Preliminary Experience and Impact of Experiment-focused Teaching Approach in a Computer Architecture Course in Computer Science

Abstract

One of the key knowledge areas in Computer Science (CS) is Digital Logic and Computer Architecture where the learning outcome is an understanding of Boolean algebra, logic gates, registers, or arithmetic logic units, etc. and explaining how software and hardware are related to a computing system. Experimental Centric based Instructional Pedagogy (ECP) with portable laboratory instrumentation might provide real hands-on experience to obtain a practical understanding of those concepts at a lower cost compared to virtual hands-on laboratories that lack direct interaction with real apparatus or no integration of labs in the course. This work presents the initial adaptation of ECP to introduce the fundamentals of digital logic concepts in a Computer Architecture course in Spring 2022 for the first time in a CS department at a university teaching such courses without a lab and serving predominantly minority students. To establish a conducive and dynamic classroom environment by discovering course content through exploration, students majoring in CS were introduced to several logic gate types, worked with breadboards to connect circuits, and carried out operations to produce the necessary output using the commercial ADALM 1K Active Learning Module. To evaluate the impact of the ECP on students' performance in the class, three different evaluation methods were used, such as classroom observation, a signature assignment, and a Motivated Strategies for Learning Questionnaire (MSLQ) survey. The Classroom Observation Protocol for Undergraduate STEM (COPUS) findings indicated greater student engagement when ECP is used; the Signature assignment results indicated improved learning outcomes for students; and the MLSQ survey, which measures students' motivation, critical thinking, curiosity, collaboration, and metacognition, determined a positive impact of the ECP on the CS participants.