(University of Porto, 2024-12-02) O´Mahony, Tom; Murray, Michael; Hill, Martin; Onet, Raul; Neag Marius; Torre Cubillo, Luis de la; Zhou, Dao
Three modes dominate engineering labs – in-person, simulation and remote. Take-home laboratories have received comparatively little attention within engineering education. This article reports on qualitative data that was collected, via focus groups with eight staff from a single University, to evaluate the effectiveness of take-home laboratories. The laboratories consisted of a range of embedded development platforms along with a bespoke Home Electronics Laboratory Platform (HELP) that was designed to support the learning of analog and digital electronics in the early years of our programmes. The findings indicate that take-home laboratories can support the development of independent learners and enhance troubleshooting skills. Participants also identified that supporting students in their troubleshooting activity was particularly challenging in a remote environment. We make some suggestions for how take-home laboratories could be used to complement existing laboratory practices.
