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The motivation for this research stems from the authors' experience where they have witnessed the challenges students face in grasping certain concepts because of difficulty visualizing the concepts being taught. The research aims to understand how new digital tools can help students overcome these challenges and how to measure their effectiveness....
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... Although 2D drawings are commonly used as an instructional method for teaching architectural, engineering, and construction (AEC) students, the ability to visualize objects in three-dimensional models (3D) improves students' spatial understanding and creativity (Hain & Motaref, 2020). It also creates a learning environment that allows students to learn at their own pace (Irizarry et al., 2012). ...
... They have been successfully used in Construction Management program classes to improve students' performance in mechanics of materials (Hain & Motaref, 2020), construction materials and methods class (Schreyer, 2014), National Electrical Code (Burgett, 2016), and estimating (Gier, 2008). The research published by Irizarry et al., 2012 reported an increase of about 10% in the percentage of correct answers related to concrete construction when 3D models were introduced to students. ...
The traditional lecture method is commonly used to teach Construction Management students. But most of the construction management concepts are hard to convey using this method, and students face obstacles to learning some of the ideas due to the difficulties in visualizing the concepts learned. This research aims to evaluate the influence of using three-dimensional models (3D) as a visualization tool in the construction management undergraduate program. The technique was implemented in three courses at different levels in the curriculum for one semester, and data were collected at the end of the courses. The results showed a strong influence of using 3D modeling in the materials and methods course and construction graphics with less effect in the estimating course. The results encourage expanding the use of 3D modeling and including it in more courses.
... Previous studies have used Building Information Model (BIM) as an interoperable environment for fire safety management applications [7] including, identifying unsafe paths [8] and effective factors [9] in evacuation simulation during the fire. BIM has promising features such as information storage, which allows extracting, storing, and utilizing design information to perform the required computations of the proposed framework (i.e., evacuation and smoke propagation modelling in the building design and implementing optimisation of fire safety measures) [7,10]. Thus, BIM can be used as an environment to execute the proposed framework. ...
... BIM is a process in which all building elements are modelled as 3D object-oriented elements with corresponding information for all stages of the life cycle of the building [10]. BIM has promising features for fire safety, e.g., determining paths and identifying unsafe paths for evacuation at design, operation, and maintenance phases [7], analysing the impact of gaps caused by dimensional and geometric variations on the smoke propagation [51,52]. ...
A significant number of injuries and fatalities occur annually due to fires in buildings. The proactive use of fire safety measures at the design stage can potentially lead to a considerable improvement in reducing casualties by assisting occupants in a safe evacuation. In this study, a framework is de ve lope d to obtain a set of appropriate fire safety measures while considering their effects on safe evacuation (i.e ., increasing the percentage of survived occupants) and budget limits. The framework consists of four phases, namely (1) initial preparation, (2) optimization with a meta-heuristic algorithm, (3) decision making when the designer should select appropriate measures considering the budget limit, and (4) applying the selected measures into BIM. A binary version of Billiards inspire d Optimisation Algorithm (BOA) is de ve lope d and utilizes d in the optimization phase. A case study approach is adopted for this research and the performance of the proposed framework is evaluated by implementing it in two case projects: a residential building and a hospital building. The results indicate that a framework is a beneficial approach for designers to modify building designs in terms of safe evacuation at the design stage by using fire safety measures effectively and economically. It is expected that the output of this framework will he lp de crease fatalities of building users during a fire.
... It is a good tool to teach fundamental structural concepts and improve students' understanding of the structure's full behavior (Nawari, et al., 2014). A study conducted by Irizarry et al. 2012 showed an increase of around 10% in the number of correct answers related to concrete construction when BIM 3D models are introduced to students (Irizarry, et al., 2012), as well as HVAC system components (Mokhtar, 2019). ...
... It is a good tool to teach fundamental structural concepts and improve students' understanding of the structure's full behavior (Nawari, et al., 2014). A study conducted by Irizarry et al. 2012 showed an increase of around 10% in the number of correct answers related to concrete construction when BIM 3D models are introduced to students (Irizarry, et al., 2012), as well as HVAC system components (Mokhtar, 2019). ...
