Strategies to enhance Active learning of Civil engineering students

Abstract

Students are fastly losing interest in STEM education. Minimum efforts by the teachers and university students to use media, lack of motivation and complex teaching methods can be among the major causes of less learning of students. Moving towards the method of Active learning can ultimately help in bringing back students to STEM education. Active Learning is a method in which students perform all activities by themselves and are the main drivers of studying and performing activities. A lot of active learning techniques have been tried before like flipped classroom method, TILE (Transform, Interact, Learn, Engage) teaching spaces and Activity Based learning. Simulation games have also been tried in some universities as an active learning technique having very positive results. It was found that students were more alert, active and were more involved using simulation games as compare to formal lecture method. This research focuses on the use of simulation games to enhance the learning skills of students in the field of Civil engineering. It provides a prototype to boost learning skills of civil engineering students through a simulation game. Unity 3D gaming software is used as tool for development which used C# language. The game covers topics of development length and bars splicing. Inputs of this game are lengths of bars, diameter of bars, splicing length of bars and hooks lengths. Outputs are visualizing of bars splicing and development length of bars which are actually hooks in beam and column bars. It contains C# coding for every step which includes code for camera movement, code for splicing, code for lengths and diameter fixing. After the development of game it was taught to students in classroom and then time was given to them to practice in classroom.x Also they were taught the targeted topics through traditional method and at the end student’s opinion was collected through survey. Student’s response in survey was very positive. Students enjoyed the game more as compared to traditional method and marked it very entertaining and engaging. They appreciated that game was easy and really helped them in understanding the topic and that it really covered the topic well and hoped that it can be improved further by including more topics.