2023 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Comparison of the Effectiveness of In-Person and Remote Labs for Undergraduate Physics Students at an HBC

Presented at Pedagogy in Physics Education, Engineering Physics and Physics Division (EP2D) Technical Session 1

Following the outbreak of COVID-19, conducting lab classes emerged as a major challenge. Just switching to remote only mode with virtual experiments and simulations was very limiting for both the instructors and the students. At an historically black university, an approach that integrated the hands-on experiments enriched by simulation resources with virtual follow up was adopted. The key advantages of this approach were access to equipment, flexibility on when and how experiments are conducted, and the curiosity driven engagement fostered. Though this approach lacks the in-person one-on-one engagement and use of specialized equipment in the lab, it established a different and, in some aspect, deeper student engagement. Development of troubleshooting skills and the confidence in setting experiments are a few key observations.
In this study, we present a comparison of the efficacy of such remote integrated modes of conducting Physics experiments with in-person in laboratory teaching of undergraduate students, who are enrolled in the Introduction to Physics Experiment course participated at Morgan State University. We conclude that these two approaches are complementary to one another.

Authors

Frank Efe http://orcid.org/0000-0002-5833-9862 Morgan State University
Dr. Antony Kinyua http://orcid.org/0000-0002-8164-7644 Morgan State University [biography]

Dr Kinyua is an Associate Professor of Nuclear Science and currently affiliated to the Physics Department at Morgan State University (MSU) as an adjunct faculty member, teaching Engineering Physics and Earth Sciences. He has more than 30 yearsâ€™ experien
Ezana Negusse
Neda Bazyar Shourabi Pennsylvania State University, Berks
Mr. Pelumi Olaitan Abiodun http://orcid.org/0000-0002-4969-9591 Morgan State University [biography]

Pelumi Abiodun is a current doctoral student and research assistant at the Department of Civil Engineering, Morgan State University, Baltimore, Maryland. Pelumi got his BSc and MSc degree in Physics from Obafemi Awolowo University, where he also served as a research assistant at the Environmental Pollution Research unit, in Ile-Ife, Nigeria. As part of his contribution to science and engineering, Pelumi has taught as a teaching assistant both at Morgan State University and Obafemi Awolowo University. With a passion to communicate research findings gleaned from experts in the field as he advances his career, Olaitan has attended several in-person and virtual conferences and workshops, and at some of them, made presentations on findings on air pollution, wastewater reuse, heavy metal contamination, and use of experiment-centric pedagogy in STEM fields.
Hannah Abedoh Morgan State University
Dr. Oludare Adegbola Owolabi P.E. Morgan State University [biography]

Dr. Oludare Owolabi, a professional engineer in Maryland, joined the Morgan State University faculty in 2010. He is the director of the Sustainable Infrastructure Development, Smart Innovation and Resilient Engineering Research Lab at Morgan State University
Arnesto Bowman Morgan State University

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