Instructing a mechatronics course aligning with TPACK framework

In this paper, two separate lessons of a mechatronics course were selected. One lesson was on actuator technologies and applications. Another lesson was on sensor technologies and applications. For the actuator lesson, the instructor designed and implemented the instruction following the traditional approach. Then, the same instructor instructed the sensor lesson to the same student population. However, for the sensor lesson, the instructor designed and implemented the instruction following the TPACK (technological-pedagogical and content knowledge) framework approach. For the TPACK approach, before instructing the lesson, the instructor determined the technological, pedagogical and content knowledge and skills required to instruct the lesson effectively. Then, the instructor increased his/her self-efficacy on those knowledge domains as best as possible, and then instructed the lesson to the learners (students) accordingly. Appropriate assessment methods and rubrics were developed to assess the teaching and learning effectiveness and outcomes of each lesson. The assessment results for the TPACK approach were then compared to that of the traditional instruction approach. Results showed that the instructions designed and implemented aligning with the TPACK framework significantly increased the instructional quality of the instructor and the overall teaching and learning outcomes and effectiveness. The results can inspire instructing STEM courses especially the mechatronics course following the TPACK framework.