Design Experience of Laboratory Practices in COVID Times

The development of laboratory practices is necessary for training mechatronics engineering students because they must learn in scenarios that allow checking the theories reviewed in class and implementing their solutions to real-world challenges posed in a course. Unexpectedly, the COVID pandemic caused a rethinking of how to develop the laboratory as a form of teaching, looking for online alternatives using simulation platforms, portable instruments, and 3D printing to design prototypes. This work presents the experience of two online laboratory practice activities in two mechatronics engineering subjects, which allowed students to complement their training without the risk of contagion, develop the planned competencies, and acquire skills in this form of teaching. © 2023 IEEE.

Higher Education for Students with Disabilities. An Overview Through the Lens of Text Min

Inequalities and exclusion from education were exposed and worsened during the COVID-19 pandemic;however, it forced us to recognize the need to make equality, equity, and social inclusion policies effective for all. Scientific and technological solutions to global threats depend on the formation of the maximum number of qualified human resources, which entirely relies on enabling everyone to acquire, update, and improve their knowledge, skills, and competencies through lifelong learning and higher education. To guarantee inclusive and quality education for all (UN Sustainable Development Goal 4) is hard to achieve at higher education or post-secondary levels. This research aims to provide an overview of the achievements and challenges that higher education institutions (HEI) face in fulfilling the requirements of students with disabilities (SWD). We analyzed a database of 104 s from reviews of SWD in HEI published in Scopus-indexed journals between 2018 and August 2022. After data preprocessing, the text mining analysis on the corpus was visualized in word clouds and graphs. From the results, we could identify that providing access to facilities and information still dominates the research on inclusive education, and visual disability is the most frequently analyzed. The graphs reveal published research on undergraduates with disorders like Autism Spectrum (ASD), learning disorders, and visual, hearing, physical, intellectual, and psychosocial disabilities. The authors also evidenced the lack of information on the barriers and needs of SWD in HEI and potential future research to address them. Concerning the strategies to attend and care for SWD inside the classrooms, the graphs highlight Universal Design as a promising trend leading to inclusivity in higher education. The results and analyses in current research provide essential information to educational stakeholders and decision-makers inside institutions so that they can take action to embrace diversity. © 2023 IEEE.

Instructional Usability and Learner-User eXperience Assessment in a Virtual Reality Educational Milieu: A Deductive Tech-Instructionality Model from EdTech

Educational Technology (EdTech) lacks a foundational, formal, scientific, epistemic theory. Therefore, it lacks native constructs/variables and an epistemological object of study for scientifically deploying its work. This study determines the existence (ontology) of the theorized constructs Instructional Usability (UsI) and Learner-User eXperience (LUX) and defines their characterization (epistemology). Both constructs were modeled and instrumented. Furthermore, a Tech-Instructionality Model (TIM) was theorized and developed in this paper, both analytically and empirically. The model integrates UsI and LUX as two pairs of constructs linked with two EdTech epistemological objects of study, the instructional interface and the instructional interaction in two assessment modalities, testing mode (user-learner view) and inspection mode (expert/designer view). Two instruments were developed and validated in this study for testing mode, the Instructional Usability Scale (SUsI) and the Learner-User eXperience Questionnaire (QLUX). Both instruments were tested in a non-immersive virtual reality educational milieu during the academic lockdown of the Covid19 pandemic. The results show that both SUsI and QLUX consistently measured UsI and LUX, thus, providing a valid assessment for tech-instructionality and a foundation for constructing a scientific theory of EdTech. © 2023 IEEE.

Augmented, Virtual and Immersive Reality as Learning Support in TEC21 Educational Model

Virtual, augmented, and immersive reality opens a world of possibilities in education by allowing students to recreate authentic situations, such as operating machinery, assembling a product, or training tool handling, to mention a few. In the TEC21 educational model, the core is the challenge: A project with a real-world challenge assigned by the training partner results in students offering solution proposals.The trigger that accelerated the development of virtual, augmented, and immersive reality activities in distance learning was COVID-19 confinement. During this, these technologies recreated the laboratory and its facilities' learning through augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) experiences.Using these technologies in the classroom allows students to achieve a great learning experience and develop skills for postgraduate studies and professional futures.Furthermore, now that we have returned to our physical facilities and laboratories, we can accelerate the learning obtained at the training partners' facilities, recreating processes and machinery through these immersive technologies and a hybrid experience for our students.The present research shows the activity learning design process and the statistical treatment of the data to provide continuous feedback during the activity;we examine the three transcendental variables in the educational process: The learning (academic rigor), the development of competencies, and the involvement or immersion of the students in the classroom. © 2023 IEEE.

