Designing an e-learning curriculum

In this chapter, the authors propose to look at the empirical findings that will be useful for instructors, who wish to improve their understanding on how to design an e-learning curriculum that will take into account the different learning needs of their engineering students. The studies surveyed in this chapter will focus on gender and game-based learning, which will offer insights as to how to improve the level of participation and learning outcomes for females in male-dominated fields. In particular, the authors will focus on gender issues and how learning in an e-learning curriculum can be designed to engage female students and to improve retention of female students. The authors propose the following change in an engineering e-learning curriculum: mixed-sex groups, use of collaborative activities, blended learning, and communication tools, and mixed-sex curriculum design team.