Project-based learning in digital signal processing: Development and experiences

Attempts to develop the mode of course delivery towards a more student-centred approach face several difficulties for analytically complex disciplines like digital signal processing. One of these is trading off the benefits of student-focused learning with ensuring that fundamental knowledge is acquired and that students have been exposed to the key content on which later courses are built. In this paper, experiences with the development, implementation and evaluation of project-based learning in an introductory digital signal processing course over two years are discussed in detail. The approach described herein achieves aims of understanding signal processing in a self-directed manner through a project, rather than a series of isolated principles, in addition to maintaining coverage of the core curriculum. Informal evaluation has shown that students are able to gain a deeper understanding of the principles of DSP, while formal evaluation shows that many students prefer the learning style, despite the increased effort required. Our work also demonstrates that educational technology can play an important enabling role in providing targeted, syllabus specific lecture and tutorial content that students can access in a self-directed manner and that supports a project-based approach to teaching.