This work-in-progress research study explores students' self-regulated learning (SRL) strategies within collaborative virtual reality (VR) environments in engineering education. Through thematic analysis of responses from twenty-seven (27) second-year civil engineering students engaged in VR-based land surveying activities, key themes emerged related to goal setting, environmental structuring, help-seeking, task strategies, and self-evaluation. Students with high SRL scores demonstrated greater use of task strategies and self-evaluation techniques, while those with low SRL scores relied more on environmental structuring. The findings underscore the importance of tailoring VR learning experiences to students' individual SRL abilities and integrating features that promote social interaction to enhance collaborative learning and engagement. Future research will explore larger sample sizes and examine the relationship between SRL strategies and learning outcomes in VR environments.

This work-in-progress research paper aims to present a protocol for a systematic review focused on recent engineering education research on collaborative learning in virtual reality (VR) platforms. Despite the growing application of collaborative VR in engineering education, research on systematic instructional methods within these environments remains limited. This work-in-progress paper details a protocol for a systematic review that aims to fill this gap by evaluating the use of collaborative VR in engineering education. We outline the methods, including search strategies and criteria for inclusion, based on the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) framework. The review will focus on identifying the skills and competencies targeted by collaborative VR applications, the theoretical underpinnings employed, and the learning outcomes achieved. This systematic approach will provide a comprehensive synthesis of existing literature, offer insights into effective practices, and guide future research and instructional strategies in engineering education using VR technologies. Through this protocol, we aim to contribute to the development of evidence-based guidelines that can enhance the efficacy of collaborative VR learning environments for engineering students.

This full research paper describes a qualitative investigation into the differences in student experiences in in-person and online summer engineering courses at an R1 institution in the U.S. Southeast. We investigated underlying factors influencing students' motivation-related experiences in in-person and online course formats in summer engineering courses through the lens of the MUSIC® Model of Motivation. We conducted 10 interviews with undergraduate students in online and in-person summer courses regarding their motivation-related experiences. Preliminary results identified prominent differences in the factors impacting student motivation in differing course formats. Across all courses, factors related to students' sense of agency, access to resources for success, and instructor empathy were most frequently identified as essential for positive student experiences. Particularly, having access to peers and the instructor, instructor caring, and a sense of agency over the learning process contributed positively to student experiences across nearly all flipped format courses. While the absence of these factors contributed negatively to student experiences in most online and in-person lecture-based courses, such outcomes were not uniform, and insights from students with positive online course experiences point to actionable tools and techniques instructors can use to create more universally positive online education experiences. Taken together, these results highlight areas of improvement for future course designs of online and lecture-based summer engineering courses to contribute to positive student experiences more consistently.

This research paper presents our findings from a mixed-method study investigating students' experiences in virtual reality (VR) laboratories that influence satisfaction levels toward increased learning engagement and outcomes. There has been increasing adoption of VR laboratories within higher education institutions to foster conceptual understanding and representation of abstract concepts. In ensuring their successful implementation for improved learning experiences, predictors and success factors for learners', satisfaction levels have been investigated. The underlying experiences of students in VR laboratories that influence satisfaction levels have been overlooked in most literature on student satisfaction. Although predictive models inform us as to factors that could impact satisfaction, they fall short in capturing the subjective experiences of learners in navigating virtual environments. These experiences offer useful insight into strategies for supporting learners during the implementation of VR laboratories for increased satisfaction levels. The purpose of our study is to investigate learners' experiences in multiple VR laboratories with regard to satisfaction. We implemented a series of VR laboratories into an undergraduate curriculum to offer learners a holistic learning experience. We adopt a mixed-method research design approach. The administered survey included a validated satisfaction survey and additional open-ended questions on the experience and satisfaction. We use results from the openended questions to interpret quantitative survey ratings. Our study provides insights into students' unique satisfaction experiences in virtual learning environments. Understanding these experiences could inform instructors on important strategies for supporting students during the implementation of VR laboratories. This could further ensure improved student engagement, learning satisfaction, and enhanced learning outcomes.

This work-in-progress research paper investigates students' cognitive engagement in collaborative virtual reality (VR) statics activities. The use of VR in engineering education is increasing with the advance in technology. To maximize the affordance of the VR for engineering education, it is important to understand how active learning enfolds in the VR environment since the level of student engagement during active learning is a vital indicator for the effectiveness of the learning environment. Using content analysis, this study investigates the modes of cognitive engagement of students working collaboratively to solve engineering problems in a VR learning environment. The video-recorded collaboration and the transcribed verbal interaction of the students in the VR learning environment were analyzed based on the Interactive-Constructive-Active-Passive (ICAP) framework. The analysis coded the patterns of the observed cognitive engagement based on the video recording and transcripts of the groups' conversation at each phase of the task. The analysis revealed that the active and constructive modes dominated the students' conversation while the interactive mode was the least observed mode of cognitive engagement during the task. The implications of the findings for further research and practice are discussed.

Academic belonging is an important construct essential for student success in engineering. It involves a sense of connectedness, acceptance, and identification within the learners' academic environment. Students may disengage and ultimately drop out of their program of study where the sense of academic belonging is lacking. This work in progress bridges the gap by examining the correlates of academic belonging in order to understand the processes by which graduate engineering students develop a sense of belonging within their chosen programs. 227 graduate students from six universities in the United States completed the Postsecondary Student Engagement (PosSE) survey. Using Pearson Correlation, we evaluated the relationships between major valuing, achievement striving, major satisfaction, peer interaction, positive faculty relations, passion, perseverance, and academic belonging. The results show that major satisfaction has a positive strong relationship with academic belonging, while major valuing and positive faculty relations have a significant positive medium relationship with academic belonging. It was noted that achievement striving, and peer interaction has small positive but significant relationships with academic belonging. The theoretical and practical implications of this study will be discussed.

This work-in-progress research paper investigates the role of virtual reality (VR) in engineering education lab courses. While there are ongoing debates about the feasibility and practicality of deploying VR on a large scale for engineering instruction, there has been growing evidence in support of the efficacy of VR to promote certain types of engineering instruction[1]. Most importantly, it is essential that we understand students’ social interactions in VR-based learning environments. This work-in-progress explores patterns of social presence indicators during a collaborative desktop virtual reality (VR) Land surveying task. Participants were asked to think-aloud and video record their interactions and conversations while completing learning tasks using a desktop VR environment. The desktop program was a computer program that simulates land surveying. The qualitative data analysis was based on the framework of social presence by Rourke et al. [2]. The study reported on indicators, frequencies and patterns or themes of social presence observed during student’s interactions with one another in the learning environment. This study also highlighted potential implications of this observation for future research on students’ social experiences in VR-based engineering education.