Thomas L. Rodgers , Philip Bolton , Percy van der Gryp
{"title":"An interactive graph resource for chemical engineering teaching","authors":"Thomas L. Rodgers , Philip Bolton , Percy van der Gryp","doi":"10.1016/j.ece.2023.08.004","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Instructors teaching chemical engineering topics have traditionally used graphical methods to explain core concepts and design unit operations. However, with the shift towards online and blended/flexible learning, there is a need to adapt these graphical methods for online use. This paper presents a set of interactive graphs that can be used for fluid flow, separation process, and reaction process unit operations and aims to investigate students' opinions of the interactive graphs and their motivations for using them in their studies. The digital resource developed in the paper is a set of slim single-page applications written in HTML5 & CSS3 with the numerical calculations undertaken in JavaScript (JS). The interactive graphs are embedded into the virtual learning environment (VLE) system Blackboard for two courses, and a paper survey is used to measure students' perceptions towards the interactive graphs and their use of them. The UTAUT2 model is used to analyse the student use of these resources. It is demonstrated that the use of online interactive graphs is popular with the students and the main driving factors are the performance expectancy and the hedonic motivation. Short scaffold questions to help students interact with the graphs are key to their usefulness. Some guidance on the use of interactive graphs is also provided. The interactive graphical resource can be found and used at the Graphical Chemical Engineering Design weblink: https://www.ce.manchester.ac.uk/gced.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":48509,"journal":{"name":"Education for Chemical Engineers","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":3.5000,"publicationDate":"2023-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Education for Chemical Engineers","FirstCategoryId":"95","ListUrlMain":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1749772823000416","RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"教育学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q1","JCRName":"EDUCATION, SCIENTIFIC DISCIPLINES","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
Instructors teaching chemical engineering topics have traditionally used graphical methods to explain core concepts and design unit operations. However, with the shift towards online and blended/flexible learning, there is a need to adapt these graphical methods for online use. This paper presents a set of interactive graphs that can be used for fluid flow, separation process, and reaction process unit operations and aims to investigate students' opinions of the interactive graphs and their motivations for using them in their studies. The digital resource developed in the paper is a set of slim single-page applications written in HTML5 & CSS3 with the numerical calculations undertaken in JavaScript (JS). The interactive graphs are embedded into the virtual learning environment (VLE) system Blackboard for two courses, and a paper survey is used to measure students' perceptions towards the interactive graphs and their use of them. The UTAUT2 model is used to analyse the student use of these resources. It is demonstrated that the use of online interactive graphs is popular with the students and the main driving factors are the performance expectancy and the hedonic motivation. Short scaffold questions to help students interact with the graphs are key to their usefulness. Some guidance on the use of interactive graphs is also provided. The interactive graphical resource can be found and used at the Graphical Chemical Engineering Design weblink: https://www.ce.manchester.ac.uk/gced.
期刊介绍:
Education for Chemical Engineers was launched in 2006 with a remit to publisheducation research papers, resource reviews and teaching and learning notes. ECE is targeted at chemical engineering academics and educators, discussing the ongoingchanges and development in chemical engineering education. This international title publishes papers from around the world, creating a global network of chemical engineering academics. Papers demonstrating how educational research results can be applied to chemical engineering education are particularly welcome, as are the accounts of research work that brings new perspectives to established principles, highlighting unsolved problems or indicating direction for future research relevant to chemical engineering education. Core topic areas: -Assessment- Accreditation- Curriculum development and transformation- Design- Diversity- Distance education-- E-learning Entrepreneurship programs- Industry-academic linkages- Benchmarking- Lifelong learning- Multidisciplinary programs- Outreach from kindergarten to high school programs- Student recruitment and retention and transition programs- New technology- Problem-based learning- Social responsibility and professionalism- Teamwork- Web-based learning