Comparing the Use of Virtual Models vs. Fieldwork in Developing Geomatics Skills in Undergraduate Engineering Education during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Undergraduate students enrolled in Civil Engineering, Architecture, and Urban Planning (CAU) must develop competencies in Geomatics and Topography (G&T) as part of their learning process. During this time, theoretical concepts are traditionally taught with field practice using specialized tools such as a theodolite, laser level, and total station. Due to the environmental restrictions of the COVID-19 pandemic, traditional field practice (TFP) was suspended, preventing access to equipment and study areas. The use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT), such as Building Information Modeling (BIM) and Virtual Reality (VR), have been explored in the last decade for educational purposes. This paper studies the benefits of using these tools for developing G&T skills. This research aimed to assess students' learning outcomes using a traditional G&T teaching method and a new methodology based on Virtual Field Practice (VFP) for CAU students. The methodology provides a virtual study area for the CAU student by integrating point clouds derived from photogrammetry and terrestrial laser scanning. It also assesses their learning results and compares them against a control group using a validated instrument. Findings suggest continuing with fieldwork for a greater understanding and correct application of G&T concepts by students, and using virtual models as an efficient way to complement the acquisition of spatial information in the teaching-learning process. Until the publication of this article, we found no evidence in the literature at the undergraduate level of applying exercises like those proposed. © 2023 IEEE.

Do Online Challenge-Based Learning Help Professors Identify and Solve Community Problems During the COVID-19 Pandemic?

This research aims to identify online challenge-based learning (CBL) that builds on the problem-based learning practice to support professors working in two Mexican institutions with solutions to six social challenges defined by the institutions. Thirty-five professors from Tecnologico de Monterrey participated in developing the solutions related to given challenges by taking a social approach. For this activity, an online training session of one week was organized by the Faculty Development and Educational Innovation Center (CEDDIE) of Tecnologico de Monterrey in Mexico City, Mexico. The data was collected through an online survey based on quantitative and qualitative questionnaires. We received fifteen complete responses out of thirty-five. Analyzing the results of this study affirmed that online CBL activities served professors to promote social interactions, develop pedagogical competencies, and share knowledge based on their learning experience through active collaboration with peers in the same institutions but from different disciplines and campuses to identify and solve existing societal issues. © 2023 IEEE.

Work in progress: Hybrid lab for engineering learning

This paper describes the implementation of a hybrid platform for experimental activities in engineering courses. The proposed platform can be used as a remote or face-to-face laboratory;it may also be ideal for the new normal after the Covid 19 pandemic. The proposal has the purpose to help engineering teachers to build this hybrid laboratory without specialized knowledge, requiring little time for its implementation and practically no economic investment. To validate the proposal, the process to build the course of a hybrid laboratory for Control System course is described in this paper, which is expected to have experimental activities within the university and from home. After the implementation, the full functionality of the laboratory will be carried out both in its remote and face-to-face format. © 2023 IEEE.

University centres for the study of data. Responsibility and institutional justice in a platform society

The use of digital platforms by the university communities to produce knowledge, research, teaching, and management has not only intensified but it has also diversified since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. In a context where higher education and the use of digital technologies are increasingly intertwined, universities can take advantage of this unplanned hiper-digitalization event to explore fundamental questions about learning and researching in a post-digital landscape. This article is the result of an exploratory study based on a co-design and virtual ethnography, analyzing the attributes and foci of 31 "data research center" in universities from 16 countries. Although the centers analyzed have different profiles and approaches, they all investigate the intensive use of data and its political-social implications, with a special interest in the fair and ethical use of data for administrative, research, and pedagogical activities. As result, this work provides 20 proposals, grouped into 4 dimensions of possible institutional areas of development for universities. These proposals aim to contribute to the critical analysis of how higher education institutions can play a central role to face the growing relevance of advanced data systems in our societies. © 2023 Grupo de Investigacion FORCE. All rights reserved.

