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Introducing Big Data to Undergraduate Students: A Novel Approach in a Distance University

Contribution: The main contribution of this work is a way to improve existing degrees with state-of-the-art technologies so that they stay interesting and useful for students. It is of interest to faculty in any University worldwide, especially in Engineering Education, where the constant evolution of technology makes faculty devote effort to keep courses up-to-date. Background: Over last few years, Big Data has been one of the most demanded technologies by companies in any field. In order to fill this need of Big Data professionals, Universities must create new degrees or update existing degrees so that their graduated students are ready to perform this job. For this, the Degree in Computer Engineering of our University, which is taught totally online, has been updated to include Big Data technologies. These technologies are included in a databases course. Intended outcomes: The proposal allows faculty from any university worldwide to keep degrees up-to-date with minimal administrative effort. Application design: Big Data technologies have been included in a practical exercise, since deeper modifications in the course would require a lot administrative of effort. This work presents this exercise focusing on the learning objectives it pursues. Findings: A number of dimensions are analyzed over several academic years, resulting that almost all submitting students have achieved all the learning outcomes of the exercise, the course evaluation and success rates have improved, and students value positively the exercise, the materials, and the knowledge acquired.