Improving Engineering Education by Using an Interactive Multimedia Learning Environment

The aim of this presentation is to discuss the pedagogical rationale, content and process of the design for a hypermedia artefact used for teaching Engineering subjects for the adult students. The students are able to access online activities testing their previous knowledge and then generate or develop a better understanding of basic issues so they will be able to tackle successfully the learning activities included in my module.
The hypermedia artefact integrates hyperlinked text, diagrams, pictures, interactive examples, modelling, virtual reality simulations and animations to support the development of increased insight and understanding of complex issues of this scientific subject. The student will be able to access various topics from the menu at his / her own pace and will be sent to the links which provide supplementary sources of information especially for topics linked to questions which were not answered correctly.
The explosion of knowledge and competitiveness of modern era require the engineering professionals and students to have a strong technical foundation and more generalist (non-core) skills such as team working, communication, commercial and global awareness in order to be successful. The presentation will focus on several aspects of the design process: user analysis; knowledge/information analysis and communication, structure, representation, interface and navigation design of the proposed hypermedia artefact; evaluation methods.
The design of this multimedia learning environment intends to improve the students’ flexibility of thinking by providing active learning opportunities for higher level of engagement based on the constructivist paradigm.