E-Learning in Engineering Education – General Challenges

And the Egyptian Experience

Hussein Anishanis@ieee.org

Cairo University

IEEE (Nov. 2009): Of the 14 “Engineering Grand Challenges” in the future, the following

two are related to e-learning:

•“Enhance virtual reality”•“Advance personalized learning”

Types of E-Learning-Based Engineering Education

1. Formal (degree-bound) education2. Continuing professional education:

• Short courses• In-house training

Categories of students• Resident student• Distance learning student

Challenges of E-learning in Engineering Education

•Identifying the skills required by admitted students. •Evaluating the progress of students.•Identifying the appropriate teaching strategy. •Choosing to use electronic means in laboratory work & the resource required for sharing remote labs. •Accrediting e-learning-based engineering programs. •Setting regulations for credit transfer in engineering especially with campus-based institutions.•Targeting interactions with international engineering education bodies .

Challenges of E-learning in Engineering Education – Cont.

•Estimating the cost of resources serving online engineering education. •Facing inevitable new changes in teaching loads and the trade-offs in teachers' time between online and on- campus teaching. •Estimating required human and technical infrastructure.•Assessing student and staff satisfaction.•Facing changes in student advising protocols.•Assessing class software requirements.

Engineering Laboratories in E-Learning

ABET’s engineering criteria state that:

“All engineering programs must demonstrate that their graduates have ability to:- design and conduct experiments, as well as to analyze and interpret data; design a system, component, or process to meet desired needs; and use the techniques, skills, and modern engineering tools necessary for engineering practice."

ABET’s Objectives for Engineering Class Laboratory1. Apply appropriate sensors, instrumentation, and/or software tools. 2. Identify the strengths and limitations of theoretical models as predictors of

real world behaviors3.Devise an experimental approach. 4.Demonstrate the ability to collect, analyze, and interpret data. 5.Design, build, or assemble a part, product, or system. 6. Recognize unsuccessful outcomes due to faulty equipment, parts, code,

construction, process, or design.7.Demonstrate creativity in real-world problem solving. 8.Psychomotor: Demonstrate competence in selection, modification, and

operation of engineering tools. 9.Safety: Recognize health, safety, and environmental issues. 10. Communication: Communicate effectively about laboratory work with a

specific audience. 11. Teamwork: Work effectively in teams 12. Ethics in the Lab: Behave with highest ethical standards, including re

porting information objectively and interacting with integrity. 13. Sensory Awareness: Use the human senses to gather information and to

make engineering judgments.

Laboratories in e-learning- engineering education1)Laboratory Simulations, experiments are simulated on computers. Examples : National Instruments DAQ (data acquisition), Field Point, Measurement Studio, LabVIEW……..

2) Remotely controlled physical laboratories, physical laboratory equipment are located away from where students perform experiments. Examples : MIT (weblab.mit.edu), Johns Hopkins U. (www.jhu.edu/~virtlab/virtlab.html), U. of Texas (www.robotics.utexas.edu/simulations/), Lab-on-Web (www.lab-on-web.com), Linkoping U. (www.ida.liu.se/~her/npp/demo.html),..............

Egyptian Data

•Population = nearly 87 million,• 19 public universities, 17 private universities.•Total university student body = 2 million. • Public universities enroll 97% of students. • 500,000 students enroll in higher institutes. • Students enrolled in university engineering programs is 158,000 (31% females), • 93.2% of engineering students attend public universities.• 100,000 students study engineering/technology in higher institutes.

Motivation of E-learning in University Engineering Education in Egypt

The desire to improve the quality of instruction in engineering education to keep pace with international development: •Developing technology skills. •Accommodating the diverse needs of engineering students. •Facilitating efficient cooperation and team-oriented collaborations among students.•Catering to the industry’s request of emphasis on skills and deep understanding. •Sharing information with other universities and corporations.•Facilitate combining work and study.

Increase access. (Current Participation Ratio of about 29%; Government aspires for a 40% ratio within 10 years).

Help engineering education –a traditionally "urban" discipline- reach remote areas.

Access to all sources of technical knowledge and information. Combat the present crowding in public higher education

institutions, Ease the current large average students-to-teachers ratio.

Egypt is targeted to be the hub of e-Learning in Arab Region. The aspiration for being able to export e-learning technology

to the outside world, especially Africa, Middle East and Arab countries.

Reducing education cost (buildings, teachers' salaries, classroom costs, transportation cost, ..,……..

