2024 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

The world today faces numerous environmental challenges and requires creativity, innovation, and collaboration to resolve these issues. Traditional lecturing methods have limitations in inspiring creativity and learners’ collaboration as it is more tutor centered. Experiment-centric learning utilizes hands-on devices and tools to engage students in collaborative and peer learning. This study aims to assess the extent this approach has enhanced peer learning and collaboration among environmental engineering undergraduates. This quantitative investigation was conducted using a pre- and post-test approach. This study used validated items from the popular Motivated Strategies for Learning Questionnaire (MSLQ), signature assignment, and outcome assessment to explore the impact of hands-on devices on peer learning and collaboration as well as academic achievement in modules where this innovative pedagogy was implemented. The data was cleaned and analyzed using SPSS v25.0 (Statistical Package for the Social Sciences), and the results were provided in the form of frequency, percentage, mean, and standard deviation. The study employed a Mid-p Adjusted Binomial and McNemar with a confidence level of 95.0% to explore the impact of mediating socio-demographic variables. There was a significant improvement in the peer-learning and collaboration of the learners (p<0.050). In addition, gender and prior academic CGPA were found not to be significantly associated with the increase in peer learning and collaboration (p>0.05) while class level was found to be significantly associated (p<0.05). The findings of this study contribute valuable insights to the field of environmental engineering education, suggesting that innovative, less cumbersome, easy-to-use technology when combined with teaching methods can enhance peer learning and collaboration. These findings may inform future curriculum design and instructional approaches to better equip students in addressing the complex environmental issues of our era.