Laboratory Exercise To Measure Restriction Enzyme Kinetics

LabMate: Development and Implementation of a Novel Livestreaming Platform for Hybrid or Remote Laboratory Course Delivery

Online course delivery has increased in prevalence, particularly due to the onset in 2020 of the COVID-19 pandemic. Biomedical engineering laboratory courses pose unique challenges when transitioning to a remote or hybrid space. Here, we describe a novel approach to online lab delivery to improve student learning and engagement in a required introductory biomedical engineering laboratory class. The presented work focuses on the implementation and assessment of a novel approach to remote lab delivery named LabMate, which is a mobile, multi-view livestreaming platform that connects students to an in-person class remotely. Surveys of student and instructor participants assessed hardware quality and areas of improvement. Focus groups with students who had taken the course in an online format previously were conducted after a demonstration of the system. Survey responses were overall positive; however, some areas of improvement were identified, such as audio quality and video quality. Students and instructors appreciated the ability to deliver class synchronously online rather than perform make-up labs. Focus group participants found LabMate to be more engaging and enjoyable than prior online lab experiences. Students and instructors preferred LabMate over other online lab delivery methods. The students found the experience to be more dynamic and engaging, providing them with the opportunity to develop some of the core competencies of a biomedical engineering student.

Development and Implementation of a Remote Enzyme Kinetics Laboratory Exercise

The COVID-19 pandemic imposed many new challenges on educational systems and increased the demand for novel strategies for effectively teaching laboratory skills without in-person instruction and without access to laboratory space, including critical specialized equipment. While this novel remote instruction modality is compatible with teaching the theory behind experimental techniques, the lack of lab activities that enable learning of laboratory skills severely limits the outcome of instruction. In order to overcome this problem and effectively supplement lectures with hands-on laboratory exercises, we developed an at-home enzyme kinetics lab that provides a safe alternative to traditional enzyme kinetics instructional labs typically performed in a laboratory setting. The combination of a simple design of the activity, accessibility of equipment used, and relatively low overall cost yields an effective exercise for teaching experimental design and basic laboratory skills remotely while providing a unique opportunity for students to learn about enzyme kinetics.