Exploring Embedded Intelligence as a Means of Minimizing Cognitive Load of Students in Electronics Engineering Instructional Laboratory Sessions

Abstract

Laboratory courses form an integral part of electrical and electronic engineering curriculum necessary for equipping students with skills and ability to solve problems in real world contexts. However, students often feel frustrated and demotivated while conducting certain experiments in a laboratory setting due to hindrances like inability to debug of circuits and lack of theoretical and practical knowledge about the experiment. Students often come unprepared to the time bound laboratory assignments with insufficient pre-reading and sometimes require continuous assistance from their instructors to perform the laboratory practicals. This paper presents an initial stage in developing heuristics for embedding intelligence into educational learning objects in a pervasive and ubiquitous computing scenario such as a electronics laboratory environment. In this paper educational learning objects refer to tools and equipment like breadboards, voltmeter, digital power supply, etc., used in laboratories. An empirical study was conducted to understand the type of intelligence that would be needed to be embedded into such objects in context of electrical and electronic engineering laboratories so as to improve performance and learning in students by eliminating extraneous cognitive loads. Data was collated from various qualitative method studies conducted involving student feedbacks. Semi-structured Interviews of undergraduate students and subject matter experts (SMEs) were carried out. Based on the study and data analysis, potential areas where interventions can be made have been identified and presented in this paper. Their potential to become a basis of formulating and embedding intelligence in the next stage is outlined.