Exploring Open Lab Experiences to Enhance Fluid Mechanics Education

In mechanical engineering and mechanical engineering technology education, bridging the gap between theoretical concepts and practical applications is critical for promoting student learning and engagement, particularly in core technical subjects such as fluid mechanics.This study explores the pilot implementation of a series of open-ended lab experiences in an advanced fluid mechanics course, aimed at enhancing students' learning of fluid flow in pipelines.Open-ended labs give the students the freedom to develop their own experiments instead of following a more guided step-by-step procedure and provide students with hands-on opportunities to explore fundamental fluid dynamics concepts and encourage active learning.A preliminary evaluation of the efficacy of these open-ended lab experiences was conducted using a direct assessment of the lab assignment's components and an anonymous indirect assessment in the form of a survey.The survey questions focused on the students' perceptions of their learning experiences, classroom and project engagement, confidence in applying theoretical concepts, and the perceived relevance of lab activities to practical applications.Findings revealed that 50% of the reporting students felt "very satisfied" or "satisfied" with the open-ended lab experience, while 83% found the experiences "extremely effective" or "effective" in enhancing their understanding of core fluid mechanics concepts.These results suggest that while satisfaction levels vary, students felt the labs were highly effective and thus achieved their primary educational objectives.The pilot study supports further implementation of open-ended lab experiences and contributes to the growing conversation on innovative engineering education strategies by demonstrating the value of experiential learning approaches, particularly the integration of entrepreneurial mindset learning (EML) into laboratory experiences.