EVALUATING THE IMPLEMENTATION OF CDIO PROGRAMS AT SINGAPORE POLYTECHNIC: THE FIRST YEAR

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EVALUATING THE IMPLEMENTATION OF CDIO PROGRAMS AT
SINGAPORE POLYTECHNIC THE FIRST YEAR

• Helene Leong-Wee Kwee Huay, Dennis Sale, Cheryl
  Wee Soon Peng
• Department of Educational Development

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Implementation of CDIO in SP

• October 2006
• 13 engineering programmes revised and
  restructured
• the School of Architecture and Built Environment,
  
• the School of Chemical and Life Sciences,
• the School of Electrical and Electronic
  Engineering, and
• the School of Mechanical and Aeronautical
  Engineering.

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Revisions

• The revised programmes were implemented in April
  2008.
• Revisions include
• Integration of the CDIO skills
• Personal skills and attitudes
• Communication
• Teamwork
• Introduction to Engineering (semester/year long)
• Assessment schemes

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Purpose of Evaluation

• To provide a structured research driven approach
  to monitor and review the implementation of the
  CDIO Framework
• Evaluation is the process of delineating,
  obtaining and providing information useful for
  making decisions and judgements about educational
  programmes and curriculum.
• (Kemmis, 1989, p.117)

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Research Questions

• Were the learning outcomes, learning activities
  and assessments aligned?
• Were the learning of the courses integrated in
  the Introduction to Engineering Module?
• How has the integration of the CDIO skills into
  the syllabuses impacted the students?
• What were the lecturers perception of the
  curriculum changes and their impact on students
  competence in the selected CDIO skills and
  interest in subject?

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Data Collection Methods

• Examination of a range of curriculum materials
  (e.g., course documents, module documents,
  learning plans, schemes of assessment, assessment
  items)
• Student questionnaires
• Student Blogs
• Focus group interviews with students and
  lecturers teaching the CDIO programmes
• Observation of selected lessons (e.g., those
  incorporating activities related to selected CDIO
  skills)

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Examination of a Range Of Curriculum Materials

• Examination of syllabuses, learning plans and
  activities, schemes of assessment and assessment
  items.
• The aim was to ensure that the curriculum
  materials met the conditions of an aligned
  curriculum (e.g., Biggs, 1999) and were
  consistent with relevant CDIO standards (Crawley
  et al, 2007).

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Student Questionnaire

• Administered to all the students online at the
  end of each semester (Sept 08 Feb 09).
• 45 response rate (549 participants in Sem 1 and
  647 participants in Sem 2)
• Some key differences in the questions posed
  between the two administrations (e.g., Sept 08
  and Feb 09).
• First semester, interest was in the infusion of
  the selected CDIO skills in the first
  questionnaire.
• Second semester, the focus was more on
  establishing the extent of application of the
  skills.

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Student Co-Participants and Blog

• Student co-participants blogged their
  experiences of the lessons taught.
• 47 student co-participants were involved semester
  1 and 55 for semester 2, with representation
  across schools
• Briefed on the research purpose and their role
  and responsibilities

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Responsibilities of Student Co-Participants

• Chat to classmates and identify some broad
  experiences relating to learning the selected
  CDIO skills and the teaching approaches used
• Make personal notes and/or blog their experiences
• Meet with the researchers at least once a
  semester for group sharing

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Student Co-Participants and Blog

• Students were presented with specific questions
  relating to their experience of lessons taught,
  and asked to provide their responses with
  examples to illustrate where possible.
• A useful and novel way to help build rapport with
  the students, encouraging more authentic and open
  communication.

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Student Blogs

• The semester will be ending in a few weeks time.
  List down the skills which you think you have
  developed through the Introduction to Engineering
  module in this semester. (E.g. ability to
  troubleshoot problems, teamwork, etc)

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What the students blogged..

• In Introduction to Engineering, I learned how
  things around me are manufactured. Thats why I
  appreciate every little tool and object around
  me. I also developed skills like troubleshooting
  problems, how the work piece is to be clamped
  such that the workpiece is supported to undergo
  cutting.
• Besides that, teamwork is another skill I
  developed. I noticed the strength of every member
  that I can learn from. Without good teamwork, I
  could not possibly develop such a workpiece. One
  of the most valuable skill I gained is
  brainstorming for using the right tool for the
  right purpose and thinking of developing the
  final product using the simplest manufacturing
  method.
• Year 1 Mechanical and Aeronautical Engineering
  student

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What the students blogged ..

• In my opinion, the best skill that I have
  developed through the module is teamwork and
  leadership skills. This module actually gave me
  an opportunity to train and develop my teamwork
  skills. As an introvert person, I did not really
  bother to be a leader before. However due to this
  module I have learnt how to gather the group
  members attention, assign work, manage conflicts
  and etc.. 
• Other than the skills that I have mentioned above
  this module taught me some practical applications
  of the knowledge that I learnt during my
  lectures. The module helped me to see, integrate,
  design and implement the circuit to satisfy the
  required function.  
• Year 1 Electrical and Electronic Engineering
  student

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Focus Groups (Lecturers)

• 1-2 hours
• Twenty-one lecturers, representing all schools,
  participated in 4 focus group sessions
• What have you been involved in doing, in terms of
  CDIO implementation?
• What have you specifically done and how?
• What is your perception of its impact on student
  learning, based on your experience with student
  groups?

