Using E-Portfolios to support experiential learning and open the use of tele-operated laboratories for mobile devices

Abstract

The use of laboratories in Engineering Education at universities is an adequate opportunity to implement experiential and research based learning - e.g. in material sciences. Within these laboratories the students have the chance to do own experiments and by that gain own experiences in their learning processes. Recently finished research projects - e.g. like the PeTEX project done by universities in Dortmund (Germany), Palermo (Italy) and Stockholm (Sweden) - implemented an opportunity to do experiential learning by using real laboratory equipment without being physically in the laboratory but having access via the internet. For a couple of reasons this makes sense, for example because limited equipment resources or the high costs of this equipment. Trying to implement experiential learning by the use of these remote laboratories gives the opportunity to the students to do some kind of own research. The question in this context - and for this question we will give a first answer in this paper - is how students could document their own learning process on the one hand and how the teacher can guide the student through this process on the other hand. One possible solution can be seen in the use of e-portfolios. With this e-portfolios the student can document and show to others, what he has been doing. The next step is making the e-portfolio software available for mobile devices so that the student has access from virtually everywhere and every time. With this work in progress paper we show what kind of role e-portfolios can play in the learning process and which kind of scenarios are possible using the software on mobile devices. Furthermore, we show that the combination of experiential learning and the use of e-portfolios offer a great potential to promote the learners' creativity.