International Higher Education Teacher Award ^2024/25

In the exercise course "Fundamentals of Electrical Engineering," the requirements on a first-semester course were systematically analyzed, and concepts were established in an iterative process. All stakeholders are always involved in generating the most constructive and broadest possible range of opinions in the course development. The current project thus represents an overall concept of a first-semester exercise course. The heterogeneity of the different educational backgrounds of the first-year students proved to be the most significant challenge. We meet this challenge through an intensive feedback culture and a broad range of teaching materials geared to the different requirements. Additionally, a focus is given to students with deficits in their previous education and the promotion of gifted students and those with previous education, relevant to the subject. In particular, an anonymous and well-moderated communication platform facilitates and encourages students to ask questions and offer constructive criticism. The course is taught via a peer-assisted learning scheme in small groups of 25 students. Out of the best students of the previous years, so-called study assistants are recruited, guiding one group through the whole course. This peer-teaching approach helps the students to overcome their inhibition to ask and encourage a fruitful discussion culture already at the beginning of their studies. Great importance is attached to the didactic training and the professional and personal development of the study assistants. Also, higher semester courses benefit from highly educated study assistants. In addition, heed is also paid to the introductory phase of studies and the formation of joint learning groups is supported. Three YouTube-playlists have been produced to help the students in their learning activities. One covers the theoretical background; the other ones give a systematic approach to solve exercises and simulations taught in the course. Over 30.000 views show the success of this initiative. Since the project started in 2017/18, the course's failure rate has been decreased from 50% to about 25%. Surveys proved that in 2020/21, 85% of the students feel well prepared for the following courses and understand the fundamental content of the curriculum. Both are outstanding numbers for a first-year course in a technical degree program. With the integrated feedback system and the ongoing recruiting process, the project's sustainability is ensured.

Methodology

The exercise course “Fundamentals of Electrical Engineering” includes students from five different bachelor programs and is structured in about 20 small groups of around 24 peers. The planning process for the next year starts already at the end of the semester by recruiting new study assistants comprising the best students of the course. During the summer, feedback from the last semester is recapitulated and implemented in the planning process. Before the start of the semester, the study assistants are briefed and roles get assigned. This also includes feedback for new study assistants during the first two weeks from an experienced lecturer to quick-start their teaching career. Due to the size of the course, two study assistants have additional organization and coordination responsibilities, building the link between the teaching study assistants and the main organizers. Before the semester, task forces are assigned which are responsible for the content taught in one week. This includes not only the teaching material but also the homework. Each study assistant is in at least two task forces and is assigned different responsibilities ranging from preparation to reviewing the content. Every task force is also responsible for the general support (Discord etc.) of the students during the week assigned for their respective homework. Each group is taught by a study-assistant who is responsible for teaching and correcting the homework. Due to the heterogeneity of the students’ background, we introduced additional homework teams, where three students join together to solve the homework. The teams help the students to get to know each other while directly creating a support network. Furthermore, heed is paid to mix the students regarding their previous knowledge. This helps the students to benefit from each other, which has shown to generate fruitful discussions in the teams, but also cross-team communication is ensured. The team assignment process starts in the first week of the course in order to help new students to quickly connect to others. Throughout the course multiple additional assessment sheets are provided for students to self-reflect on their learning progress. Besides the standard course material we also provide additional YouTube videos ranging from theory, their application to certain exercises up to guides for the simulation software LTspice. The links are posted accordingly in the dedicated Discord channels for the teaching unit throughout the semester. Furthermore, the tool feedbackr is used throughout the semester to gather feedback regarding the content, the individual groups and the overall organization. Due to the proactive feedback offer during the semester a higher response rate could be achieved, leading to a more representative evaluation. The feedback as well as the students performance gets evaluated regularly during the semester to check for any irregularities. This enables us to quickly react to problems and ensure a smooth operation. During the semester two hybrid partial examinations are used to assess the students' learning progress. Besides the regular weekly learning sessions, additional learning sessions are offered directly before the exams. After the end of the semester, an additional compensation exam is offered for students missing or failing one of the regular exams. The final grade for the students comprises the grades from the exams as well as the homework – both counting for 50% of the overall grade. Besides offering a price for the best students of the course, they get the offer to become study assistants for the next semester, giving them the possibility to get teaching experience and to shape the course for the next semester.

Tools, equipment, technology used

Throughout the semester a moodle-course is utilized as the central material exchange platform. Furthermore, the group structure and team assignment is handled within. The homework distribution as well as the grading process have been digitized leading to a much more environmentally friendly process by saving ~6000 sheets of paper per year. Furthermore, the teaching process has been adapted to a hybrid format using graphic tablets. Providing the digital notes from the lecturers contributes to green sustainability while also giving the students access to proof-read course materials. The hybrid format also grants more flexibility by being able to switch to a pure online format using Webex. Another very important aspect of the course is an open discussion culture, where students can interact with each other but also with the lecturers. Therefore, Discord is used to provide a platform where no real name has to be used, lowering the inhibition threshold for actively contributing and asking questions. Finally, YouTube videos are provided for the theory as well as examples and tutorials for the simulation tool LTspice. The videos have been adapted to the attention span and cover each segment in 16 minutes on average.

