Structural Analysis Education: Learning by “hands-on” projects and calculating structures

Abstract

This paper presents experiences in a structural analysis course of a civil engineering degree at the Universidad Europea de Madrid (Spain) as an example of educational innovation. The writers have tried to motivate students to learn structural analysis and design by using classical theory, performing calculations by hand, using a computer program, and using a plastic toy for model trusses to measure strain and stresses. These allow a comparison of results between the three methods. At the end of the course there is a rapid bridge-building contest with simple materials to develop the students’ capacity for ingenuity and teamwork, design different structural typologies, and meet aesthetic and resistance criteria. The writers analyzed the experiments, educational benefits, and student learning.