Comparing Student Learning in a Required Electrical Engineering Undergraduate Course: Traditional Face-to-Face vs. Online

Engineering education programs are looking for effective ways to more efficiently deliver engineering education to an increasingly heterogeneous customer base, including nontraditional students, some of whom are working full time. Online courses and programs can be one option to meet the needs of this new customer base; however, educators need to ensure that the quality of the educational experience is maintained. Thus, it is important to assess student learning in the online environment. At Montana State University in Bozeman, Montana, the College of Engineering is experimenting with online courses and programs that can be delivered not only to local students who have time constraints but also to students at a distance in one of the largest states in the U.S. One required undergraduate course for electrical engineering students, Introduction to Logic Circuits, has recently been offered in the face-toface (fall 2010) and online (spring 2011) environments, using exactly the same materials, which are modular materials developed summer 2010 for an online application. The materials were accompanied by an in-person lecture in fall 2010 and a recorded Camtasia Relay lecture spring 2011. At the end of spring semester 2011, we were able to compare the performance of students from each environment in regard to performance on the same homework assignments, quizzes, and final exam. This data offers an assessment of student learning in the two environments. The paper also includes a summary of the course modules.