Abstract:

Nowadays, electronics are present in every scene of modern life. The ever-increasing relevance of complex systems with low power consumption and small size has been particularly challenging for higher educational institutions. Universities have already included a wide variety of new concepts and knowledge in their course contents to fulfil the expectations of our society. COVID-19 pandemic has changed the ways of teaching and learning for both teachers and students, who have had to adapt accordingly. That is why it is now also necessary to develop new methodologies to address the transfer of knowledge and skills, but it is necessary to previously evaluate whether the changes are beneficial or not for the teaching-learning binomial. Online teaching demands time-consuming digital resources to be effective. This requires a careful planning and validation process, with a critical attitude towards the improvements made for a better assimilation of knowledge. This work evaluates the use of the digital laboratory in the Basic Electronics subject, a 2nd year compulsory subject of the Industrial Engineering degree in four specialities: Industrial Electronics Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Industrial Chemical Engineering and Mechanical Engineering. The last four academic years are analysed: 2018-19 with face-to-face teaching before the pandemic, 2019-20 with some face-to-face teaching and then online teaching after the pandemic restrictions, 2020-21 with totally online teaching, and 2021-22 with a hybrid model (virtual and face-to-face teaching). The academic results show that the introduction of the digital laboratory in the practices makes students improve the success rate in the practices, although it does not affect the success rate of the subject. The academic years when the subject has been taught entirely online have a higher rate of absenteeism than those that were face-to-face. Regarding the results of passing students in the practices, it is shown that the promoting of the use of the digital laboratory not only improves this rate, but also the grades are better. After analysing the statistics of the last four academic years, it is found that the 2021-22 academic year, when the hybrid practices have been carried out, is the one that has achieved the best results. The analysis also shows that in the field of engineering, a satisfactory compromise between the use of digital media resources and face-to-face learning must be reached to prepare students for the changing labour market.

Keywords:

Electronics, digital laboratory, COVID-19.