected for further exploration. Specifically, the study investigated how tablet computers with one adopted application influenced student engineering learning. The study adopted a quasi-experimental pretest and posttest research design. The educational experiment lasted for 6 weeks. The research participants comprised 57 ninth-grade students from a public high school in Taiwan. The students employed either a tablet computer or laptop computer to engage in weekly 3-h laboratory studies. A criterion test was developed to measure student knowledge of electrical engineering. The results revealed that the instructional effectiveness was identical for all the students, regardless of whether they used a tablet or laptop computer. However, those using the tablet computers achieved greater learning improvement. In addition, the qualitative data indicated that the tablet computers facilitated student learning in various engineering learning activities. The results of the study suggested that engineering educators in different educational levels might consider similar instructional methods to inspire students’ engineering learning.
Highlights
To embrace the concept of industry 4.0, Dallasega [1] stated that “the entailing increased degree of digitization and automation requires a dramatic change for engineering education.” From a radical change perspective, Ricardo et al [2] even proposed the idea of engineering education 4.0, in which a curriculum renovation for engineering education is necessary
The independent variable was the type of educational technology that students used to facilitate engineering learning in the science laboratory
After the effect of the pretest was controlled, the results of the inferential statistics revealed no significant difference between the experimental group and control group
Summary
To embrace the concept of industry 4.0, Dallasega [1] stated that “the entailing increased degree of digitization and automation requires a dramatic change for engineering education.” From a radical change perspective, Ricardo et al [2] even proposed the idea of engineering education 4.0, in which a curriculum renovation for engineering education is necessary. From a radical change perspective, Ricardo et al [2] even proposed the idea of engineering education 4.0, in which a curriculum renovation for engineering education is necessary. Within this trend, the current research practice of innovation in engineering education (e.g., Jeganathan et al [3]) tends to emphasize higher education. To verify theoretical knowledge received in traditional classrooms, laboratories in high school settings provide students with valuable opportunities to use scientific machines and technological gadgets for science and engineering experiments [6]. After using gadgets to observe specific scientific phenomenon, students are often instructed to summarize their findings in written laboratory reports
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