Abstract:

The application of outcome-based estimators in the quality assessment of the learning process is a tool of great interest, particularly when the estimators can be applied during the teaching period to identify and correct dysfunctions that may interfere with the learning process. However, the estimators that are commonly used are designed to be applied to a degree as a whole and not to a specific module. For the purpose of helping to develop estimators of this kind, this article analyses the application of a procedure based on the percentage of students who passed. This study examined grades associated with 40 modules over a seven-year period at the Civil Engineering School of Ciudad Real in the University of Castilla-La Mancha, Spain. The correlation between the percentage of students who passed and the quality estimator of the students was analysed. It was found that not all the subjects exhibited the same behaviour. However, almost all of them showed a behavioural trend that allowed for the identification of outliers in terms of the minimum efficiency of the learning process. The use of efficiency estimators may be a helpful tool in obtaining objective information on the evolution of the learning process throughout the course. Hence, this estimator may lead to the rapid detection of problems early enough to allow them to be corrected.

Keywords:

Quality assessment, performance estimators, curriculum development, engineering education.