Virtual Laboratory: A Benefit to Mechanical Engineering Education During the Covid-19 Pandemic
Laboratory experiments help students understand science subjects effectively. They assist the students in gaining experience through concrete materials; they are an integral part of science education, improving students’ working habits and problem-solving skills. The laboratory is as important as theory.
In the conventional laboratory, students conduct experiments as per the laboratory protocol, prepare the report, analyse the data and interpret the results. This practice helps the students improve their observation capability and analysing skills. Hence, it is suggested to introduce a laboratory class in each course, and a well-maintained experimental set-up, experienced laboratory instructors, and qualified faculty members are required. The laboratory plays a key role in engineering education to understand a theoretical concept, teamwork, observation capability, communication, analysing skill, and so on.
The increase in the number of universities and institutions in recent years will make India the largest education hub in the world. The skilled and highly qualified workforce will support India’s economy. However, several higher education institutions have poor infrastructure and laboratory facilities which may affect the learning process of the students. Also, some education institutions do not have well qualified and experienced faculty members, and vacancies in government institutions may not be filled. It is reported that student enrolment in engineering education has improved compared to other science disciplines. However, disadvantaged groups in India have not benefited due to this massive expansion of engineering education. It is reported that the private educational institutions look at the profits and want to minimize the expenses. Hence the present system does not improve the skill set of the students and a significant percentage of the graduates are unemployed or under-employed. The government of India has taken several steps to reform the education system and planned several strategies to improve the employability skills of the students. Many reforms are taking place in higher education institutions in India to improve the quality of education to accomplish higher learning standards. Technology-enhanced learning will help the students build a strong knowledge base.
In India, educational activities during the COVID-19 pandemic have been affected due to the lockdown. Theory classes were conducted online, but educational institutions have been finding it difficult to complete the laboratory experiments due to the closure of colleges.
A computer-assisted activity that helps students conduct experiments using a suitable computer-based interface, a virtual laboratory, can be used as a supplement to the conventional laboratory to enhance the knowledge of the students. It helps the students become independent learners as it can be used flexibly. It is economical compared to a conventional laboratory due to the elimination of equipment, staff, maintenance, and operating cost associated with the conventional laboratory.
Researchers in this study have conducted a faculty development programme for the engineering college faculty members on mechanical engineering virtual laboratories. They have taken feedback from the participants of these virtual laboratory training programmes and analysed them. The analysis observed that more than 90 per cent of the participants were happy about the process improved with virtual laboratory experiments. Also, they felt that the virtual laboratories can be used until the COVID-19 pandemic issues are solved. The study carried out in Slovenia shows that VL helps in a better understanding of knowledge acquisition. The VLs can open new perspectives for higher education sustainability. The VLs will help the students complete their laboratory classes without affecting the quality of learning.
Article details:
Virtual Laboratory: A Benefit to the Mechanical Engineering Education During Covid-19 Pandemic
N. Kapilan , P. Vidhya, Xiao-Zhi Gao
First Published December 1, 2020 Research Article
DOI: 10.1177/2347631120970757
From Higher Education for the Future