Virtual Journey and Virtual Bio-Labs: Two Novel Strategies Implemented in the Pandemic to Boost Dynamic Learning in the Microbiology Laboratory

During the first months of 2020, the world was surprised by the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic. Educational institutions were partially or fully closed. Social distancing and restrictive movement policies significantly disturbed traditional educational practices. In Mexico, Tecnologico de Monterrey faced one of the most sudden changes in its history, teaching all its courses 100% digitally. Its teachers had to search for alternative tools that would allow students to take practical classes, for example, laboratory, preserving the experience of being in a specialized laboratory even from home. This research evaluated two innovative tools designed and implemented for the Microbiology Laboratory subject. The first one is the Virtual BioLabs (VBL) application for using and managing specialized laboratory equipment. The second is Virtual Journey (VJ), a 360-degree interactive video to explain a foodborne bacterial infection [1]. We used qualitative and quantitative evaluation instruments to measure the impact of these tools during the pandemic. Results showed that the mean grade from pandemic groups using VBL was 93.5 vs. SS.5 obtained from those who did not use the app. Additionally, the grade average from pandemic groups before watching the VJ video was 63.5 vs. 93.5 after watching it. These results indicate that these strategies improved student performance, reflected in the increase in their averages. Finally, in the satisfaction survey, the students commented that using VBL and Virtual Journey made them feel more immersed in the laboratory, even at home. They enjoyed and liked both technical strategies. However, 93% of the students agreed that, although the virtual tools have excellent potential, their preference for face-To-face learning in practical laboratory subjects remains indisputable. © 2023 IEEE.

Factors to improve online education: A study on the impact of COVID-19 on Delhi students

Due to the COVID-19 outbreak, people worldwide had to self-quarantine in their homes, resulting in the youth having to continue their education online. The lockdown and the effects of the pandemic impacted students' mental health, exhibiting frustration, stress, and depression. The latter is not ideal for a healthy learning environment, as it involves many coping mechanisms. This study analyzed a database compiling the habits of 1182 individuals in different age groups at various educational institutes in the Delhi-National Capital Region (NCR), India. It identifies factors leading to proposing recommendations to improve students' online education experiences worldwide and facilitate their learning while caring for their mental health. A CRISP-DM methodology was followed to build a model capable of predicting students' satisfaction ratings for online classes by analyzing the students' demographic information and daily habits. © 2023 IEEE.

Transforming Teaching and Learning through ICT: The Role of Academic Staff in the New Normal

Technology is fast reshaping the entire landscape of education and academics are charged with more responsibilities as they navigate through the new normal in education. The initial transformation which the ICT trend has brought to teaching and learning in educational institutions in scope and content, has made teaching a challenging profession where knowledge is expanding exponentially. It has also provided leverage for the sustained relevance of ICT in the transformation of teaching and learning, in this critical period in which the new normal has become inevitable to adopt. This paper therefore discusses the challenges and roles of academics in the new normal. Models of transformation were reviewed and a framework which provides approaches for transformation of teaching and learning through ICT in the new normal guided the study. It is recommended among others, that educational institutions establish a department of learning technology to support academics in their new functions, while ensuring the provision of relevant infrastructures to facilitate transformation of the teaching and learning process.

Entrepreneurship Networks in the Covid-19 era

[...]those with more educational background and experience in the processes will be considered talents. If rational choice and human capital reflect a propositional audience style that coexists with inhibitory styles of entrepreneurship and innovation, then business models must adjust to this complex dialectic, while identifying the reasons for actions, it will be possible to establish a dialogue to highlight the competitive advantages of the product or service that is intended to be carried out on the Internet, social networks or email. [...]the construction of a civil agenda or social selfmanagement supposes the informative diffusion of the demands and resources, opportunities and capacities, since it is the digital networks that question the public agenda -Trolling-, or, better said, strengthen it - Stalking, Trending [11]. [...]cyber political entrepreneurship refers to the intensive use of Information and Communication Technologies, as well as electronic devices for the establishment of an agenda regarding trolling, stalking or the tendency towards a political figure or process. The model includes hypotheses of correlation trajectories between the variables used by the state of knowledge to explain: the establishment of an educational, scientific and technological agenda;professional training of human capital, talents and leadership;knowledge networks around strategic alliances between universities and for-profit organizations;the quality of educational processes and products

Ethical Imperative in the Face of the Digital Transformation of Education.

