The subject "Physical Fundamentals of Engineering" for agricultural engineers in the University of Extremadura has long had high rates of students not attending classes, not presenting for examinations and, finally, failing the subject. During the 2007 and 2008 courses, the teaching/learning procedures were strongly modified. Analysis of the proportion of students taking final examinations and of the final marks shows that the new procedure leads to a satisfactory progress in most of the objectives, including a general improvement in their marks and pass rates. In particular, it was found that the new procedure needs to be maintained by the teachers for at least two courses for the greatest success. (Contains 7 figures.)