A Study of Scheduling and Examination Factors on Electrical Engineering Laboratory Instruction

An experiment was conducted to study the effects of introducing several variations of examination and scheduling procedures in two electrical engineering laboratory courses at Purdue University. In both courses sections were divided into two types: one with oral examinations, the other without. Schedule variations in Course A consisted of conventional scheduling and a one-time tutorial arrangement. Three scheduling methods, providing various degrees of flexibility on the part of the student, were tried in Course B. Each course provided the basis for a crossed factorial design, which was analyzed using analysis of variance techniques. Operational descriptions of the examination and scheduling factors are given along with a discussion of any special administrative or logistical steps necessary to implement the various teaching techniques. The instructional combinations were evaluated by means of a common final examination and a questionnaire designed to measure differences in attitude, work loads, perception of student-instructor relations, etc. Analysis of variance techniques were used to evaluate the relative contribution of each factor or combination of factors. Results of administering the final exams and questionnaire are presented and implications of the study are discussed.