Pedagogical practices incapable of ethically mediating learning are inoperative in the face of the many contemporary social crises. Thus, the health emergencies due to the COVID-19 pandemic make it possible to identify the humanizing capacity of the instruction plans that meet the ethical request to train, using the multiple resources that information technologies present. Therefore, the research has the purpose of analyzing the digital transformations of higher education supported by pedagogies capable of enabling ethical values for the benefit of equitable societies. It concludes that virtual innovation in training considerably improves skills training;situation that is placed at human service when actions are subordinated to solidarity, dialogic listening, tolerance and respect as an articulator of just societies. (English) [ FROM AUTHOR] Prácticas pedagógicas incapaces de mediar éticamente los aprendizajes son inoperantes ante las muchas crisis sociales contemporáneas. A su vez, las urgencias sanitarias debido a la pandemia por COVID-19 permiten identificar la capacidad humanizante de los planes de instrucción que atienden la solicitud ética de formar, empleando los múltiples recursos que las tecnologías de la información presentan. Por consiguiente, la investigación tiene el propósito de analizar las transformaciones digitales de la educación superior sustentadas en pedagogías capaces de habilitar valores éticos en beneficio de sociedades equitativas. Concluye que con la innovación virtual en la formación mejora considerablemente la capacitación de competencias;situación que se coloca al servicio humano cuando las acciones se supeditan a la solidaridad, la escucha dialógica, la tolerancia y respecto como articuladora de sociedades justas. (Spanish) [ FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of Revista de Filosofía is the property of Revista de Filosofia-Universidad del Zulia and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full . (Copyright applies to all s.)

The Logic of Practice and Development Opportunities of Digital Transformation of Education

"Digital transformation of education” is a hot topic of present educational reform and the development tendency of future educational innovation. Digital transformation of education, as a process stressing technology-driven educational innovation and reform, boasts the importance of development in its birth and practice. It is driven jointly by social and cultural transitions, the impetus of technical innovation, the guidance of national policies, and the endogenous development of the education system. The logic of practice of the transformation can be regarded as the behavior choice dominated by value and intentions, and the underlying generation principles in practice comprise the "problem-driven + concept-led” principle, the "system evolution + innovative breakthrough” principle, and the "value assessment + iterative optimization” principle. At present, under the background of constructing the new ecology of a smart society and a high-quality education system, and under the pressure of COVID-19 pandemic, the transformation faces golden development opportunities. Nonetheless, the present transformation practice still has some differences from the expected value orientation. Therefore, it is required to research and develop a mature digital education model or framework, carry out a national digital education preparation campaign, work for pilot schemes for the transformation at all levels and of all kinds, attach importance to theoretical research on education relating to the digital transformation of education, and more actively embrace the new wave of educational reform worldwide.

Digital Global Classroom, a Collaborative Online International Learning (COIL) Approach: An Innovative Pedagogical Strategy for Sustainable Competency Development and Dissemination of SDGs in Engineering Higher Education

One of the most popular strategies to develop skills such as collaborative work, critical thinking, and problem-solving is the application of Collaborative Online International Learning (COIL), in which Professors from at least two universities from different countries and cultures develop a period known as "Global Classroom” (GC) in which, through the Challenge-Based Learning (CBL) approach, they solve a real challenge, using digital communication tools. This study held four-week global courses between groups from the Tecnológico de Monterrey in Mexico and groups from the Corporación Universitaria Minuto de Dios in Colombia. The challenges were related to two fundamental issues in sustainability: 1) Management of natural resources and climate change and 2) Biomimetics. Students were able to solve the challenges, develop skills to communicate effectively through online interaction with people from different cultures and disciplines, and use technological tools that facilitate distance learning in multicultural virtual environments. Current teaching models involve active and experiential learning, developing soft and hard skills. The GC experience is a tool that allowed continuity in the preparation of students during the COVID-19 pandemic. The use of GC is available to those interested as a valuable tool to provide students with the opportunity to live sustainable international experiences and promote the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG). © 2023, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.

