Undergraduate perceptions of remote teaching in Computer-Aided Design courses

This research analyzes the undergraduate student's perceptions and challenges of the mandatory transition of six computer-aided design courses, from a blended modality to a completely remote one, in the context of the coronavirus pandemic. We analyzed a School of Architecture in Peru, which has implemented the blended learning in these six courses since 2015, to acquire technical skills in drawing, design, BIM, visualization, information graphic, video editing, computational design, and digital fabrication. We used an anonymous and self-administered survey between November and December 2021 to 1,045 students and received 435 responses for analysis. The results reveal the different ways in which the student interacts with the CAD software for each course. We concluded that the experience of going through the stages of face-to-face, blended, and online, prepares us to migrate into learning environments in the format of MOOCs. The study allowed us to identify challenges and strengths, such as usage preferences to consider for future transition, taking into account the characteristics of these types of courses as a basis for the creation of MOOCs for the inevitable demand for the technologies of the Fourth Industrial Revolution. © 2022 IEEE.

ETC Distance Learning Studies during COVID-19, a meta-analysis

The recent increase in the amount of research on Distance Learning in Engineering, Technology, and Computing, produced by the adaptations in response to the sanitary emergency, makes it necessary to systematize, classify and analyze the current trends. This paper presents a meta-analysis of peer-reviewed papers written and published in the Iberoamerican region, regarding remote learning and distant teaching in ETC. Using PRISMA, we selected articles located in several academic repositories, which were classified in order to identify countries of origin, types of research (research, application, review), main keywords, and universities. The results were then analyzed to identify regional trends and possible lines of action to better ensure that the research efforts continue after the emergency.

Classroom migrations: The new remote learning environments?

Faced with changes in higher education, due to the health emergency of COVID-19, face-to-face contexts - laboratories, workshops, and studios - needed to migrate into digital environments. We analyze first-year design studios, to identify the main pedagogical approaches, didactics, and contents' presentation and evaluation, and how they transform to e-learning. The examples serve as a reference to evaluate the main difficulties and advantages of distance learning, not only as an alternative to face-to-face teaching during the current health emergency but as an opportunity to develop new resources and skills that challenge some of the traditions of engineering and architecture teaching. © 2021 IEEE.

The merging of physical and cyber urban space: Towards sustainability after COVID-19

Since the outburst of COVID-19 pandemic, and the start of non-pharmaceutical interventions such as lockdowns and social distancing, we have analyzed changes in the way citizens relate to one another and to the new configuration of their city. Through initiatives aimed for solidarity issues, commercial activities, and infrastructure, individuals and groups have incorporated social sensing, new and existing online platforms, and new networks, in order to survive, help, and navigate the new urban conditions. Analyzing case studies in Lima, Peru, we have evaluated how sustainability plays a role in the new urban dynamics, which seem to reshape the city and the ways we interact in it. We argue that, even though economy seems to be the main reason for the changes in the studied initiatives, social and environmental changes can be identified, as possible long-term effects or solutions, even after the sanitary emergency. © 2021 IEEE.

Design during COVID-19: Agents and allies in the role of designer, digital fabrication and distributed production

During COVID-19 global emergency, designers proposed solutions at different scales, as quick responses to demands from different agents. In the same way, we critically analyzed the emergence of allies, protocols and tools, which allowed the optimization of fabrication, from traditional manufacturing into distributed co-production. The analyzed local networks produced global co-design experiences, with involvement of FabLabs and users from different disciplines. Through case studies and the evaluation of surveys and testimonials from users and makers, we analyze the global panorama, to finally explore the specific situation in Latin America. This establishes a relationship between medical demand and digital fabrication, which allows evidence of positive and negative situations to be consider as new, significant aspects for the design in the future. The leading role acquired by the ecosystem surrounding digital fabrication during the pandemic, could enhance its processes in the search for greater positioning, changing society from within the different communities. © 2021 Universidade do Vale do Rio dos Sinos. All rights reserved.

Early childhood online education in the COVID-19 context. Behavioral Patterns for User Interface Design

The outcomes from the lived experience descriptions show that tested indicators for the evaluation of both MOOCs and preschool education are insufficient or inexact for the assessment of our current condition. Most of the main online platforms, based on universities or as products of local entrepreneurships have ignored the preschool group. The already proposed generic solutions do not meet preschool education's needs. Considering Behavioral Patterns we propose a model useful for both the evaluation of ongoing experiences and the organization of new content. © 2020 IEEE.