Development of leadership through hands-on learning activities in a flipped microprocessors classroom

Abstract

Electrical engineering students often find microprocessors to be a challenging course since it involves learning to read lengthy datasheets and learning to program at the device level. For two semesters, the Microprocessors course at East Carolina University (ECU) has been taught in a flipped classroom format allowing students to watch online lectures before attending each lecture period and to allow students more opportunities to ask questions and complete learning activities in class. During the scheduled lecture period students are encouraged to work with each other to complete hands-on in-class exercises allowing them to evaluate their understanding of the material presented in the online lecture and the assigned reading. Such in-class exercises may involve answering conceptual questions, writing code, or building circuits. It was observed by the instructor in previous semesters that some students who had a good grasp of course concepts became volunteer student leaders and helped others on their journey to learning course concepts by sharing approaches to solving problems and explaining difficult course concepts to others. It was also observed that some students did not exhibit leadership and relied on lab partners to do much of the work while they were not engaged. Leadership can also go beyond simply helping others, but taking initiative and seeking out assistance, coming prepared for class, learning to delegate responsibilities in a team project, and following through in completing the work expected. Leadership is also demonstrating by recognizing the assets of those in one's team and finding ways to work with others effectively to complete assigned tasks. In the Fall 2016 semester, course leadership was formalized in the Microprocessors course at ECU. Students were encouraged to engage in leadership through coming to class prepared, helping other students learn, and asking questions when they struggled to understand course concepts. Leadership outside of the class was encouraged through the formation of study groups. The instructor also created a Piazza site for the students to use an online forum allowing them to ask questions and to answer each other's questions. Students were surveyed at the midpoint and end of the semester in order to reflect on their own participation in the course and to evaluate the leadership of their lab partner. Students were encouraged to provide constructive feedback in order to help their lab partner improve and to develop a plan for their own leadership development. As part of a funded leadership grant, the instructor kept an online journal of each day's activities and the opportunities students had to engage in leadership through each of these activities. One lab session was also videoed to formalize the observation of student leadership. This video was reviewed and coded to assess the types of interactions the students had with their lab partners, other peers, and the instructor. Various leadership qualities were noted including asking questions when having difficulty, seeking help from other students, seeking help from the instructor, and collaboration in teams.