Efficient teaching of digital design with automated assessment and feedback

A mechanism for the assessment and timely delivery of feedback on laboratory work undertaken with professional computer aided design (CAD) tools is proposed. The process has been applied to an established 1^st year undergraduate course unit covering the fundamentals of computer engineering in the School of Computer Science, The University of Manchester. A concise discussion of the structure of the laboratory exercises is presented, followed by an overview of the traditional approach used (up to recently) for assessing submitted laboratory work. A new automated process is presented whereby students submit their work electronically. Professional CAD tools are used to test designs submitted by students to produce an assessment mark and generate detailed and consistent feedback to the students. The automated marking process evaluates designs using either simulation against a golden test bench, or via a logic equivalence test, depending on the type of design being assessed. The result of a student evaluation demonstrating the merits of the new assessment process is also presented.