Assessing outcomes in electricity and magnetism courses in engineering degrees. students’ performance analysed by bema

The field of high education is a dynamic environment constantly seeking for new methodologies and tools to promote learning and increase students’ performance. Learner-centered teaching methodologies such as blended learning, problem-based learning, learning-oriented assessment, flip teaching, teamwork and effective oral and written communication are new pedagogical tools used in our instruction strategy. These innovative teaching methods can be applied jointly with classical methodologies, acting in a complementary and synergistic manner. The capacity to oversee and assess the progress of student’s performance is a critical issue for the academic community. One broadly used tool for measure the student’s performance in introductory physics is the Brief Electricity and Magnetism Assessment (BEMA), designed specifically as a standardized instrument to evaluate students’ qualitative understanding of electricity and magnetism (E&M) key concepts. In order to analyze the performance of E&M students, the research‐based assessment tool BEMA was used. The E&M course analyzed is included in the Bachelor’s Degree in Industrial Electronics and Automation Engineering (DIEA) at the Universitat Politècnica de València (UPV), Spain. It is a second semester traditional curriculum in which the use of traditional textbooks and screencast have been combined. BEMA preand post-instruction tests were carried out at the beginning and end of the course respectively. Besides, an additional test, four months after the end of the course, was also conducted in order to analyze the persistence of the learning process. To deepen understanding of student learning in the E&M course, correlations of preand post-instruction scores have been investigated, identifying systematic trends. Learning-persistence has been introduced as an additional parameter in this analysis for the DIEA curriculum. The relevant information obtained through the BEMA test will allow teachers to adapt the educational program and teaching methodologies to improve students’ performance.