As the industry transitions towards incorporating BIM in construction projects, adequately qualified students and specialists are essential to this transition. It became apparent that construction management programs required integrating Building Information Modeling (BIM) into the curriculum. By bringing Virtual Reality (VR) technology to BIM, VR-BIM would transform the architectural, engineering, and construction (AEC) industry, and three-dimensional (3D) immersive learning can be a valuable platform to enhance students' ability to recognize a variety of building principles. The study carries out a methodology for implementing the VR-BIM in the construction management undergraduate program. Based on the previous literature review, in-depth analysis of the program, and accreditation requirements, VR-BIM will be implemented throughout the curriculum by combining stand-alone class and integration in the existing courses method. The challenges that may face the program planning to implement VR-BIM are discussed, and few solutions are proposed. The lab classroom layout appropriate for the applications is designed to be adjusted for several layouts to accommodate all learning styles and objectives. A comparison between different Head-Mounted Display (HMD) headsets is carried out to choose the appropriate equipment for the lab.
... For instance, Peterson et al. (2011) reported how they introduced BIM to students (BIM-aware) and subsequently used it to demonstrate project management techniques (e.g., line of balance), integrated design and design optimisation (BIM-focused). Several studies over the past decade and a half (including Guidera, 2007;Dupuis et al., 2008;Rassati et al., 2010;Yan et al., 2011;Becerik-Gerber et al. 2012;Irizarry et al., 2012;Mathews, 2013;Nawari et al., 2014;Charlesraj et al. 2015;Andrea Gutierrez-Bucheli et al. 2016;) have all reported similar approaches at different scales and we may consider BIM-aware and BIM-focused education to be firmly established in construction education. ...
This research explores the practical feasibility and effectiveness of BIM-enabled education in teaching the
topic of project cash flows to construction management students. Using a participatory action research
methodology, a BIM-enabled cash flow exercise was developed, carried out and refined in a construction
investment course to simulate integrated practice. The results of the implementation demonstrate that
BIM-enabled education can promote and infuse both BIM collaboration and professional practice experiences within an architecture, engineering, construction, and facilities management (AEC-FM) curriculum.
Additionally, the teaching practice and method in this intervention demonstrate the capability to accommodate all levels of knowledge in Bloom’s taxonomy which is a standard requirement for educational
module design. This study recommends that BIM-enabled education be embraced and explored by faculties in AEC-FM courses to improve teaching and learning of construction management concepts.
... al [1] conducted a survey using 3D visualization, indicating that curriculum benefits from the use of 3D models [1]. Building Information Modeling (BIM) in Construction Management (CM) education has not only the potential to be a graphic representation tool, but also a means to enhance student learning [2]. Irrizarry et. ...
... Irrizarry et. al [2] explored how new digital tools help students overcome challenges and measure their effectiveness, concluding that students face a challenge in grasping certain concepts because of difficulty visualizing the concepts being taught. ...
Teaching construction management (CM) courses are often challenging due to students’ different learning styles. Students may be required to develop three-dimensional (3D) models by mentally visualizing other project components. Students with little or no practical experience often seem to find such exercises challenging, spending unnecessary amounts of time developing 3D digital models. One example is temporary structures for concrete slab formwork, comprised of four parts: sheathing, joists, stringers, and shores. It indicates the relationship between these parts and the
concrete slab, their sizes, and quantity takeoffs. This research introduces an automated parametric tool to foster and encourage learning, allowing students to develop digital models at their own pace through provided, interactive, and easy-to-understand 3D models of a temporary structure.
In this study, parametric modeling tools represent a temporary structure for concrete slab
placement applications. The approach helps students to visualize the design of loads and formwork in different configurations through 3D models. Beyond this course exercise, such models could be used to analyze material quantity takeoffs, assess alternative designs, study constructability, and automate shop drawing production. The parametric tools used in this study were Revit and Dynamo. This study aims to determine if and how parametric tools can aid students enrolled in the CM program to better understand 3D models, specifically for representing temporary structures in concrete applications.
To evaluate this study’s results, an online survey was designed and distributed among CM
students, capturing student learning experience during parametric modeling, and assessing timeefficiency and student engagement. The survey results are analyzed, and data is presented to compare challenges faced with or without using parametric modeling on teaching and learning activities. Results show how this approach increased students’ motivation and ability to learn structures with satisfactory results for both instructors and students.
