Use Of Web Based Testing Software For Problem Based Learning In Hydraulics And Hydrology

LON-CAPA is web-based course management software supported by Michigan State University. It includes a testing component that allows for coding a variety of sophisticated problems that are computer-graded and submitted by students on-line. Each student can be given problems having unique parameter values. Grading can be done on a "mastery" basis with the student given multiple attempts to solve the problems. LON-CAPA was used for problem-based learning activities in EGTE 321, Storm-Water Management, at the University of Delaware. Problems were formulated to emphasize analysis and design of storm-water management systems. Problems included components involving open-channels, vegetated waterways, water-surface profiles, culverts, storm-drains, NRCS TR55 hydrology, and reservoir routing – conceptually difficult subjects for many students to master. Advantages of using LON-CAPA with problem-based-learning methods included: • Mastery-based learning encourages students to work on problems until they get them right. With standard grading systems, students do not get immediate feedback and do not have the opportunity to be as persistent in finding the correct solutions. • Once problems are coded, demand on instructor time decreases because problems are computer-graded. Mastery-based learning becomes much more feasible. • Students have unique numbers for their problems. Cheating is difficult. Students can be encouraged to discuss with one another the concepts required to solve the problems but cannot simply give one another the answers. • LON-CAPA gives the instructor the ability to check values of intermediate calculations required to arrive at the solutions of each student’s problems. This feature makes it possible quickly to identify the points with which the student is experiencing difficulty. Misconceptions and gaps in knowledge can be readily addressed. This paper includes strategies for writing problems that are suited for development of design and analysis skills in engineering-related topics and provides examples. Techniques for coding solutions to complicated problems with a minimum of “bugs” are also discussed. Student comments and preferences regarding use of the LON-CAPA system in conjunction with Problem-Based Learning are examined. P ge 9.360.1 Proceedings of the 2004 American Society for Engineering Education Annual Conference & Exposition Copyright © 2004, American Society for Engineering Education Introduction and Background LON-CAPA 1 (Learning ONline – Computer Assisted Personalized Approach) is web-based nonproprietary course management software that has features comparable to those of the well known proprietary software packages WebCT 2 or Blackboard 3 , but with additional capabilities in the form of sophisticated testing and assessment components. LON-CAPA integrates testing and assessment features from CAPA 4 , an earlier non-web network-based software application, designed to provide individualized homework assignments, quizzes, and examinations for each student. Distribution of the open-source LON-CAPA software is free through Michigan State University under a GNU license 1 . The objective of the research reported in this paper was to use the LON-CAPA homework system to support a problem-based learning approach for teaching hydrology and hydraulics topics in the University of Delaware course, EGTE 321, Storm-Water Management. This paper will discuss issues regarding implementation of the LON-CAPA system and assess the impact on students and student acceptance of the pedagogy by relating instructor classroom observations and examining results of a student survey. LON-CAPA is designed to run on the LINUX operating system. The current release is designed for simplest installation using the Red Hat 7.3 version of LINUX. Coding of problems is accomplished using Perl, a powerful open-source interpreted language native to LINUX and UNIX operating systems. LON-CAPA is flexible; it can be used to create problems or questions that emphasize either quantitative solutions or conceptual understanding. Coding of a variety of problems is possible and can include numerical, symbolic, logical, graphical, matching, multiple choice, and essay features. Problem statements can incorporate links to other resources even including animations that illustrate motion and other changes over time. Components of the problems such as values for parameters and the set of parameters itself can be randomly assigned by the computer. Students are given immediate instructor-programmed but computer-generated feedback to their responses. An example problem statement and input screen are shown in Figure 1 as they would appear to a student upon first opening the problem. In this problem, the cross-section dimensions, the channel slope, the roughness coefficient, and the flow rate are all randomly generated so that each student has a unique set of parameter values. The labels on the figure automatically display the correct values for the dimension variables. The testing and assessment components of LON-CAPA can be a particularly valuable tool for the instructor teaching large classes in mathematics, science, and engineering. Potential benefits are not limited to the hard sciences and engineering, however. In particular, the individualized homework problems can prove to be an important addition to any class in which student learning is highly correlated with the time spent “on task” in the application of learned problem solving skills or in self-directed examination and discovery related to the course subject matter.