An Online, Problem-Based Course in Renewable Energy

Kevin Scoles, Electrical and Computer Engineering Department

Drexel University

An online version of an Introduction to Renewable Energy course has been developed and
offered over several quarters. The course is aimed at pre-junior and junior (3rd and 4th year)
students at Drexel. Prerequisites are kept to a minimum to allow a broad audience, primarily in
engineering and science. This course, and the author’s senior-level Solar Energy Engineering
course, are currently the only undergraduate online courses in the Department.

The course is an overview of renewable energy sources, including wind, geothermal, solar
(passive thermal, active thermal, photovoltaics), hydroelectricity, biomass, batteries and
generators, and ocean energy. After an introduction to US and world energy consumption and
generation in the first week, a new energy source is introduced roughly every week of the 10
week quarter.

Projects in the course involve the design of a small off-grid energy system to meet a specific
energy need in a specific locale. System solutions typically include wind and photovoltaic energy
sources and energy storage in batteries. Student groups have 3-4 members. Group work is
supported by collaboration tools built into Blackboard Learn, including the Collaborate
communications tool, wikis and a file exchange area. Execution of the project is assisted with a
free legacy version of HOMER software from HOMER Energy. Several weeks of tutorials are
performed in HOMER before projects begin so students are comfortable with the software and
can concentrate on system design choices.

This paper reviews the course learning goals, course design and delivery, project details, and
course assessment results.

I. Introduction

An introduction to renewable energy course was added to the undergraduate ECE curriculum to
fill a gap in the electric power program. The course is intended to draw an audience from across
engineering and science. It is offered as an elective at the pre-junior/junior (3rd or 4th year)
level. Course prerequisites have been kept to a minimum, and include calculus and physics
appropriate for the student’s major. Concepts of voltage and current sources (and their parallel
and series combinations), power, and energy are needed. Thermodynamics is not required, which
has an impact only in geothermal energy content. Other desired skills are algebra, trigonometry,
dimensional analysis (units), basic financial calculations, and facility with spreadsheets. While
no marketing has been done, enrollments have been about 60 students, and in some terms all
engineering departments are represented.

Spring 2015 Mid-Atlantic ASEE Conference, April 10-11, 2015 Villanova University
 Table 1. Course plan for ECEP 380 Introduction to Renewable Energy (Fall 14-15). Reading
abbreviations: AES – Alternative Energy Systems and Applications1, AEF - America's Energy
Future: Technology and Transformation2, SE - Sustainable Energy–without the hot air3
Week Subject Reading/Multimedia Activities Projects
1 Energy in the US Chapter 1 (AES) State RPS Info,
Executive Summary (AEF) HOMER Intro
2 Wind Energy Chapter 4 (AES) Wind turbines in
pp. 32-34, 263-268 (SE) HOMER
3 Solar Energy Chapter 6 (AES) Solar data in
Fundamentals p. 38 (SE) HOMER
4 Active Solar Chapter 7 (AES) Loads in HOMER
Thermal pp. 38-39 (SE)
5 Midterm Exam Chapter 8 (AES) Sensitivity Analysis
Passive Solar in HOMER
6 Photovoltaic Chapter 9 (AES) PV panels in Groups defined,
Systems pp. 39-42 (SE) HOMER projects
distributed
7 Batteries and Lecture videos Batteries in Project Week 1
Generators HOMER
8 Geothermal Chapter 13 (AES) Generators in Project Week 2
Energy pp. 96-99 (SE) HOMER
9 Hydropower Chapter 3 (AES) Project Work Project Week 3

10 Wrap-up Economics in HOMER Project Work Project Week 4

The course has gone through a transition in its method of delivery from face-to-face, to flipped
classroom, to fully online. The first offering was in fall of 2011-12 as a special topics course. It
was taught as a flipped class in winter quarter 2012-13, entered the course catalog in 2013-14,
and has been taught online three times since winter 2013-14. Putting the course online serves
several needs. First, it provides the means to combine students from Drexel’s main campus with
those on a satellite campus in New Jersey, and have these students actively interact. Secondly, it
gives students in a two-quarter co-operative education cycle a chance to continue their academic
connection to the university. A problem-based learning approach has been maintained in each
offering style. The primary textbook for the course has been Alternative Energy Systems and
Applications by Hodge1 (though this will change for the 2015-16 academic year), with web-

Spring 2015 Mid-Atlantic ASEE Conference, April 10-11, 2015 Villanova University
accessible supplements2-3. The author’s department offered teaching release time to develop the
original offering of the online course. The department also assigns one to two graduate teaching
assistants to do grading and help interact with students in discussion areas, depending on course
enrollment.

