Use of interactive tools in seismic engineering and structural stability to facilitate learning and foster engagement: Application to high-school outreach and university courses

Abstract

The theories of structural stability and dynamics of structures in a sense provide the backbone of structural engineering education and underpin advanced design approaches. Some of the challenges students face in these classes stem from the required knowledge synthesis, requisite level of mathematical treatment, and difficulties in visualizing structural behavior. In this paper, we present teaching modules wherein interactive tools are integrated with mathematical treatment to address these challenges. The modules have been used since 2019 at various educational levels including outreach activities as well as in master’s level courses at EPFL. Survey data is also presented suggesting strong benefits of using such tools. For example, results suggest that using the hands-on activity kit in combination with shake table testing undeniably makes the modules fun. Moreover, students report that using the activity kit helped them better understand how buildings ‘stand up’ with mean scores of 4.2 and 3.8 out of 5 for the high-school and graduate students, respectively. Overall, it is found that when students experiment with the hands-on interactive approach they get interested in the subject and they have a better understanding or relate better to advanced concepts. All teaching materials presented in the paper are made openly available.