Leveraging MOOCs in a hybrid learning bootcamp model for training technicians and engineers in STEM manufacturing

The innovative breakthroughs of advanced manufacturing industries in materials processing and systems characterization are upgrading the incumbent engineer and technician skillset a faster rate than ever before. This is creating an expanding gap between the emerging STEM skills needed in advanced manufacturing industry and extant 4- or 2-year college training for engineers and technicians, respectively. Novel teaching paradigms using MOOCs and hybrid Learning formats have the potential to address such a gap. In this paper, we describe a “three-legged stool” hybrid learning methodology and present early assessment data and analysis of this methodology in an integrated photonics intensive bootcamp leveraging MOOC modules and Virtual Reality simulations combined with hands-on tool training. Our proposed hybrid learning methodology strives to enable faster procedural and synthesis learning that may facilitate just-in-time learning strategies that prevail upon communities of practitioners to help co-instruct in highly atomized modular training commensurate with both 2-year college advanced manufacturing tool infrastructure limitations and perennial upskilling strategy for incumbent industry workers. Conclusions drawn from focus group sessions with learners and post-bootcamp survey results are presented.