CREATIVE LABORATORY TEACHING. LEARNING AND SOLVING PROBLEMS

Teaching in science and engineering courses includes a major bearing on laboratory practice. These practices are an important part of the training of students to combine theoretical principles in solving practical problems. Traditionally, laboratory practice session consisted of a series of predefined tasks in a script that the teacher provides to students. Students were expected to strictly follow the script to reach the expected results in the class. This model can be useful in the early years of education of students, when teaching is focused on learning basic concepts and techniques. However, this kind of practices limits creativity, self-criticism, thoughtful analysis and independent learning. This paper presents the option of creative practices, in which the student has to solve a problem in a free and independent way. In this model there is no script the student had to follow. Neither student is expected to reach the final result in a single practice session. The result of each problem proposed to the students is not predefined, so there may be as many solutions as students. The teacher must provide students with a basic data about the problem, and some tips for reaching a satisfactory solution. Then the teacher will only act as a guide supervising the work of students, making them think of different options, the advantages and disadvantages of each option, and ultimately, helping them to reach a satisfactory solution. This model has been followed in an environmental engineering course in the degree of Industrial Engineering. We designed a set of practices covering the most important concepts of the course. Students were given basic information about equipment, materials and techniques available in the laboratory. Each practice was related to an environmental problem associated with industrial activity. In each practice, the students should use one of the environmental technologies or processes studied in the theoretical classes. Students should test different operating conditions, different materials or different processes to find the proper solution to each lab practice. Finally students must manage and treat the waste generated in all lab practices, so that the final residue was minimized. This approach to the lab teaching makes the students to use all the theoretical concepts in a creative way. This allows students to achieve a comprehensive knowledge of the course using the following learning techniques: self-criticism, discussion, and working in groups.