2023 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

In fulfilling its role of promotor of critical thinking and of cultivating students as students as problem solvers, undergraduate engineering education needs to answer modern educational demands tailored to meet industry and career demands and student learning styles. Extended Reality technology, including virtual and mixed reality may enable educators create tools for multisensory teaching, enhancing learning through guided imagery and haptics. The end-goal of these transformative teaching tools is to represent and study concepts and notions, offering students a broader perspective over systems integration while exploring fundamental notions of the topics studied.
Through undergraduate research, two co-op students explored the VR technology (engine) and developed the framework for a learning module that will present fundamental notions in renewable energy sources, using scenarios based on physical experiments. We developed a virtual reality learning platform and the modeling of the VR framework as applied to several experimental modules: wind turbine, solar cell (PV) module, a water decomposition and fuel cell module. Students explore concepts as parametric characterization of the system as well as thermochemical characterization. The module is packed in an executable app, downloadable and usable in both VR STEAM immersive environment as well as in a desktop format. Students will follow similar procedures as for physical experiments, using the interactive features of the VR experiments. Each module is depicting the physical laboratory module and it is fully interactive. Students will perform simulated experiments, with data generated on MATLAB/C# simulations of the modules.
A comprehensive assessment and evaluation plan will be presented. The assessment had a two prong approach: (1) measurement of the overall experience with a XR virtual experiment in contrast with a similar on-site experiment and (2) measurement of the learning efficacy and skill development while using this novel learning technology. Several quantitative and qualitative measurements were used as feeders for necessary calibration and adjustment of the different components of the project. A pragmatic (mixed-methods) approach to educational evaluation, with an implementation of both quantitative and qualitative methods when appropriate, yields a more holistic methodology amenable to evaluate these novel pedagogical approaches. The formative assessment incorporated reflected the students’ awareness of their learning performance and the need for corrective instructional facilitation for individuals or groups of students. Summative and cognitive assessments in the form of final exams, projects and student portfolios will be used as exit competency tests or end-of-course assessments. The questionnaires along with randomly selected interviews ask students to evaluate their overall experience about the XR experiments, adequacy of virtual laboratory setups, and their suggestions for improvement. In exams for all course offerings, an entering cognitive knowledge test will measure what students are expected to know prior to taking the course, while the final exam will reflect content objectives and expected student knowledge acquisition from the course.
VR technology will enable students to explore new ways to implement their knowledge in a practical manner, enhancing information retention and promoting critical thinking.