Including lab experiments in challenge-based learning

Lab experiments are essential in higher engineering education to engage students and promote transfer from theory to practice. With the increasing attention for challenge-based learning, the need arises to investigate how lab experiments can be meaningfully included in CBL.

In a case study on a CBL course including lab experiments, it was identified what role lab experiments can have and what conditions are for implementing lab experiments in CBL. Qualitative analysis of course materials and focus group discussions with students, lecturers and teaching assistants showed that the demonstration and hands-on lab sessions focused on students’ learning of experimental knowledge and skills, and the CBL lab sessions informed students’ thinking about the challenge.

Missing links between the demonstration and hands-on lab sessions, and the challenge lead to lack of clarity among students about the value of these lab sessions for the challenge. During the challenge, students prefered more time for actual experimentation to gain in-depth understanding of the experimental setups, measurements and results in service of the challenge.

Early introduction of the challenge and lab sessions, and explicating links between both could ease the bridge between theory and practice, and between experimental knowledge and skills, and challenge. It would also allow for iterative experimentation and design for the challenge. More research is needed to identify how to link lab sessions to the challenge in a meaningful way.