ABSTRACT
This Innovative Practice Work in Progress Paper presents a comprehensive approach to convert an undergrad hands-on electronics lab to an e-learning experience. Special care was taken to make the format interactive as well as to encourage teamwork between students. The conversion was made to conform with the social distancing measures implemented as a response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Instead of relying on pre-recorded lessons, the lab was offered through live video sessions. Multiple cameras were used to make it easy for students to follow the instructor performing the experiment. Students worked together in teams they had chosen at the beginning of the semester throughout the entire course, giving team members the opportunity to get to know each other or strengthen existing bonds. During the live sessions, the teams were repeatedly sent to breakout rooms to discuss and vote on questions related to the execution of the experiments and the measurement results. The votes, which were carried out using the Moodle learning management system (LMS), were then discussed in the plenary, and the course of the experiment was adjusted accordingly. Using data of student participation from the LMS and the results of a detailed survey, the success of the implemented measures can be proven empirically. 88.2% of students found that the interactive elements helped them to stay concentrated during the live sessions. 79.6% agreed that the breakout rooms improved cooperation within their team and 72.8% plan to stay in touch with their team members.
ABSTRACT
A laboratory experiment in an undergraduate course on electronics was conducted remotely during the COVID-19 pandemic. The lab assignment was to construct and analyze a single-transistor NPN amplifier. In the conventional on-site lab experiment the students would construct the amplifier on a breadboard, carry out measurements of DC and small signal characteristics, and compare with both SPICE simulations and manual calculations. The pandemic prevented the attendance of students in the lab, and thus the experiment was redesigned and carried out online, using remotely controlled instruments through the internet. It was found that to some extent a remotely conducted experiment can substitute the on-site work, and there are some unique advantages of this approach. On the other hand, some aspects of the on-site laboratory experiment cannot be substituted by the remote experience, and this is discussed in the paper. © 2022 IEEE.
ABSTRACT
The recent SARS-CoV2 pandemic has put a great challenge on university courses. Electronics teaching requires real laboratory experiences for students, which cannot be realized if access to physical infrastructures is prohibited. A possible solution would be to distribute to students, at home, electronics equipment suitable for laboratory experiments, but no reasonable product is currently available off-the-shelf. In this paper, the design and development of a very-low-cost experimental board tailored to these needs is presented. It contains both programmable prototyping circuitry based on a microcontroller and an FPGA and a set of measurement instruments, similar to the ones found on a typical lab desk, such as a digital storage oscilloscope, multimeter, analog signal generator, logic state analyzer and digital pattern generator. A first board, suitable for analog and digital electronics experiments, has been designed and manufactured, and is described in this paper. The board has been successfully used in master's degrees and PhD courses.