Academic Best Practice Panel---Online Laboratories

Timothy Drysdale

Chair of Technology Enhanced Science Education School of Engineering, University of Edinburgh, timothy

Nowadays, when engineering education is confronted with various challenges, a traditional laboratory also faces problems such as increasing student numbers, soaring cost, limited space and changing learning method, while online labs have broken the limitations of traditional laboratories. Thanks to the time and space liberation brought by online labs, students can learn based on different needs with satisfying learning results. Due to these advantages, online laboratories have been strongly promoted in engineering education practice.

Engineering Education Research to Practice

Vinod K. Lohani

Director of Education & Global Initiatives, Professor of Engineering Education, Virginia Tech

Practice is an important way to master engineering learning. With ways of practice in place, it is worth discussing about how to encourage students to get hands-on experience and transform the research to application achievements. The Virginia Tech Institute of Engineering has made many innovations in the practical learning of engineering students. Through the Learning Enhanced Watershed Assessment System (LEWAS) laboratory and the Online Watershed Learning System (OWLS), classroom learning and extracurricular practice are effectively combined. In this way, the objective of individualized learning could be met in line with the needs of major and research purpose.

The Future of Engineering Courses: Modern Pedagogy Meets the Latest Technology

Jiang Zhaoshuo

 Assistant Professor of Civil Engineering, San Francisco State University

Engineering science is an applied science that combines theory, practice and hands-on experiment and the laboratory is a key utility where engineering students can practice. However, due to some factors, such as the lack of test equipment, safety reasons, limited time and space, etc., the use of laboratories is limited. The remote lab combining the mobile terminal with the Internet of Things effectively solves the drawbacks of the traditional laboratory. In our evaluation of implementation plan and the project results of the San Francisco State University remote laboratory project, we found that students with different academic backgrounds achieved positive results during the mobile learning.

Mechatronics and Robotics: A Platform for Interdisciplinary, Experiential Eng. Education

Vikram Kapila
Professor, NYU Tandon School of Engineering

Along with the development of science and technology, more and more cutting-edge technologies have been applied in education, which has had a profound impact on teaching methods and learning methods. In the engineering sector, the emergence and application of cutting-edge technology has demanded new requirements for engineers or engineering R&D personnel. Therefore, the combination of new technology and engineering education will be conducive to innovative engineering talents cultivation. The New York University School of Engineering has made further innovative explorations, which leverages technological innovation engineering education practice methods, such as robotics, to build an interdisciplinary and experiential engineering education platform for students from different disciplinary backgrounds.