Virtual Environments for Collaborative Learning

This project has two primary objectives. The first goal is to facilitate distance learning by enabling advanced virtual laboratories for deployment in online degree programs and utilization by co-op students. The second goal is to provide immersive virtual environments for collaborative learning and team building in undergraduate engineering education. The virtual environment is affording flexibility to on-campus students to run experiments outside of regular class time, thus allowing for a blended laboratory delivery mode. Students spend a limited time in a laboratory facility to familiarize themselves with the equipment, materials and procedures and then access an online laboratory to conduct additional experimental procedures. A key innovation of this project is the use of multiplayer game engines for developing virtual laboratory environments for collaborative learning in undergraduate engineering education.