Promoting Critical Thinking Ability through Autonomous Laboratory Learning Techniques in Electronics and Communication Engineering

Abstract

Outcome Based Education (OBE), insists on promoting Critical Thinking (CT) amongst the learners. Generally, CT is exercised in classroom instruction, but rarely on laboratory practices. Here, a comparative study of autonomous (OBE's) and non-autonomous (conventional) laboratory practices in the outset of CT is done with specific reference to Microcontroller lab experiments of four-year Electronics and Communication Engineering (ECE) course, through a questionnaire survey. The results indicate the supremacy of autonomous laboratory practices of ECE in promoting CT over the non-autonomous techniques. The conclusions from this experimental study may be important globally to the pedagogical and curricular research areas.