COMPARING COLLABORATIVE LEARNING IN VARIOUS LEARNING MODALITIES

Abstract: The architecture, engineering, and construction (AEC) industry has been practicing remote collaboration long before the COVID-19 global pandemic due to the increasingly dispersed project team composition. Higher education, on the other hand, went through a deep learning curve in adapting to online teaching and learning. There are uncertainties about best practices to prepare students for redefined project team collaboration in the post-pandemic AEC industry. Therefore, this research explores and compares three different modalities, i.e., face-to-face, Zoom, and web-based social virtual reality (VR), in teaching students about collaboration using project-based learning. The results suggested comparable outcomes in project progress, but the patterns in time use, team dynamics, and perceptions of team collaboration indicated unique features of each modality.