Work in progress — Hands-on learning of fundamental concepts in electromagnetic fields

A pedagogical approach of hands-on learning that has formed the foundation of the nontraditional circuits and electronics laboratory courses at Virginia Tech (VT) is now being applied to enhance the learning in what has been a series of highly mathematical courses on abstract theory on electromagnetic fields. A set of experiments that demonstrate basic concepts in electromagnetic (EM) fields has been developed for a two-semester course sequence that is offered in the junior year of the Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering at VT. The experiments are designed to reinforce concepts on electric and magnetic fields and propagation of electromagnetic waves to promote student comprehension, depth of learning, and application of the fundamental concepts in electromagnetic fields. The experiments were introduced into the curriculum during the 2010/2011 academic year. An initial assessment of the experiments has been conducted, which indicates that students value the learning opportunity to translate the abstract concepts into practice.