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Assessing Effectiveness of Different Teaching Modalities in Linear Circuits I

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Conference

2022 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Location

Minneapolis, MN

Publication Date

August 23, 2022

Start Date

June 26, 2022

End Date

June 29, 2022

Conference Session

ECE Division Technical Session 4: Student-centered Learning and Teaching Methodologies

Page Count

9

DOI

10.18260/1-2--40595

Permanent URL

https://peer.asee.org/40595

Download Count

305

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Paper Authors

biography

Zahrasadat Alavi California State University, Chico

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Dr. Zahrasadat Alavi, an Assistant Professor at the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at
California State University Chico, received her PhD in Electrical Engineering from University of Wisconsin Milwaukee in May 2015. She received her B.Sc. and M.Sc. from Amirkabir University (Polytechnic
of Tehran) with honors in 2007 and 2009 respectively, and another Master of Science from University
of Wisconsin Milwaukee (UWM) in Electrical Engineering in 2012. She was an Assistant Professor at
the Electrical and Instrumentation Department of Los Medanos College during 2016-2017 academic year.
She was an Adjunct Faculty at San Francisco State University and Diablo Valley College during 2015-
2016 academic year, and an instructor at UWM from January 2014 until May 2015. She is the principal
investigator on several grants such as National Science Foundation Major Research Instrumentation for
the acquisition of FTIR Spectroscopic Imaging system, Student Success Grant, and CSU Chico Research,
Scholarship and Creative Activity. She is also a co- principal investigator on another NSF-MRI grant and
an Office of Naval Research Grant.
She is currently the director of Alavi FTIR Spectroscopic Imaging Lab (AFISIL) and supervises multiple undergraduate students in their research. Her research interest includes characterization of biological
samples by employing FTIR Spectroscopic Imaging techniques and developing novel digital image processing and analysis algorithms to process the collected FTIR-spectro-microscopic data. Additionally,
Dr Alavi is a member of IEEE, ASEE and she has been a member of McLeod Institute of Simulation
Science and pursues research in advanced control systems simulation. Dr Alavi also conducts research in
promoting electrical engineering undergraduate education and is the recipient of the best paper award in
the Electrical and Computer Engineering Division of American Society of Engineering Education.

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Abstract

The four- and six-year graduation rates (~17.7% and ~64.5% respectively) of engineering (ENGR), are below the University’s average graduation rates (~ 33.1% and 67.4%). The goal of this study is to seek solutions towards increasing the graduation rates and ultimately decreasing the time-to-graduation. There are several steps that could be taken to help the engineering students graduate earlier. Examples are summer bridge programs that focus on strengthening mathematical skills of students, encouraging students to attend tutoring sessions and practice problem-solving. One of the factors that add to the time-to-graduation of students is not being able to pass the lower division courses that serve as the prerequisite to other discipline courses. The result will be high DFW rate courses which students repeat several times before they can pass them and pursue other courses that rely on these high DFW courses. This can adversely affect the student’s sense of belonging and decrease the retention rate. During the COVID-19 pandemic, all courses, including some of the high DFW courses, were taught in various modalities. This has created different results and perceptions by students. The Linear Circuits I is a high DFW rate course in the Electrical and Computer Engineering Department of CSU Chico. In this study, the author, who has taught this course in four different modalities, looks closely at the results of this class and compares the effect of different teaching modalities on the DFW rates. The author will also reflect on the effectiveness of each of the teaching modes, student engagement, and student feedback on each mode. The results could be used for the recommendation of teaching modalities if the course is offered online again due to a pandemic or other need. Additionally, the lessons learned and the technology related features of online instruction can be integrated with in-person instruction to increase the effectiveness of teaching.

Alavi, Z. (2022, August), Assessing Effectiveness of Different Teaching Modalities in Linear Circuits I Paper presented at 2022 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition, Minneapolis, MN. 10.18260/1-2--40595

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