Teaching

This page contains information about MEEG 667 - Cooperative Multi-Agent Systems, a proposed robotics and controls course that I developed as part of a class on course design. The course is aimed at senior level undergraduates and first year graduate students, and it covers niche material that I found useful during my PhD that is not part of the graduate curriculum at UD.

The course also has a component on professional scientific writing, a fundamental research skill that many students may not have had an opportunity to practice. The course content was selected using backward design (starting with the student learning outcomes and working backward), and universal design for learning. I have worked to design authentic assignments to engage students, created plenty of practice for each of the student learning outcomes, and embraced the use of technology inside and out of the classroom.

The hybrid course design is modeled after an excellent series of fluid dynamics classes I took while attending Marquette University during my master's degree. There are strong parallels between fluids and controls, both disciplines require high-level thinking (manipulating Navier-Stokes in fluids and the closed-loop dynamics in controls) as well as "turning the crank" - actually solving the resulting differential equations. A hybrid course works great for this type of material. Students can focus on the technical details of "turning the crank" with supplemental lectures outside of class, and more class time can be spent on the engaging creative work of modeling, design, and brainstorming.

The course syllabus is a living document. It is embedded below, and you can also access it through this link.