Omar Ashour, Sabahattin Gokhan Ozden, and Ashkan Negahban
ASEE Annual Conference and Exposition
Publication year: 2024

This paper presents a study on the impact of class delivery mode (remote vs. in-person) on students’ learning experience when Immersive Simulation-Based Learning (ISBL) modules are used as course assignments. ISBL involves problem-based learning via a 3-dimensional (3D) simulated environment that mimics real-life applications such as manufacturing and healthcare systems, airports, and other service systems. Within the simulated environment, students can observe the corresponding system, collect data, understand relationships between the system components, make changes to the model and observe the impact of those changes, and learn by doing. ISBL is advantageous when access to real-world facilities is difficult or impossible due to geographical barriers or safety concerns as well as in remote and online learning due to geographically dispersed students. This study compares two groups of students. Both groups are taught by the same instructor and use the same course material, including the ISBL modules. The only difference between the two groups is the course delivery mode, where one group is taught remotely through synchronous online sessions, and the other is taught in person in a traditional classroom setting. We collect data on demographics, prior preparation, motivation, experiential learning, usability scale, and self-assessment of learning objectives based on Bloom’s taxonomy. We then perform statistical comparisons to investigate the impact of delivery mode when ISBL modules are used. We use the comparison results to test the hypothesis that ISBL modules will help maintain remote students’ motivation and learning outcomes compared to in-person students. The results show no statistically significant difference between the two groups on any measure, suggesting that ISBL is equally effective in the two delivery modes.