Engineering learning communities approach at the University of Texas at El Paso

With funding from Hewlett Packard, the Colleges of Engineering and Education at the University of Texas at El Paso have developed an interdisciplinary research project to measure and analyze the outcomes of reformed processes of teaching and learning. The targeted course is a required sophomore level course for electrical engineering and computer science majors. It had been taught using a traditional lecture mode yielding low pass rates and effectively functioning as a gatekeeper. The reform process included revision of the pedagogical framework, implementation of new policies and practices, and evaluation of these reform efforts utilizing quantitative/qualitative methodology. Initial analysis has generated insights about the potential for educational research methods to clarify key issues in improving engineering education for diverse undergraduate student populations.