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Focus Groups (Students)

• 1-2 hours
• Asked about their experience relating to aspects
  of CDIO.
• No right or better answers, only the best
  representation of their experience
• The typical interview process for each area of
  interest involved
• A standard opening scenario is presented to the
  students
• Encouragement to students to explain and provide
  examples
• Clarification of meaning and checking
  understanding where appropriate

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Observation of Lessons

• To obtain
• an ethnographic insight into what was actually
  occurring in the classroom
• what might be useful for enhancing understanding
  of how students experience learning activities
  related to the selected CDIO skills.

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Observation process

• The classes to be observed are mutually agreed by
  lecturers and EDU staff
• The lesson must incorporate a component relating
  to the teaching/assessment of a CDIO skill area
• There is opportunity to ask student questions (at
  the end of the observation) pertaining to their
  experience of the learning activity and CDIO
  skill areas

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Key Findings Curriculum Documents and Materials

• Some courses needed significant revision
• writing of learning outcomes generally (e.g.,
  rationalization, performance focus, clarity of
  intent, etc)
• Infusion of selected CDIO skills appropriately.
• Designing of key learning tasks and assessment
  activities (including the scoring systems)

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Key Findings Student Questionnaire

• Nearly 50 agreed and 25 strongly agreed, in
  favour of the implementation of CDIO.
• Semester 1 mean scores ranged from 3.73 to 4.03,
  with an overall mean of 3.90 (SD 0.90) .
• Semester 2 mean scores ranged from 3.74 to 4.10,
  with an overall mean of 3.85 (SD 0.93).
• The Cronbach alphas showed high internal
  consistency in student responses.

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Key Findings Student blog and focus groups

• Students perceived the importance of the CDIO
  skills as a valuable part of the curriculum
• The explicit teaching of the selected skills
  seems to vary from module to module and across
  lecturers
• Authentic learning opportunities for such skills
  to be fostered created
• Specific real world tasks linked theory to
  practice and made the learning experience more
  meaningful and interesting

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Key Findings Lecturer Focus Groups

• Lecturers saw the relevance of the CDIO framework
  and have experienced the positive impact of the
  changes made to the curriculum on student
  attention and interest.
• More motivated students coped better with the
  more challenging integrated learning tasks, the
  less competent students required more help and
  time.
• There was a range of practices concerning the
  explicit teaching of the selected CDIO skills.
• There has been an increase in workload, resulting
  from the preparation and assessment involved.

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Key Findings Observation of Lessons

• Some learning tasks provided opportunities for
  the development of types of thinking, teamworking
  and communication skills.
• Students were generally positive about the
  learning activities, some needing more support
  than others.
• The actual skills and what were involved in
  developing them were not seen to be taught
  explicitly in most observations.

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Recommendations

• Differentiate the learning tasks and teaching
  approaches to accommodate students different
  learning abilities
• Continue to encourage the explicit development of
  CDIO skills
• Address increase in lecturers workload
• Provide necessary training to expand lecturers
  expertise

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Conclusions

• The eclectic methodology employed in the
  evaluation has provided a range of insights into
  aspects of teaching and learning relating to both
  CDIO implementation and the student experience of
  teaching and learning in SP
• Selected CDIO skills implemented so far have been
  sufficiently well received by both students and
  lecturers
• The next focus is on verifying and extending the
  range of pedagogic and assessment practices
  necessary for effectively meeting the range of
  CDIO standards.

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Student Blogs

• Samples

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What the students blogged..

• Having gone through 2 semesters, how would you
  rate (1-5) your interest in your field of
  engineering? (1 being Not Interested and 5 being
  Very Interested) Briefly explain your rating.
•  
• Rate 5. What I love most in this module was the
  project. We were allowed to work as group and be
  independent. We have to complete the project in
  group. During the process of doing the project,
  we were like small engineers. Although our skills
  were far from the Professional engineers, we
  experienced many situation which allow us to
  improve and find solution. Problem-solving is
  what engineers should do.
• Year 1 Architecture and Built Environment student

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What the students blogged..

• Having gone through 2 semesters, how would you
  rate (1-5) your interest in your field of
  engineering? (1 being Not Interested and 5 being
  Very Interested) Briefly explain your rating.
•  
• I would rate it 4. I feel that it is very fun and
  exciting learning things that are related to
  products that can be seen in our everyday lives.
  Very few modules show the link between studying an
  d the real engineering world. However, I would
  grade it 5, if the products to be manufactured
  are chosen by us.
• Year 1 Mechanical and Aeronautical Engineering
  student

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What the students blogged..

• Having gone through 2 semesters, how would you
  rate (1-5) your interest in your field of
  engineering? (1 being Not Interested and 5 being
  Very Interested) Briefly explain your rating.
•  
• I rate 5 for my interest in the field of
  engineering. Well before joining the school I was
  thinking of which course to join. I did not
  really have any specific course but since I like
  math and science, I decided to join the
  engineering course. At this moment, I am quite
  satisfied with my choice and gaining more
  interest in engineering although its hard to
  study and learn something new. Due to the
  knowledge that I have learnt, now I can see and
  understand some practical applications in our
  world which is fun.
• Year 1 Electrical and Electronic Engineering
  student

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Thank you