Abstract:

The paper proposes three experiments of examples based learning. The students concerned are students in the bachelor of technology courses in electrical engineering domain including computer science domain. The teachers-researchers from France, Romania and Poland have been collaborating for many years mainly in Erasmus background. The first example is concerned with a method called the DARE method by the authors. The method builds a connection in real time with maths and applied sciences by the use of a computer algebraic system during 3 hours session of intensive practical work. The second case focuses on the virtual prototyping learning. The method spread in 3 months for students in an Erasmus placement. The last example discusses with the reverse learning technic. These techniques turned out to be necessary because the short working time that is a one week international challenge.

The DARE method:
The method has been built by teachers researchers in an Institute of technology involved in a way to motivate their students. The use of computers in the maths course motivates students to practice maths in connection with other scientific domains as the electrical engineering domain.

The virtual prototyping method:
The domain of investigation is the virtual prototyping. The virtual product development replaces traditional material object test with digitized form product by building product’s digital model. The virtual prototype technology carries out any product optimization. Virtual prototype technology is a kind of engineering method which can shorten new product development cycles by replacing cost physical prototype with virtual digital model.
The subject detailed here deals with a virtual prototyping using Delphi programming environment. The example based teaching method is thus applied. There are several potential advantages of example based learning programs, including the ability for people to learn from their homes and study without the assistance of an instructor. As the use of computers in life is increasing, all teaching methods and strategies should be renewed to match with the advancement of technology. It means that videos, texts, lessons, homework in electronics format should be easily downloaded by any new learners.

A flipped classroom for an international challenge:
The last experiment deals with a new collaboration with a Polish university concerning French students in part time course and full course Polish students. The educational system in France offers to students to become workers taking lessons at university. They are called apprentices. Roughly speaking they share their time one month at the university and one month inside their company. At the university, the students must participate to a one week international seminar as written in their syllabus. Since a couple of years, this week is spent at the Polytechnika university of Warsaw. Conversely, the Polish students and their teachers are invited to participate one week to an educational challenge with students from the institute of technology of Valenciennes. Due to the restricted time devoted to learn and to the negative and positive comments on the feedback , an intensive working week has been built for 2 years in both countries. Base on the internet connection, the teaching and practicing week can be considered as a kind of a flipped classroom. The paper describes the French system for apprentices and two examples of the international challenge.

Keywords:

Learning by exemples, international week, virtual prototyping.