Enhancing BMEG 371 through Student Insights: A Pathway to Bioengineering Curriculum Innovation 

Cohort April 2024: Faculty of Applied Science – Daniel Aguilar Hidalgo, Tiam Heydari, Sogand Golshahian, Rex Wang

Project background

BMEG 371 stands as a requisite third-year core undergraduate course tailored for bioengineering students, focusing on transport phenomena. Its primary objective is to furnish prospective bioengineers with fundamental insights into how the transport of fluids and molecules within cells and tissues underpins various biological functions in the human body. This encompasses everything from the healthy development of tissues and organs to the emergence of diseases, as well as the innovation of therapeutics such as stem cell therapies and the development of new drugs. Central to the course’s objectives is equipping students with conceptual understanding, mathematical proficiency, and practical application tools, enabling them to tackle real-world challenges and propel advancements in the field of biomedical engineering.  

A group of four people posing in front of a building, outside.

Motivations for course redesign

The current structure of BMEG 371 predominantly emphasizes mathematical content pertinent to transport phenomena, transitioning abruptly to discussions on state-of-the-art research within the field. However, many students have expressed concerns regarding the disconnect between mathematical concepts and their practical application in the realm of biophysics, alongside a noticeable absence of hands-on application tasks. These shortcomings compound students’ apprehension about their readiness to address real-life engineering problems. Furthermore, the course prerequisites stem from three distinct pathways, resulting in a class with a heterogeneous background. Notably, while BMEG 371 covers a component of numerical analysis, only one of these pathways includes numerical analysis in its curriculum, and to a limited extent. This imbalance, coupled with the inclusion of computational coding practices for which students are not required to have prior background knowledge, has introduced an implicit bias in the course evaluations. 

Project goals

Our objective is to bring student voices in the redesign of this fundamental core course with the aim of enriching the learning experience in essential concepts for aspiring bioengineers. We intend to achieve this by broadly incorporating students input into the four phases of the course re-design process (Conceptualization, Implementation, Evaluation and Dissemination), while promoting student-centered learning approaches. To accomplish these goals, we will: 

  • Establish a comprehensive course structure: We will create a self-contained course that ensures all students receive consistent foundational knowledge, regardless of their academic background. This will involve providing a review of essential concepts from prerequisite courses. Specifically, we will cover numerical analysis from its introduction, emphasizing its relevance to transport phenomena. Additionally, coding practices will be replaced with numerical applications derived from the course content.
  • Modular organization: Each module will consist of three interconnected sections:
    • ‘Knowledge’: This section will focus on equipping students with a robust understanding of physical concepts and proficiency in articulating these concepts using mathematical language.
    • ‘Application’: Here, students will apply their acquired knowledge to solve problems that integrate biological concepts, thereby reinforcing their understanding through practical application.
    • ‘Design’: In this section, students will be challenged to employ their acquired knowledge and skills to design and solve real-world applications, fostering critical thinking and problem-solving abilities.