In this paper, we present our experience on improving undergraduate engineering education with two Experiential Learning based approaches. The first is the Educational Module Library (EML) and the second is Vertical Integration Projects (VIP). The EML is a collection of typical engineering modules with diversified functions. Guided by faculty members, all modules in the EML are carefully developed by students with latest technologies. The EML is featured in simple, popular, complete and user-friendly. The EML can significantly lower down the difficulty for students in launching a new project and provide strong support during the whole implementation process. On the other hand, VIP offers students at different levels a great opportunity to work together on building advanced systems. Through VIP programs, students can continuously get involved in engineering practice, receive training on diversified skills and develop interests, motivation and concentration. An adopted mobile laboratory tool, Analog Discovery (AD) kit has greatly facilitated the implementation of these two approaches.
Dr. Lei Zhang received his Ph.D. Degree in Electrical Engineering on 2011 from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Since 2012 he is working in the Department of Engineering and Aviation Sciences, University of Maryland Eastern Shore. His main research interests include image processing, autonomous system development, optical SoC/NoC architecture, and on-chip optoelectronic device design.
I. K. Dabipi has been in academia for approximately 26 years during which he worked for Bellcore, AT&T Bell Labs and Southern University. He was the Chair of the Electrical Engineering Department at Southern University from 1997 to 2001. He was Professor
Yuanwei Jin is an Associate Professor of electrical engineering with the University of Maryland Eastern Shore. He received a Ph.D. degree in electrical and computer engineering from the University of California at Davis in 2003. His research interests are in the general area of statistical signal and image processing, with applications in radar/sonar, biomedical imaging, inverse problems, structural health monitoring, and wireless communications. He holds two US patents and has published more than seventy journal and conference papers. He received a 2010 Air Force Summer Faculty Fellowship award. He was a recipient of an Earle C. Anthony Fellowship from the University of California at Davis. He is a Senior Member of the IEEE.
Dr. Payam Matin is currently an Associate Professor in the Department of Engineering and Aviation Sciences at the University of Maryland Eastern Shore (UMES), Princess Anne, Maryland. Dr. Matin has received his Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from Oakland
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