Enhancing electrical engineering students´ communication skills using online and hypertext aids

The authors report on a five-year project to enhance electrical engineering students´ communication skills. The approach entails (1) identifying the communication problems of students and recent graduates; (2) working with faculty to identify ways in which writing and speaking can be used to meet course objectives; (3) developing an Online Writing Center (hypertext applications, interactive writing exercises), and computer conferencing via electronic mail, electronic bulletin boards, and commenting software to support student writers and faculty who use writing in their courses; and (4) using formative evaluations to enhance the Online Writing Center products and services, and summative evaluations to assess the impact of the Online Writing Center program on student communication skills