The academic plan for the course is illustrated in Table 1. The columns in the table illustrate the
parallel activities taking place in the course. The renewable energy topical material (Readings/
Multimedia) moves at a pace of about one energy technology per week. Readings and online
lectures are based on the textbook, with additional, more recent material from sources such as the
U. S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) and others as appropriate. Another track
(Activities) gives weekly assignments to learn and exercise critical features of the HOMER
energy system modeling software4, and make connections between lecture topics and actual
system hardware (wind turbines, solar modules, batteries, etc.). The final track is the group
project itself.

II. Learning goals

The learning goals for the course are listed in Table 2. They encompass both the engineering
content and the project experience.

Table 2. Learning goals for ECEP 380 Introduction to Renewable Energy

Students can describe the fundamental engineering principles of multiple renewable

energy technologies and their potential for contribution to US energy needs
Students can successfully perform energy calculations using the fundamental science and
engineering of wind and solar energy
Students can examine the (non-hydro) renewable resources available at a potential micro-
grid site
Students can compare the properties of commercial energy subsystems — solar modules,
wind turbines, batteries, generators, etc. — with the goal of choosing the components best
suited for an off-grid energy micro-grid design
Students can make significant contributions to a team-based design an off-grid energy
system that meets specified requirements in an economical way

III. Course structure

The contents of a weekly course module are shown in Table 3. A consistent presentation is made,
allowing the student to progress through their week’s responsibilities by following the links from
top to bottom. The module begins with a video of the instructor introducing the technical content
and presenting the major tasks and deadlines for the week. Readings and video lectures present

Spring 2015 Mid-Atlantic ASEE Conference, April 10-11, 2015 Villanova University
the technical material. Practice problems reinforce the technical content. These are not collected.
Problem solutions are posted at the end of the module. Discussions and quizzes are distributed
through the term. Sidebars are links to current and relevant renewable energy news items or
technical articles. These are refreshed each quarter.

Table 3. Items that appear in each weekly course module

Item Description
Weekly Overview 3 - 6 minute video, refreshed each term
Outcomes and Expectations Module learning outcomes and work due
Reading and Viewing Textbook or external resources
Lectures 5 to 15 minute video segments on YouTube
Collaborate Links Link to launch online office hours
Practice Problems Textbook or custom problems
Assignments/Discussions Individual or group tasks
Assessments Quizzes or exams
Sidebars Current energy news, publications, webinars

All online course materials were prepared by the author, as was the course site design on
Blackboard Learn. A Macintosh platform was used for course development. Slides were prepared
in Apple Keynote. Camtasia 24 was used for video recording and editing. Narrated “whiteboard”
solutions of practice problems were done with the Explain Everything5 app on an Apple iPad.
Most slide narration was scripted. Closed captioning was done using MovieCaptioner6 or in
YouTube.

The ultimate goal for the course site and content is to satisfy the Quality Matters7 (QM) rubric
for online course design. This process will take three steps. The first is a self-assessment
checklist for evaluating a course design posted by Drexel’s Online Learning Team, a group
within the Information Resources and Technology office. The second step is a peer review by a
course designer appointed by the Drexel Online Learning Council (OLC). The final step is a QM
rubric review by three OLC fellows. At this time, feedback from a peer review is being
incorporated into the course.

IV. Projects

Projects in the course involve the design of a small off-grid energy system to meet a specific
energy need in a specific locale. The project list is based on the examples in the “Stand-Alone

Spring 2015 Mid-Atlantic ASEE Conference, April 10-11, 2015 Villanova University
Photovoltaic Systems, A Handbook of Recommended Design Practices” document from Sandia
National Laboratories8 with supplements. These are the same projects that were used in previous
face-to-face and flipped-classroom versions of the course. System solutions typically include
wind and photovoltaic energy sources and energy storage in lead-acid batteries. Student groups
have 3-4 members, and are mixed between the three student populations (Main campus, NJ
campus, co-op). Group work is supported by collaboration tools built into Blackboard Learn,
including the Collaborate communications tool, wikis and a file exchange area. Energy system
modeling is performed with a free legacy version of HOMER software from HOMER Energy9.
The tutorial track in the course plan develops the needed HOMER skills before projects begin, so
students are comfortable with the software and can concentrate on system design choices.

