Abstract:

Quantum computing (QC) is making its way from scientific and technological research into many different branches of industry, where it is gaining importance. With increasing investment in this technology, the demand for skilled professionals will also grow, requiring not only highly specialised skills but also interdisciplinary competencies to integrate QC into daily business. In order to raise awareness of this exciting topic, an introductory course in QC was introduced as part of the ongoing development of the Bachelor's degree program in Mechatronics. Due to its interdisciplinary nature, covering the fields of mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, and computer science, this programme certainly has a very good starting point for integrating this innovative topic into the curriculum. To this aim, the “Algorithms for Intelligent Systems and Quantum Computing” course was integrated into the “Trends and Innovations in Mechatronics” module, which allocates eight 90-minute lessons exclusively to the topic of QC. The pedagogical concept should differ from a lecture and lean more towards problem-based learning. The intention was to give students an initial overview of this new complex topic, to apply basic algorithms from exercise examples in practice, and to familiarise themselves with the subject. To achieve this, seventh-semester students were provided with a MATLAB Live Script that was worked out in a team project during their practical training. Two surveys were conducted at the end of the course to assess students' perceptions: an online survey and a dialogue-oriented qualitative survey based on the Teaching Analysis Poll (TAP) method. The aim was to find out whether the pedagogical approach and the interactive format had achieved the expected outcomes. In the online survey, students were asked about their prior knowledge, preferred learning tools, professional relevance, and willingness to pursue further education, among other things. The evaluation shows that students have a high level of interest in this topic, but also expect an above-average degree of difficulty. More than half see a growing importance of QC, while many do not suspect any concrete relevance for their own professional tasks. Even after completing the course, the initial interest remained high. The majority wanted further learning opportunities and around a third wanted to test algorithms on real quantum computers in practice. The supplementary TAP method also demonstrates that using the problem-based learning approach in conjunction with the MATLAB Live Script can make the topic of QC accessible to those without specific prior knowledge of quantum mechanics, while also promoting a continuing high interest in learning.

Keywords:

Quantum education, quantum computing, problem-based learning, STEM education, complexity reduction, student-centered learning.