Design and implementation of a virtual on-line lab on optical communications

The paper describes the design and implementation of a virtual lab for on-line lab training on optical communications, part of the 'Optical Communications' course offered at the Dept. of Electrical & Electronic Engineering Educators, School of Pedagogical & Technological Education...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published inEuropean journal of engineering education Vol. 48; no. 5; pp. 913 - 928
Main Authors Uzunidis, Dimitris, Pagiatakis, Gerasimos
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Abingdon Taylor & Francis 03.09.2023
Taylor & Francis Ltd
Subjects
Asynchronous Communication
College Students
Communications
Computer Simulation
Educational Technology
Electronic engineering
Engineering Education
Foreign Countries
Instructional Design
lab education
Laboratories
Laboratory Training
on-line labs
Optical communication
optical communications
Software
Student Attitudes
Students
Synchronous Communication
Technology Education
Virtual environments
virtual labs
Greece
Online AccessGet full text

Cover

More Information
Summary:The paper describes the design and implementation of a virtual lab for on-line lab training on optical communications, part of the 'Optical Communications' course offered at the Dept. of Electrical & Electronic Engineering Educators, School of Pedagogical & Technological Education (ASPETE), Athens, Greece. The virtual lab is based on the OptiSystem 16 software tool while the on-line component was implemented by using the MS-Teams tool of MS-Office. The lab includes a synchronous and an asynchronous part. Since the virtual lab was offered for the first time, students' response was evaluated on the basis of the submitted lab reports to allow for proper corrective actions during the subsequent academic year. Results were encouraging in that 79% of the students achieved a passing grade, however, 60% of students either failed or attained a low passing grade, which leaves room for improvement. Further analysis revealed a lack of a proper background in mathematics, physics and essential signal quantities. Future actions will include an investigation of the optimum combination between the physical and the simulation lab, development of short notes and multiple-choice questions, a closer association between the lab work and relevant small tasks/projects and a more systematic feedback process.
ISSN:0304-3797
1469-5898
DOI:10.1080/03043797.2023.2173558