Effect on the Competencies Development and Collaborative Learning During the COVID-19 Lock Down from a Student Perception

During the last years, the way of teaching classes was impacted by modifying almost 100% of the university courses to digital mode, this modified the academic space for the learning and development of competencies of the students, including collaborative learning. Collaborative work helps students to exchange knowledge, solving doubts between them and complementing their skills when they are solving problems or challenges. This paper presents an analysis of the development of competencies through collaborative learning using virtual communication channels. For this purpose, the following transversal competencies were evaluated: critical thinking, scientific thinking, leadership and reasoning for complexity. The question that seeks to answer this work is from the perception of the students, if their development of competencies and their performance in collaborative learning, has been affected due to the pandemic and the permanent online connection. The statistical test used was the paired t-test, since the same population was evaluated at different times, a survey was carried out on students at the beginning of the semester and at the end of the semester. The results showed that the lockdown situation modified the compromise of most of the students to work on teams as well as their ability to stay focused. Therefore, only the competencies that involve self-work (scientific work, reasoning of complexity) or multidisciplinary work, were increased during the lockdown. © 2023, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.

Education for Sustainability: Calculation of the Digital Carbon Footprint

The COVID-19 pandemic brought confinement that caused a drastic change throughout society. Mobility was reduced, education suffered a substantive change, distance learning, and digital skills were developed. Climate change and environmental pollution indicators indeed decreased. However, the quantification of the environmental footprint of the new form of remote work (digital carbon footprint) has not been considered in systematic studies. There are not many tools to calculate the corresponding emissions. The main objective of this educational research work was to determine the carbon footprint of digital activities in a company during the confinement caused by COVID-19 through a Challenge-Based Learning methodology. A one-semester academic program was designed to develop energy auditing skills for students of Sustainable Development Engineering. A company (training partner) was determined to validate the evaluation instruments. Techniques for data collection, questionnaires, and analysis of energy consumption data were designed. A helpful protocol was defined to determine the digital carbon footprint generated in the pilot company, allowing us to scale our research towards quantifying Greenhouse Gas emissions in Institutions or Companies of greater size. The soft and disciplinary graduation competencies of the students were solidly developed and evaluated through internal instruments and by the training partner standards. Finally, we propose mitigation measures aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals, in line with the new Green and Sustainable Digital Education trend. © 2023, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.

Evaluation-Self-regulated Learning in Higher Education in a Digital Environment Under Vulnerable Conditions and Confinement Due to Covid-19

Education is one of the areas in which the trend toward using digital tools in educational processes and methodologies is increasingly unavoidable. In Mexico, the first internet connection occurred just over three decades ago. Since then, internet access has enabled the gradual advancement of education into the digital age. The Covid-19 pandemic has forcibly and massively challenged us to digitalize educational work. The present research is an experimental study of self-regulated learning in a higher-education digital environment with a group of first-year university students attending a private institution in northern Mexico. A study recommendation is that before implementing any strategy to develop self-regulated learning using digital tools and virtual environments, all significant contextual aspects that could affect the effectiveness of the intervention strategy must be considered. © 2022 Copyright held by the owner/author(s).

ICT in the university environment: Twitch and Instagram as learning tools

In recent days, Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) have been incorporated into the teaching-learning process. The study aims to achieve greater student engagement, and satisfaction using Instagram and Twitch platforms as methodological tools in teaching. The sample collects 50 students from the degree of a primary school teacher at the University of Valencia. The evaluation instrument has been based on direct observation and the use of the survey Barrado et al. (1999), evaluating the practical program, and the degree of satisfaction of the students. The results show the benefits of accessing learning at any time. Active participation in the platforms has made possible the involvement of students, receiving immediate feedback, and allowing them to build continuous learning. IEEE

Online Learning in the post-pandemic era: Some Lessons Learnt from the Covid19 Pandemic Terms

In this paper we present some ideas of what we consider a model for online Engineering courses in the post pandemic era should include. As universities worldwide returned to the campuses after two long years of online teaching in some countries, some lessons or good practices could be taken for designing new models for online teaching in the coming years. Online education has shown its value during the pandemic terms and students and universities are now moving on new teaching models that could benefit from online education. In this work we present some perceptions of what a group of students in a Mexican private university think of their overall online experience during the pandemic terms and some ideas or suggestions that are given based on their own experience for universities to consider when designing new teaching models that include online education. © 2022 Owner/Author.