E-learning Technologies in Egypt

Open Learning Centers: • courseware material on video tapes and CDs. • Further support through TV (VHF, UHF, and Satellite) broadcast. Web-based courseware [strictly asynchronous]: • added advantage: off-line interactive tools as blogs, Wikis, collaborative software, e-Portfolios, discussion boards, and email.

Tiers of E-courseware Contents

•Contain only the course structure and assignments.•Add text material.•Add references and links (in hypertext) to supplementary reading.•Add illustrations.•Add audio/video clips.•Add simulations and animations.•Include interactive virtual reality.

Hierarchy of e-learning technologies versus educational functions

E-Learning Criteria(The Five pillars of E-learning)

1.Learning effectiveness, 2.Student satisfaction, 3.Faculty satisfaction, 4.Access, 5.Cost effectiveness

Accreditation of E-Learning-based Engineering Education

(1) Traditional Institutional Accreditation, assesses Students, Quality of Delivery, Staff and Staff Development, Support Services, Administrative Services, Physical Resources.(2) Program (Professional, Discipline..) Accreditation.

Additional Criteria with E-Learning :(3) E-learning-specific Institutional & Program Accreditation(4) Courseware certification

Courseware Certification

•efficiency of interface, •course compatibility, •production quality, •appropriateness of instructional design

Relevant Egyptian Efforts

1] The Egypteducation Site: (http://www.egypteducation.org/moodle/) •Based on Moodle•Hosted on Virtual Private Server (VPS) in US. •Over 80 instructors & about 16,000 registered users.

2] YouTube Site: (www.youtube.com/sfateen) •Instruction in local Arabic with English technical terms.

3] Using Learning Management Systems:

LMS "Moodle" is used in some courses: functions: •online exams, •announcements, •links to other universities •online submission of assignments and projects (not very successful).

4] Egypt’s National E-Learning Center (NELC)

•To create e-learning sub-centers in all universities. •To build adequate e-learning infrastructure.•To support the development of e-courses. •To provide e-course development standards.•To certify e-courses to be used by universities.•To monitor the use of e-courses. •To coordinate e-learning development at the national level.•To provide necessary information, training and support.

Alternative Sources of E-Courses

1.Free courseware:• Open Course Ware (example MIT). • Open Learning Initiative • Connexions (Wikipedia style)

2.Purchased courseware3.Developed courseware

NELC’s Achievements•E-learning sub-centers established in all 19 public universities. •Sub-centers partially staffed.•Hardware and software provided.•Only 10 universities developed online courses.

•Training programs to faculty and staff.•Only 7 Engineering courses out of a total of 292 courses (2.4%) .

•Funding Virtual Laboratories in chemistry, physics, biology, anatomy, physiology, and accounting & economics.

E-course Content Hierarchy

•Data = Raw Media Elements. •Information Object (IO) = set of data elements. •Reusable Learning Object (LO) = combination of IOs (concepts, facts, processes……,).•Course (lesson) = combination of LOs.•Module = collection of courses.

NELC now supports development of LO's for engineering courses

•LO Development : Simpler / easier to manage / requires less time / requires less cost. • 850 LO’s (serving 70 e-courses) developed.•Share of e-courses increased from 5.46% in 2007/2008 to 20.09% in 2009/2010. •E-courses are used by 73,000 students.

Impediments to Engineering Education Based on E-Learning

Academic factors:

1.Lack of academic and administrative readiness.2.Shortage in on-line courseware. 3.Social/cultural resistance.4.Complex legal consequences (IPRs).5.Absence of formal clear procedures and criteria for nationally accrediting online programs.6.Increase in teaching load at the expense of other functions.

Technical factors

•Availability of suitable infrastructure. Although it was markedly improved over the past five years.

•Accessibility of computers and Internet services to students.

•Difficulty in choosing media and technologies.

Economical factors1) Initial high capital cost of e-learning.2) High cost items are:•Cost of producing / purchasing courseware . (Cost of developing a 3-credits e-course in Egypt ranges from $ 2000.- to 10,000.-) .•Cost of instruction online (preparation, training,…)•Cost of providing network services.•Cost of acquiring LMS, SIS, assessment,...•Cost of technical and educational infrastructure.3) Determining the economical break-even number of students & courseware lifetime.

C O N C L U S I O N SStrategic Issues to be Addressed

•Identify skills of new generation of students.

•Assess skills of faculty.

•Increase awareness of e-learning benefits in engineering.

•Evaluate potential authors & technologies.

•Seek proper technical infrastructure.

•Build new organizational structures.

•Set suitable accreditation and certification criteria.

•Find ways to lower e-course development costs.

•Prioritize [Certificate programs / Graduate / Under-graduate] .

•Implement soft laboratories and then remote laboratories.

Thank you