Abstract:

The use of virtual spaces for training has generated new types of learning situations in which neither the teacher nor students need the typical face-to-face lectures of the classroom approaches. As a consequence, it is highly necessary to change our classic conception of “classroom teacher”.

In this context, the Virtual Learning environments (VLE) or collaborative learning interfaces are a set of computer and data facilities for communication and the exchange of information, in which teaching-learning processes are developed, and where there is an interaction between teachers and students.

Therefore, it is necessary to revise the traditional roles of teacher and students. In the first case, the teacher, in order to develop their teaching activity in a technological environment, must necessarily have a good knowledge of the technology at the user level, and also improve their creative and innovative capacities. In the same way, the role of students should also evolve. In the second case, the students will be an active part in the teaching-learning process, and not just a passive user as usually happens in classroom environments. This way, the feed-backs that they can generate within the system will be essential if the system is dynamic so it is able to adapt to their necessities.

The use of hypermedia systems clearly favours the development of dynamic curriculum materials, not only rich in content but also motivational and easy to use for students. However, the most complex part of this kind of materials is what affects the teacher, because design and development process is much more complex than the design and development of written materials.

These hypermedia systems are being introduced in the thermal engineering course, belonging to the 3rd year of the Chemical Engineering degree. Its main objectives are to understand the heat transfer principles: Fourier's law, Newton's law of cooling, Stephan-Boltzmann law, one-dimensional, steady-state conduction, heat transfer from extended surfaces: fins design and performance, transient conduction, internal and external convection, heat transfer with phase change, heat exchangers, evaporators, radiation, and heat integration by the pinch point.

In this course, the learning methodology includes:
(1) Lectures covering the main topics described in the syllabus. To make the sessions easier, the students have previously available the lecture's notes as well as reference books to complete their learning;
(2) Case studies and problem solving lectures, where some issues are addressed from a practical point of view;
(3) Exercises solved by the student to self-assess their knowledge and acquire the necessary skills;
(4) Group projects.

Is in these last two points where hypermedia materials are being applied. This is being carried out by using the Moodle platform, which allows working with multimedia contents (videos) or specific software such as Comsol (based on advanced numerical methods, for modeling and simulating physics-based problems). Comsol is a powerful integrated environment designed for cross-disciplinary product development with a unified workflow. In this way, students can better understand certain problems subsequently treated in the classroom.

Keywords:

Innovation, chemical engineering, multimedia learning, VLE.