Animated concept-in-context maps as a materials science learning resource in an online flipped classroom

Area of Science:

• Engineering Education
• Materials Science Pedagogy

Background:

• The COVID-19 pandemic necessitated shifts in engineering education, impacting teaching and assessment.
• Online and flipped learning models became prominent in engineering curricula globally.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the efficacy of animation-enhanced concept-in-context maps as a learning resource.
• To evaluate their impact on student understanding in an introductory online flipped materials science course.

Main Methods:

• A quasi-experimental design was employed with second-year mechanical engineering undergraduates.
• The experimental group used animated concept maps, while the control group used static maps.
• Student comprehension was assessed via pre- and post-quiz performance.

Main Results:

• Preliminary results from a pilot study indicate a benefit for animation-assisted mapping.
• The experimental group showed promising improvements in understanding compared to the control group.

Conclusions:

• Animation-enhanced concept-in-context maps show potential as effective learning tools in online engineering education.
• Further research and in-depth experimentation are planned to validate these findings.