Teaching ME 211 using a tablet computer

Grant:

Instructional Development Fund (IDF)

Academic Year:

2012 - 2013 (June 1, 2012 through May 31, 2013)

Funding Requested:

$500.00

Project Dates:

Wed, 01/04/2012 - Tue, 04/17/2012

Applicant(s):

allenliu

Overview of the Project:

I am planning to teach Introduction to Solid Mechanics using a tablet computer. The ability to include more sophisticated drawings will allow me to describe the concepts better. It will also enable to write to the project while facing the student, even as I walk about the room. I believe the utility of this technique will increase my teaching effectiveness and maximize student learning.

Final Report Fields

Project Objectives:

The objective is to use a tablet computer with a stylus to present the course material in Introduction to Solid Mechanics on PowerPoint. I am also using i-Clicker questions to examine students’ understanding of core concepts.

Project Achievements:

Overall, the projected worked very well. Students think using the tablet makes my lecture seem more organized instead of jumping around to different topics. The use of the tablet also allows me to work out more complicated problems with the students during class.

Continuation:

Yes, I will be teaching the same course Fall 2012, and plan on using the tablet computer to teach again. I plan on implementing more i-Clicker questions in my lectures.

Dissemination:

I have shown my use of tablet to Prof. Jianping Fu who seems to be interested in the teaching method and may in the future implement that for his class. I plan on sharing with my colleagues my experience teaching with a tablet computer through casual conversation.

Advice to your Colleagues:

One of the difficulties with teaching with tablet is the difficulty in writing well on the glass surface. There is also the problem where only one screen is projected at a time, making it difficult to go back and forth between different slides while working on a longer problem. One potential solution is to use the white board in conjunction with the tablet.

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