Teaching a hands-on course during corona lockdown: from problems to opportunities

Journal article (2020)

Authors

R.W. Hut Water Resources - CEG
C.F.J. Pols ImPhys/Practicum support
D.J. Verschuur ImPhys/Computational Imaging - AS
Research Group
ImPhys/Practicum support
Copyright: © 2020 R.W. Hut, C.F.J. Pols, D.J. Verschuur
DOI
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https://doi.org/10.1088/1361-6552/abb06a
COVID-19 Practical work Design engineering
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Published Date

2020

Language

English

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Research Group

ImPhys/Practicum support

Abstract

Teaching a hands- and minds-on course, in which feedback is essential in order to learn, is difficult, especially in times of COVID-19 where student progression cannot be monitored directly. During the lockdown period, the workshops of an undergraduate Design Engineering course had to be transferred to the home situation, which required a redesign of this course by the staff. It also provided new opportunities for students to adapt to this situation, which required extra creativity and problem-solving skills. The adapted workshops revealed conditions that enhance maker education. However, providing timely feedback required a substantial amount of time not anticipated for. We also report that short instruction videos seem to work much better than longer lectures or tedious materials. As we practice what we preach, we will evaluate the course and apply our design knowledge acquired over the years.