... Collaborative visualization technologies have proven ability to support learning, construction of group memories, and conflict management which is important for teamwork (Driskell et al., 2018;Yusoff & Salim, 2015). Visualization technologies have been used widely, including for semantic-based visualized knowledge in education (Gu & Cai, 2018;Irizarry et al., 2012); building mental model representations in cognitive system engineering (Crandall et al., 2006); and representing causal loops, embedded structures, or relationships between groups of elements in complex dynamic systems (Meadows, 2008;Sauser & Boardman, 2015). For example, software visualization can enhance the comprehension of programs and their algorithms, and can be useful in debugging and teaching algorithms (Shimomura, 2013). ...
... Further, 3D building information models in civil engineering and construction management education applications can improve student learning (Irizarry et al., 2012). A semantic-based visualized wiki system (SVWkS) can help engineers find lesson-learned and reuserelated knowledge. ...
Teamwork is necessary to accomplish challenging and information‐rich tasks in complex industrial systems, such as fault diagnosis in nuclear power plants. To improve team performance, assistive visualization tools are used to promote communication and reduce cognitive conflicts. As a shared visualization technology, collaborative concept mapping can effectively externalize one's thoughts into a visualized structure, thereby improving the efficiency of communication and information processing. This study accordingly investigates the effects of collaborative concept mapping on team diagnosis in two fault situations with different complexity levels in a simulated nuclear power plant: one caused by a single initiating event, and the other triggered by two initiating events. The dependent variables included fault analysis score, diagnostic result score, diagnosis time, workload, score of concept map content, and fixation time on a teammate's concept map. The findings revealed that collaborative concept mapping significantly improved the diagnostic result score and shortened diagnosis time, and marginally but significantly increased the fault analysis score. However, under the more complex fault situation triggered by two initiating events, this tool also significantly increased participants’ physical load and frustration level. Future work should focus on how collaborative concept mapping can improve operator performance while causing as little extra workload as possible, as well as explore its effects on experienced operators.
... While being widely used, it often requires some degree of students' prior experience to interpret 2D drawings since students must perceptually visualize the components of a structure from lines and symbols in a drawing set and mentally combine them into a virtual structure. Students with little or no previous experience often face challenges and must spend more time interpreting 2D drawings [4]. Using BIM as a pedagogical tool in construction management education can assist students in understanding the complexity of construction projects in both the process and product [5,6]. ...
... The field of structural engineering has seen a similar transformation and several researchers have reported on educational aspects of this transformation. [109][110][111] Although industry is in need of skilled workers in smart and sustainable manufacturing to enable the development, implementation, and continuous improvement of advanced manufacturing processes, interests in manufacturing careers have decreased because of the poor image young people have of industry. 1 Integrating sustainability concepts into engineering curricula has been shown to improve student perceptions, in particular for students underrepresented in engineering, 112,113 as well as motivating students to pursue careers in sustainability 114,115 and increase student interest in the job opportunities in manufacturing. ...
Over the past century, research has focused on continuously improving the performance of manufacturing processes and systems-often measured in terms of cost, quality, productivity, and material and energy efficiency. With the advent of smart manufacturing technologies-better production equipment, sensing technologies, computational methods, and data analytics applied from the process to enterprise levels-the potential for sustainability performance improvement is tremendous. Sustainable manufacturing seeks the best balance of a variety of performance measures to satisfy and optimize the goals of all stakeholders. Accurate measures of performance are the foundation on which sustainability objectives can be pursued. Historically, operational and information technologies have undergone disparate development, with little convergence across the domains. To focus future research efforts in advanced manufacturing, the authors organized a one-day workshop, sponsored by the U.S. National Science Foundation, at the joint manufacturing research conferences of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers and Society of Manufacturing Engineers. Research needs were identified to help harmonize disparate manufacturing metrics, models, and methods from across conventional manufacturing, nanomanufacturing, and additive/hybrid manufacturing processes and systems. Experts from academia and government labs presented invited lightning talks to discuss their perspectives on current advanced manufacturing research challenges. Workshop participants also provided their perspectives in facilitated brainstorming breakouts and a reflection activity. The aim was to define advanced manufacturing research and educational needs for improving manufacturing process performance through improved sustainability metrics, modeling approaches, and decision support methods. In addition to these workshop outcomes, a review of the recent literature is presented, which identifies research opportunities across several advanced manufacturing domains. Recommendations for future research describe the short-, mid-, and long-term needs of the advanced manufacturing community for enabling smart and sustainable manufacturing.