Outcomes and outputs, main results

In order to validate the positive results of the continuous improvement process, statistics comparing the previous three years have been created which can be found under https://www.tugraz.at/institute/igte/teaching/pfel-english/ . We have found that due to the interactive teaching environment as well as the additional resources provided, the course’s failure rate has been decreased from 50% to about 25%. Additionally, based on surveys it can be said that 85% of the students feel well prepared for following courses and that they understand the fundamentals of electrical engineering. Furthermore, the feedback has shown that about 2/3 of the students used the YouTube videos at least once - which correlates to the YouTube statistics, where also the international reach is documented. Besides the technical skills we also focus on working together and building a healthy environment for the students by encouraging the formation of learning groups. With the help of our low inhibition threshold regarding actively contributing in the course, we aim to dispel the fear of not only asking questions but also providing suggestions and exercise constructive criticism. Therefore, students get encouraged and get the possibility to actively contribute and shape the way of how the course is taught via a broad feedback system combined with an iterative optimization process. Furthermore, the recruited study assistants get multiple unique opportunities regarding their academic career. First of all, due to the feedback from experienced colleges, teaching skills can be developed very quickly. Since they are students themselves, they form a vital link between the students and the organizers of the course, leading to very fruitful discussions and feedback on the overall state of the course. The unique combination of their closeness to their peers while being in the position of a lecturer also enhances their human competences. Additionally, the study assistants get to know the course development from the lecturer’s side, giving them unique insight in the academic process. Due to their closeness to the members of the institute, support regarding scientific work in the form of a thesis is often a natural consequence.

Lessons learnt

Implement a team close to the peer group: The young teaching team mainly consists of study assistants who attended the course one to three years ago. Naturally, they are still students and understand the student's way of thinking. Additionally, students know best about modern tools (e.g., Discord), how to use them, and how other students would use them. As they experienced it by themselves, they know about the consequences of outer effects such as changes in prior educational level or developments in the study program itself. The fruitful discussion culture between the study assistants and the institute employees acts as the think tank of the course. A flat hierarchy and trust in their skills and ideas encourage them to bring their valuable ideas into the course. A continuous process of improvement: To react to changing circumstances and to improve all parts of the course, everything should be questioned every year. Therefore, the annual discussion about all aspects of the course with all stakeholders (teacher of prior/later courses, students, study assistants, … ) should occur every year. Open discussion culture: Especially in the pandemic time, when the organization of an extensive course has to react fast to changing circumstances, it was essential to include the students in the discussion process. Encouraging the students to place their opinion and responding to constructive criticism brings trust into the course organization and prohibits pandemic-induced depression.

Adaptability and sustainability of the best practice (for other institutions)

Adaptability: The overall structure of the course with its feedback culture, the peer-assisted teaching style, and the variety of the provided material can be adapted from all exercises, especially for first-year students and technical-related study programs. Evaluating a course at the end of every semester and discussing all its elements with all stakeholders should take place in every university course for a continuous improvement process. Another aspect that other institutions should consider is establishing a feedback and discussion platform and an open culture to use it. For example, asking questions anonymously helps the students overcome their inhibition to ask. Additionally, giving the students the feeling to be supported and their opinion respected brings positive impulses for their whole study life and the open discussion culture that should take place at universities. The staff of this project already advised the lecturers at the same institute as well as the faculty. Sustainability: The gifted student program in this course can be seen as the faculty's talent foundry. As we systematically educate young talented students in their teaching ability, later courses also benefit from their skills. As an effect, most of our study assistants are also employed in other classes and bring in their advanced teaching abilities. Consequently, the high effort of the study assistants disburdens the institute staff. The open discussion culture between the institute staff and the study assistants and the discussion culture with the course's students gives the possibility to capture the general mood of the students regarding the course and the study program overall. This can be important feedback for the permanent staff. The teaching videos produced within this project accumulated views from the whole german-speaking region. As the topics can be seen as general knowledge for Electrical Engineers and the quality of the videos is high, the impact is also relatively high.

