Introduction to Electrical Engineering: Empowering and Motivating Students through Laboratory-Focused Teaching

A new curriculum for Introduction to Electrical Engineering has been developed, with the goal of making it more of a hands-on, laboratory-focused approach. The stated goals are to empower each student to be a maker after taking the class, and to expose students to the broad topics of electrical engineering. To this end, nine new laboratory assignments were created, with each one building on the preceding ones. In class, the material is closely tied to the ongoing laboratory assignment. To assess the stated goals, four surveys were administered throughout the quarter. Each time, students were asked to evaluate their comfort with their electronics skills and knowledge, as well as how much understanding of electrical engineering they are gaining from the course. Additionally, the results of university-administered surveys that rank various aspects of the course were also included in the assessment. Overall, the findings support the fulfillment of the stated goals of creating makers out of students and showing the breadth of electrical engineering.