V. Student assessment

Tests and quizzes are delivered online using Respondus Lockdown Browser10 with the webcam
option. This has the advantages of Blackboard Learn integration, stopping computer-mediated
communications between students, and preventing access to search engines. The webcam records
the student during the exam. A major disadvantage is that it precludes the use of engineering
tools such as MATLAB, Excel, HOMER, or the PVWatts Calculator11. Question design is done
under the assumption that students have their textbook, access to lecture slides in PDF form, and
a scientific calculator. Multiple question styles are used, including those that can be machine-
graded (true-false, multiple choice, matching, fill in the blank, etc.) and those requiring review
(short answer). Problems that require a numerical calculation will have their result entered on the
exam. Students upload their hand-written solutions from a subset of these problems, using a scan
or cell phone photo, for consideration of partial credit.

Rubrics are used extensively for student discussions and project-related assignments. They
benefit both the students, who see the level of expectation for the assignment, and the teaching
assistant grader(s), who may change from term to term.

VI. Evaluating student engagement

There are several ways to measure student engagement in an online course. Analytic tools within
the Blackboard learning management system (LMS) can track the level of engagement of
individual students with the course site (number of visits, total time on site, etc.). Video
management tools (Kaltura11) within the LMS can track the lecture viewing habits of individual
students. While these tools are available to Drexel faculty now, they were not available when the
two offerings of ECEP 380 reported here were taught.

Class-wide video viewing can be analyzed through YouTube Analytics. An analysis for a single
course video is shown in Fig. 1. The number of video views is on the left y-axis, and the
percentage of video viewed is on the right y-axis. For this particular video, the first (left-most)
peak represents quality assurance pre-release views by the instructor. The video quality and
closed caption accuracy were reviewed. The second peak represents student views over the

Spring 2015 Mid-Atlantic ASEE Conference, April 10-11, 2015 Villanova University
course week. On average, these videos are viewed about 80% through. There are a few
incomplete viewings in the following week, and another small group of viewings by students
who were preparing for their final exam.

40 100

Average Percentage Viewed

Views
30 Avg % Viewed 75
Views

20 50

10 25

0 0
11 14

11 014

11 014

11 014

11 014

11 014

11 014

12 14

12 14

12 14

14
01

01
0

20

20
/2

/2

/2

/2

/2
2/

5/

8/

1/

4/

7/

0/

2/
/6

/9

/3

/6

/9
/1

/1

/1

/2

/2

/2

/3

/1
11

!
11

12
Fig. 1. Daily number of views and average percentage viewed for Fall 2014-15 Week 9, Lecture
1 on geothermal energy. Data is from YouTube Analytics.

Table 4. Video analytics for the last two course offerings. Enrollments were 64 for Winter
13-14, and 58 for Fall 14-15.
Video Duration Term Views Total Time Average View Average %
(min:sec) Watched Duration Viewed
(min) (min)
Winter 13-14 90 321 3:34 65
Week 1, 5:29
Lecture 1 Fall 14-15 92 367 3:59 73

Winter 13-14 45 256 5:41 62

Week 5, 9:09
Lecture 1 Fall 14-15 71 433 6:06 67

Winter 13-14 52 189 3:37 63

Week 9, 5:43
Lecture 1 Fall 14-15 74 284 3:50 67

To follow how viewing tracked through the term, data was extracted for the first video of the
week for Week 1 (power and energy concepts), Week 5 (fundamental concepts in passive solar
energy), and Week 9 (introduction to geothermal energy) (Table 4). A large drop in views is
noted between Week 1 and Week 5 for both course offerings. For winter 13-14, the Week 5 and 9
views drop below the enrollment. The students in the fall 14-15 term have consistently higher

Spring 2015 Mid-Atlantic ASEE Conference, April 10-11, 2015 Villanova University
view counts and viewing percentages. Student’s self-reporting of their video viewing (Table 5)
appears to exceed the numbers extracted from YouTube.

Table 5. ECEP 380 Fall 14-15 End-of-Course Survey Results (95% Participation)
Q 100% 80% 60% 40% 20% 0%

What percentage of individual lecture 16 23 10 2 3 1

5 videos did you watch? (29.1%) (41.8%) (18.2%) (3.6%) (5.5%) (1.8%)
What percentage of individual lecture
19 15 13 3 2 3
6 videos did you view all the way
(34.5%) (27.3%) (23.6%) (5.5%) (3.6%) (5.5%)
through?

End-of-term surveys pointed out one of the differences between the winter 13-14 and fall 14-15
groups of students. 35% of the students in winter 13-14 had taken a post-freshman online course
at Drexel, while the number for fall 14-15 was 60%. The relatively low number of students with
online course experience in the winter course may explain the difference in video viewership and
in retention statistics for the two course offerings (Table 6).