Promotion of best practice

Promotion of concept: As the course concept got highly appreciated by the students, the course got nominated for the university teaching award and won the prize for young lecturer. In addition, the team was selected and won the state prize "Ars Docendi" for academic teaching. This allowed us to promote the concept within the ministry for education (https://gutelehre.at/), and the course gained some media coverage at a national level. At the university level, the organizing staff could promote their concepts and experience in discussions with the teaching development department and the so-called "Lehrstammtisch," which acts as a come-together between lecturers at the Graz University of Technology. Furthermore, regularly, the organizing staff of the course exchanges information with colleagues on the institute, faculty, and university level. On an international level, we plan to present our concept at the following year's "European First Year Experience Conference" in April 2022 in Graz. Materials: We paid a lot of effort to prepare our teaching videos for the course. As they consider different levels of experience within this topic, the target groups span from technical middle school, high school, and even professionals to refresh their knowledge. An overall view time of over 3000 hours within one year and views from the whole German-speaking region prove the quality. As the course itself is German-speaking, we decided on German teaching videos. Within the implementation of our YouTube channel (https://youtube.com/c/IGTEtugraz), we could motivate different courses at our institute to promote their material there as well. The material spans from circuit theory taught in this course, over field theory taught in higher semester courses, to specialized lecture videos covering the Finite Element method.

Scope and impact

• Course/department level
• Faculty level
• Institutional level
• Cross-institutional level
• National level
• EU/EHEA/International level

Course/department level: In a survey, the students estimate their knowledge about the curricular core competence as very high. Also, the exams show an increasing quality of the student’s work. The department benefits from the higher technical competence of the students. Moreover, as the grades raised, the number of students who had to repeat the course decreased. Nearly all department courses and some research projects benefit from the gifted-student program. Faculty level: Next to the higher technical competence of the students, the faculty benefits from the decreasing drop-out rate this project affected. As of the Universities Act 2002, Amendment 10, the funding of the faculty is connected to active students, following a low drop-out rate is a significant development. Institutional level: The media coverage and appreciation, the course initiated, is a relatively big advertisement for the university itself and makes it an attractive place to start a technical study program. As the course acts very close to the peer group, the course captures the student’s mood and exchanges the information at the university level. National level + EU/EHEA/International level: The course design and media coverage decrease the inhibition threshold to choose a technical study. As the lack of technicians is a reason why the economic growth is slowing down, this can have a significant impact in the future. Everybody interested in Electrical Engineering benefits from the open YouTube videos.

6.1 Digitalization

• Outstanding, innovative, excellent practices of online / blended / hybrid learning
• Innovative, novel methodology in using digital tools/devices in teaching
• Digital skills development and assessment both general and profession-related, embedded in course design, in teaching and assessment
• Novel digital solutions (tools, frameworks, devices, tasks to enhance efficiency and motivation)
• Other:

  YouTube videos, LTspice simulations

Reasoning: In the course we use Discord as a central communication platform, where students can interact with each other and our team. We provide a low-threshold support offer which increases participation significantly. Furthermore, learning sessions hosted on Discord provide a central support pillar for students in need. Additionally, YouTube videos (theory, examples and simulation via LTspice) enable asynchronous learning. Finally, tablets are used for a situation dependent hybrid teaching format.

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6.2 Internationalization

• Innovative practices of blended mobility
• Courses offered to international multicultural students both online and offline

Reasoning: We implemented hybrid lessons where the lecturer simultaneously presented in class and streamed the content. Via microphone, feedback tools, and chat, online participants could collaborate like being in the lecture room. The YouTube-playlists make it possible to repeat the content several times at your speed, hence, students whose native language is not German are able to follow as well. Other English-speaking playlists make the institute's teaching content freely available.

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6.3 Inclusion and diversity, universal design

• Inclusive course design, universally designed divers activities to meet special students' needs
• Universally designed teaching material - adjustable for special needs
• Innovative teaching methodology for inclusion and meet diverse student needs
• (Innovative) use of devices and tools for inclusion
• Alternative, flexible assessment methods for students with special needs

Reasoning: Special attention is drawn to mixing up students in heterogeneous teams according to their prior education – we therefore support team building and teamwork and motivate them to help each other. A learning material mix (homework, assessment sheet, extra examples, ...) aimed at all types of learners and students with different educational backgrounds takes care of all student groups. With an anonymous platform, we motivate the students to discuss and offer a low-threshold communication service.

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6.4 Sustainability

• Teaching material contains profession related sustainability aspects

Reasoning: We aim to build a foundation in electrical engineering – a subject area which is omnipresent regarding green energy. Furthermore, we focus on providing quality education and learning opportunities for all. In the course this is reflected by a broad range of teaching material (e.g. YouTube videos) as well as a focus on equality and fairness. Additionally, we explain why the topic is relevant for future applications. For the homework a digital format is used saving ~6000 sheets of paper per year.

3.3 Public contact datas

Name	Email address	Website
Paul Baumgartner	paul.baumgartner@tugraz.at	https://www.tugraz.at/institute/igte/teaching/pfel-english/