... Construction site visits help students to relate what they study in books to real-life situations (Eiris Pereira and Gheisari, 2017). Construction site experiential learning's benefits have been highlighted by a number of researchers (Aliu and Aigbavboa, 2019;Irizarry et al., 2012), such as enhancing students' understanding of real construction practices, improving students' knowledge of industry expectations, and addressing different learning styles for students, especially that a construction site visit is 1 Instructor, Architecture and Urban Design Program, The German University in Cairo, New Cairo, Egypt, Tel. +202 27589990, Fax. ...
... It is confirmed that BIM, as a learning and teaching tool, has the potential to assist construction education as it can make information available in a manner that is much more accessible to visual learners (the majority of learners). In addition, BIM's 4D capabilities enable students to better understand the assembly process through the production of assembly animations (Boon and Prigg, 2011; Le et al., 2015;Gledson and Dawson, 2017;Irizarry et al., 2012). ...
... In light of the above, BIM can be used as a teaching/learning tool targeting a wide spectrum of topics and courses as it provides the faculty with an interactive tool and information repository to facilitate teaching of engineering and construction concepts in a more visual and interactive manner, extending along the way the learning environment beyond the classroom boundaries; thus, having the potential to considerably enhance the educational experience of students (Irizarry et al., 2012). ...
Construction site visits are real-life practical experience where the AEC students' conceptual knowledge is developed and serves as an extension of in-class learning tools. Nevertheless, very low rates of construction site visits have been reported worldwide due to certain limitations, such as the limited visit time, the lack of visit objective, potential hazards, etc. In addition, site activities may also meet specific class needs. During a construction site visit, students mainly learn through their own observation, not by involvement in the site work or having the possibility to take decisions. Besides, students have only the chance to attend one phase of construction. Virtual reality (VR)-as a game-friendly, interactive, and immersive technology-may facilitate virtual construction site visits to meet learning needs and provide the learner with a near-real experiential learning environment where he/she can "learn by doing" in a zero-risk environment. In this essence, this paper describes "VRConDet" project which builds on the VR technology as a medium and Building Information Modeling (BIM) as a source of technical information taking into consideration adults' active learning and gamification of learning materials. "VRConDet" is a computer-assisted learning (CAL) conceptual framework for construction detailing that aims at enhancing the learning experience and learning outcomes for construction education within architecture curricula. This paper focuses on "VRConDet" system architecture and the design of its diverse, scalable, and adaptive modules according to the correspondent complexity and intended learning outcomes of construction education. The results of this first phase feed into a second phase of VR environment development and the validation thereof.
... It is hard to use laboratory environment where structural information subjects are examined in an efficient and effective way due to crowded classes or student groups. Irizarry et al. (2012) also argues that it is not possible to create an interactive learning environment due to the inadequacies of laboratories. ...
... In this context, Behzadan and Kamat proposed an innovative learning tools includes remote videotaping and ultra-wide ban locationing. Another study conducted by Irizarry et al. (2012) a learning environment was proposed which aims to introduce concrete building elements with the use of 3D BIM models. Their motivation is derived from the enhancing students' information repository on building elements. ...
In the scope of the study, a virtual learning environment (VLE) is proposed in order to benefit from the potentials of the virtual reality (VR) technology in the context of construction education for architecture students. A vast number of studies show that learning environments, where a strong relation is established between students and the information have positive effect on learners. Accordingly, learning enivronments should encouraged students to learn by exploration in a participatory way. In contrast, learning environments related to construction education are mostly lack of such features. Learning environments where students are not able to have an active interaction with the information is insufficient and ineffective for the construction education. In this context, it is deduced that establishment of a learning environment where users examine building components by various interactions may enhance students learning process. Accordingly, a learning environment is proposed, titled Virtual Reality in Construction (VRiC), where learner can explore architectural buildings, its components and its materials with an immersive experience. Various user interfaces and user interactions are created in order to compose interactions between the users and the architectural elements.
