Intelligent Interactive Tutoring Systemfor Engineering Mechanics
Publication: Journal of Professional Issues in Engineering Education and Practice
Volume 126, Issue 4
Abstract
Engineering education has traditionally been imparted through the lecture-tutorial-laboratory paradigm. Education technology in the last few years has tried to make teaching more effective by supplementing the chalkboard teaching with audiovisual aids like overhead/slide projectors and videos. These are, however, passive teaching tools. Recent advancement in computer multimedia has brought in a new teaching medium. Multimedia education has several advantages; most noticeably, the instructions can be interactive and self-paced to meet the needs of each individual student. The writers have developed an Intelligent Interactive Tutoring System for engineering mechanics for the first-year engineering students at the Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. The main objective of this system was to supplement classroom teaching via intelligent interaction with the computer-based tutoring system. This system is designed to be a self-paced virtual tutor with intelligent, user-friendly interactions. It is intended to be different from the many commercially available computerized textbooks. The prototype system was tried out with about 200 students who had earlier failed the course in the first semester and repeated it in the second semester of academic year 1997–1998. The system received good response from the students. The full version was implemented on the Nanyang Technological University Intranet and the Internet for use by the regular class of more than 1,600 students in both academic years 1998–1999 and 1999–2000.
Get full access to this article
View all available purchase options and get full access to this article.
References
1.
Authorware 4.0 (1997). Macromedia Inc., San Francisco.
2.
Beer, F. P., and Johnston, E. R., Jr. ( 1996). Vector mechanics for engineers—statics, 3rd SI Metric Ed., McGraw-Hill Ryerson, Whitby, Canada.
3.
Burton, L. ( 1998). “Undergraduate engineering education: Teaching, learning, assessing—a symbiosis.” J. Engrg. Sci. and Educ., 7(4), 158–160.
4.
Collins, A., Brown, J. S., and Newman, S. E. ( 1989). “Cognitive apprenticeship: Teaching the crafts of reading, writing and mathematics.” Knowing, learning and instruction, B. R. Lauren, ed., Lawrence Erlbaum Assoc., Mahwah, N.J., 453–494.
5.
Davey-Wilson, I. E. G. (1994). “Computer-aided laboratory teaching in geotechnics.”J. Profl. Issues in Engrg. Educ. and Pract., ASCE, 120(4), 430–435.
6.
Denton, D. D. ( 1998). “Engineering education for the 21st century: Challenges and opportunities.” J. Engrg. Educ., 87(1), 19–21.
7.
Easa, S. M., Li, S. N., and Shi, Y. Y. (1998). “GIS technology for civil engineering education.”J. Profl. Issues in Engrg. Educ. and Pract., ASCE, 124(2), 40–47.
8.
Gramoll, K., Abbanat, R., and Slater, K. ( 1996). Multimedia engineering statics, Addison-Wesley Interactive, Reading, Mass. (CD-ROM).
9.
Hotchkiss, R. H. (1994). “Teaching with multimedia: Example and issues.”J. Profl. Issues in Engrg. Educ. and Pract., ASCE, 120(3), 279–289.
10.
Jesshope, C., Shafarenko, A., and Slusanschi, H. ( 1998). “Low-bandwidth multimedia tools for web-based lecture publishing.” J. Engrg. Sci. and Educ., 7(4), 148–154.
11.
Koehn, E. (1995). “Interactive communication in civil engineering classrooms.”J. Profl. Issues in Engrg. Educ. and Pract., ASCE, 121(4), 260–261.
12.
McCuen, R. H., and Chang, P. C. (1995). “Multimedia-based instruction in engineering education: Evaluation.”J. Profl. Issues in Engrg. Educ. and Pract., ASCE, 121(4), 220–224.
13.
Melsa, J. L. ( 1997). “Trends in engineering education in the USA.” J. Engrg. Sci. and Educ., 6(6), 239–244.
14.
Pallini, L., Piroli, S., Stacchio, L., and Zirilli, F. ( 1998). “Computer-aided instruction in wave propagation phenomena.” J. Engrg. Sci. and Educ., 7(5), 215–220.
15.
Riggs, B., Poli, C., and Woolf, B. ( 1998). “Multimedia application for teaching design for manufacturing.” J. Engrg. Educ., 87(1), 63–69.
16.
Saatchi, M. R., Ayienga, E. M., Travis, J. R., and Rippon, F. ( 1998). “Expert system developed to assist digital electronics teaching.” J. Engrg. Sci. and Educ., 7(2), 81–87.
17.
Staab, G. H., and Breeden, J. B. ( 1996). Interactive software to accompany vector mechanics for engineers—statics (Beer and Johnston), 3rd SI Metric Ed., McGraw-Hill Ryerson, Whitby, Canada.
18.
Wallace, D. R., and Weiner, S. T. ( 1998). “How might classroom time be used given WWW-based lectures?” J. Engrg. Educ., 87(3), 237–248.
Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Journal of Professional Issues in Engineering Education and Practice
Volume 126 • Issue 4 • October 2000
Pages: 166 - 173
History
Received: Jun 14, 1998
Published online: Oct 1, 2000
Published in print: Oct 2000
Authors
Metrics & Citations
Metrics
Citations
Download citation
If you have the appropriate software installed, you can download article citation data to the citation manager of your choice. Simply select your manager software from the list below and click Download.