Mixed reality (MR) has the potential to accelerate construction workforce training and enhance college education. However, there is a lack of empirical evidence in the research literature on how effective MR may be in facilitating student apprenticeship learning in field construction activities compared to the traditional paper-based approach. This research designed an outdoor wood-frame construction lab with two parallel sessions involving paper drawings (the control) and MR mockups (the experiment) for conveying design information. The research team used video recordings and questionnaires to collect behavioral and perception data for comparative analysis. The results indicated that student teams in the two sessions exhibited comparable construction productivity. However, they demonstrated different behavioral patterns and time allocation for technology use and reported different apprenticeship learning gains. This research also identified and discussed potential contributing factors that limited the success of MR. The contribution of this work resides in presenting empirical evidence of the impact of using MR on student apprenticeship learning through outdoor construction activities. It also provides peer educational researchers with valuable insights on how to study pedagogical use of MR with consideration of potential challenges that are present in realistic construction environments.

In civil and construction engineering education research, a focus has been on using 3D models to support students’ design comprehension. Despite this trend, the predominant mode of design communication in the industry relies on 2D plans and specifications, which typically supersede other modes of communication. Rather than focusing on the presentation of less common 3D content as an input to support students’ understanding of a design, this paper explores more common 2D inputs, but compares different visualization formats of student output in two educational interventions. In the first intervention, students document a construction sequence for wood-framed elements in a 2D worksheet format. In the second, students work with the same wood-framed design, but document their sequence through an augmented reality (AR) format where their physical interactions move full-scale virtual elements as if they were physically constructing the wood frame. Student approaches and performance were analyzed using qualitative attribute coding of video, audio, and written documentation of the student experience. Overall, results showed that the 2D worksheet format was simple to implement and was not mentally demanding to complete, but often corresponded with a lack of critical checks and a lack of mistake recognition from the students. The AR approach challenged students more in terms of cognitive load and completion rates but showed the potential for facilitating mistake recognition and self-remediation through visualization. These results suggest that when students are tasked with conceptualizing construction sequences from 2D documentation, the cognitive challenges associated with documenting a sequence in AR may support their recognition of their own mistakes in ways that may not be effectively supported through 2D documentation as an output for documenting and planning a construction sequence. The results presented in this paper provide insights on student tendencies, behaviors, and perceptions related to defining construction sequences from 2D documentation in order for educators to make informed decisions regarding the use of similar learning activities to prepare their students for understanding the 2D design documents used in industry.

This work-in-progress paper presents highlights from a multi-year study aiming to develop and assess the impact of a mixed reality experience that sufficiently replicates the learning civil engineering students experience during a physical design and construction task. Human Centered Design principles and tenets of the Carnegie Foundation’s Three Apprenticeships Model (i.e., learning related to "Head", "Hand", and "Heart") inform the project design, development, and assessments. The development of heart-focused assessments is one focus during the second year in this three-year project. This paper includes a brief overview of the project progress, in general, along with preliminary findings regarding the instrument development. It summarizes the results of a pilot study, including an item analysis of the survey responses. These findings offer preliminary evidence for the content validity and substantive validity of the instrument. Next steps and implications for the engineering education community are also discussed.

Purpose: This study explores the potential of virtual reality (VR) to enhance construction safety training by eliciting critical emotional responses, particularly in novices lacking firsthand experience with hazardous scenarios. By targeting emotions like fear and distress, VR aims to improve hazard recognition and foster risk-averse behaviors, addressing gaps in traditional training methods. Design/methodology/approach: The study involved 55 construction management students using a VR simulation integrated with haptic feedback to replicate accident scenarios. Emotional responses were measured through galvanic skin response (GSR) metrics, pre- and post-experience self-reported questionnaires and semi-structured interviews. Participants navigated a virtual construction site, identified hazards and experienced a simulated accident to assess emotional and behavioral impacts. Findings: The VR simulation significantly increased emotional arousal, with GSR data showing a strong effect size and significant increases in distress, guilt, fear and shame. Participants reported heightened empathy, guilt and responsibility during post-VR interviews. These findings suggest that VR effectively engages users emotionally, bridging the experiential gap in traditional training by replicating hazardous scenarios with high realism and impact. Practical implications: The study highlights VR's potential as a scalable, immersive training tool for eliciting emotional and physiological precursors associated with risk-averse decision-making in the construction industry. By evoking anticipatory emotions theorized to influence risk perception, VR may help prepare novices to engage more cautiously with hazardous scenarios, though the link between these precursors and actual safety behavior requires field validation. Originality/value: This research provides empirical evidence of VR's capability to elicit emotional responses that influence decision-making in hazardous environments. It offers valuable insights for developing innovative, emotionally engaging safety training programs for the construction sector.

Authentic learning opportunities that simulate full scale design and construction experiences using real materials offer ideal experiential learning environments for construction and civil engineering students by challenging students to apply building concepts in practical settings. However, the excessive cost of real building materials required for this mode of education limits access to the vast majority of students. As a result, educational researchers have explored potential alternatives to provide cost-effective experiential learning through activities using mock-up materials (e.g., plastic straws, popsicle sticks) and simulation of experiences using immersive technologies (e.g., virtual reality or augmented reality). While some of these alternatives approximate the environment and others provide physical interaction with mock-up materials, the lack of authenticity in the building materials used introduces some apparent differences between the “authentic” learning environments and their cost-effective approximations. Therefore, this research aims to identify the learning processes reported by students and faculty who participated in authentic learning experiences to understand the ways in which this mode of education offers unique value to construction education. Their interview responses illustrated characteristics of authentic learning experiences that were believed to be critical to the learning process, some of which included: working in groups; interdisciplinary participants; and use of real construction materials. Although some of these characteristics are intrinsically linked to the use of real materials, others do not explicitly refer to interaction with real materials. This may indicate to aspects of the authentic learning processes that educational researchers can strategically target through more cost-effective learning environments like virtual and augmented reality. The contribution of this paper is in identifying the characteristics of authentic learning experiences that may guide educational investment and research innovations that aim to replicate some of these learning experiences through more accessible learning environments.