The effectiveness of collaborative technologies in remote lab delivery systems

The remote lab is an innovative approach in engineering and technology education which allows learners to access traditional laboratory facilities through on-line connections which use Internet interfacing technology. While simulations are important instructional tools, they do not fully emulate the lab learning environment. The validity of the on-line lab approach was validated in 2002 when ABET published draft standards for on-line lab sessions. Collaboration, namely students working in teams on lab exercises, is a key ingredient in creating an effective lab experience. While work continues globally on development, a definitive approach does not yet exist for the design of virtual collaborative learning methodologies. Accordingly, the design of remote lab delivery systems that foster and support virtual or social presence is an important issue as this technology continues to advance. This paper reviews the pedagogical basis for presence and collaboration in the remote lab environment and presents summary data from research involving the usability and performance of commercially available web collaboration tools to deliver remote lab learning experiences. The remote lab involved in the study allows students to execute lab exercises on industrial automation equipment including educational robots, programmable logic controllers, and associated peripheral hardware and software.