Table 6. Retention statistics for the last two online course offerings.
Term Drops Withdrawals Final Enrollment

Winter 13-14 7 1 64

Fall 14-15 1 2 58

100
Project Grade

90

80

70
0 3000 6000 9000 12000

! Total Time on Course Site (min)

Fig. 2. Relationship between grade on off-grid energy system project and total time spent on
course web site.

Spring 2015 Mid-Atlantic ASEE Conference, April 10-11, 2015 Villanova University
While data is not yet available to show the connection between an individual student’s success in
the course and their video viewing history, data can be extracted for performance vs total time
spent interacting with the course web site. Fig. 2 shows the relationship between the design
project grade and time in course. This relationship is relatively weak because, except for some
fine tuning for peer review results, all members of a team receive the same grade. When
individual tasks, such as discussion posts, quizzes, and exams are included, the connection
between course grade and time in course (Fig. 3) is much stronger.

100

90
Course Grade

80

70

60

50
0 3000 6000 9000 12000

! Total Time on Course Site (min)

Fig. 3. Relationship between a student’s course grade and total time spent on course web site.

VII. Conclusions

At this time, all course materials are in our LMS and videos on YouTube have unlisted status.
Releasing the material to a wider audience may be considered in the future once course delivery
quality recommendations are implemented. Two areas in the course needing improvement are
homework and office hours. A minority of students attempt the voluntary practice problems
posted, and a smaller number ask questions about them. A good learning tool needs to deliver
useful, instant feedback. The prospect of collecting, marking up, and returning scans of
handwritten homework in a class of this size in onerous. One approach would be to set up
computer-graded exercises using sets of problems drawn from a pool. Suggestions for how to get
to the desired answer would be given for incorrect answers, without giving the answer itself.
Different students can receive different blocks of problems or problems with different sets of
parameters. The idea of allowing students to repeat assignments until correct would be
considered. A small fraction of the course grade would be given for these assignments.

Office hours are a synchronous activity in an otherwise asynchronous course. The class is now
surveyed for their preference of office hour times, including evening hours. Unless students can
expect a positive learning experience they are unlikely to “show up.” To show students how
Blackboard Collaborate can help them interact with the course staff, and their project partners, a

Spring 2015 Mid-Atlantic ASEE Conference, April 10-11, 2015 Villanova University
required Collaborate session will be built into the first weeks of the course. Collaborate supports
communication through video and chat, and has whiteboard and screen sharing capabilities.

An online introductory course in renewable energy has been very popular with students in the
College of Engineering at Drexel University. The course goals, outcomes, and projects are
identical to previous face-to-face and flipped classroom offerings. The goal of the course design,
including the alignment of goals, outcomes, course materials, projects, and assessments, is to
deliver high-quality technical content while meeting the Quality Matters benchmarks for online
courses. Student survey feedback has been useful in improving course content and delivery.

VIII. Bibliography
1. B. K. Hodge, Alternative Energy Systems and Applications, Hoboken, NJ: J. Wiley, 2010.
2. “America's Energy Future: Technology and Transformation,” Committee on America’s Energy Future, Nat.
Academy of Sciences, Nat. Academy of Engineering, Nat. Research Council, Washington, DC, 2009 [Online].
Available: http://www.nap.edu/catalog.php?record_id=12091
3. D. J. C. MacKay, Sustainable Energy–without the hot air, UIT Cambridge, 2008 [Online]. Available: http://
www.withouthotair.com
4. Camtasia 2, TechSmith [Online]. Available: http://www.techsmith.com/camtasia.html
5. Explain Everything, MorrisCooke [Online]. Available: http://www.morriscooke.com/applications-ios/explain-
everything-2
6. MovieCaptioner, SynchriMedia [Online]. Available: http://www.synchrimedia.com
7. Quality Matters, A National Benchmark for Online Course Design, Quality Matters [Online]. Available: https://
www.qualitymatters.org
8. “Stand-Alone Photovoltaic Systems, A Handbook of Recommended Design Practices,” Sandia National
Laboratories, SAND87-7023, Updated 1995 [Online]. Available: https://www.wbdg.org/ccb/DOE/TECH/
sand87_7023.pdf
9. HOMER, HOMER Energy [Online]. Available: http://homerenergy.com
10. Respondus LockDown Browser, Respondus [Online]. Available: https://www.respondus.com/products/
lockdown-browser/
11. PVWatts Calculator, National Renewable Energy Laboratory [Online]. Available: http://pvwatts.nrel.gov
12. Kaltura, Kaltura [Online]. Available: http://corp.kaltura.com

Spring 2015 Mid-Atlantic ASEE Conference, April 10-11, 2015 Villanova University