Real-world problems in the classroom: vital in engineering education

Innovative approaches to engineering education are required in order to improve student learning and to graduate students capable of meeting the challenges of the future. One such approach has been implemented at Auburn University, and the students have been tracked longitudinally to study the impact of this innovative instruction wherein theory and practice were brought together. Multimedia case studies were developed and used as a primary instructional mode in experimental classes over a 2-year period. Students in the experimental classes were matched with a comparison group randomly selected from the engineering student population but stratified by high school grades, ACT/SAT, and engineering major. The longitudinal evaluation revealed significant differences in college grade point averages among the groups with the experimental mechanical engineering majors tending to have the best grades. Even more supportive of the experimental program was that a significantly greater proportion of the participants were admitted to study in a professional engineering program from pre-engineering than was found with the comparison participants. These results suggest that the experimental instructional approach employed for the engineering students in this study is indeed an innovation that leads to improved student learning and advancement in engineering.