An Inquiry-Based Introduction to Engineering

Book excerpt: The text introduces engineering to first-year undergraduate students using Inquiry-Based Learning (IBL). It draws on several different inquiry-based instruction types such as confirmation inquiry, structured inquiry, guided inquiry, and open inquiry, and all of their common elements. Professor Blum’s approach emphasizes the student’s role in the learning process, empowering them in the classroom to explore the material, ask questions, and share ideas, instead of the instructor lecturing to passive learners about what they need to know. Beginning with a preface to IBL, the book is organized into three parts, each consisting of four to ten chapters. Each chapter has a dedicated topic where an initial few paragraphs of introductory or fundamental material are provided. This is followed by a series of focused questions that guide the students’ learning about the concept(s) being taught. Featuring multiple inquiry-based strategies, each most appropriate to the topic, An Inquiry-Based Approach to Introduction to Engineering stands as an easy to use textbook that quickly allows students to actively engage with the content during every class period.