Work in Progress: Finding the Holes in Safety Education

Kimberly Grau Talley; Bobbi J. Spencer; Guntulu S. Hatipkarasulu; Krishna Prasad Kisi

Download Paper | Permalink

Conference: 2021 ASEE Virtual Annual Conference Content Access
Location: Virtual Conference
Publication Date: July 26, 2021
Start Date: July 26, 2021
End Date: July 19, 2022
Conference Session: Construction Engineering Division Technical Session 4
Tagged Division: Construction Engineering
Page Count: 12
DOI: 10.18260/1-2--38161
Permanent URL: https://peer.asee.org/38161
Download Count: 416

Paper Authors

biography

Kimberly Grau Talley P.E. Texas State University orcid.org/0000-0002-6235-0706

visit author page

Dr. Kimberly G. Talley is an associate professor in the Department of Engineering Technology, Bobcat Made Makerspace Director at Texas State University, and a licensed Professional Engineer. She received her Ph.D. and M.S.E. from the University of Texas at Austin in Structural Engineering. Her undergraduate degrees in History and in Construction Engineering and Management are from North Carolina State University. Dr. Talley teaches courses in the Construction Science and Management and Civil Engineering Technology Programs, and her research focus is in student engagement and retention in engineering and engineering technology education. Contact: talley@txstate.edu

visit author page

biography

Bobbi J. Spencer Texas State University

visit author page

B.J. Spencer, Ph.D.

Dr. Spencer is an Assistant of Professor of Practice and the Construction Science and Management (CSM) Program Coordinator in the Department of Engineering Technology at Texas State University where she focuses on the architectural courses, VDCO, and is the internship coordinator. In 2017, she obtained her Ph.D. in Education from Texas State University with the emphasis on professional education. A registered Architect in the State of Texas, she received a Master of Architecture from Texas A&M University in 2007 where she participated in a study abroad semester at the Universita della Svizzera italiana, Accademia di Architettura di Mendrisio, Switzerland following 23 years of industry experience in architecture and construction.

Dr. Spencer’s research interests include:
Professional & International Education: architecture and construction;
Experiential Education: study abroad, internships;
Virtual Design, Construction, and Operations (VDCO); and
Education in online and virtual environments

visit author page

author page

Guntulu S. Hatipkarasulu Texas State University

biography

Krishna Prasad Kisi Texas State University orcid.org/0000-0003-1850-5747

visit author page

Krishna P. Kisi, holds a Ph.D. in Engineering from University of Nebraska-Lincoln, MS in Construction Management from University of Nevada, Las Vegas, and a Bachelor in Civil Engineering from Tribhuvan University. He has several years of teaching experience at U.S. colleges, universities, and international institutes. He has taught over 15 different construction related courses. He is a registered Professional Engineer at Texas. His research interests includes , construction labor productivity, safety, AI and human performance, AR/VR/MR, and STEM education

visit author page

Download Paper | Permalink

Abstract

The construction industry is inherently a riskier workplace than the average office job. The high-risk activities, such as work at elevation, often in complex and dynamic environments, tend to create more injuries and fatal accidents. According to the 2018 fatalities report from Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), forty percent of the total fatal hazards were related to falling. Many different safety training programs have been developed to reduce this risk. In addition to OSHA oversight, numerous initiatives from academia, insurance companies, and others in the construction industry have developed assorted computer programs and training modules to decrease fall accidents. In recent years, gamification in safety education using technologies have been introduced to enhance active learning as well. It is essential to use these tools only when they provide value. This study is examining efforts made to create safety training games, both in virtual reality and phone/tablet-based applications, to see what the gaps in these attempts are. This work in progress is part of a process to evaluate the effectiveness of existing and any potential new developments in this area for construction safety education. Industry leaders on the Construction Advisory Board at Texas State University have told researchers that fall prevention is their major construction safety concern, and so the scope of this investigation is on the training for fall prevention. In this preliminary phase, the most traditional method of fall prevention training, the classroom lecture, was evaluated for baseline efficacy. Having a baseline value allows for future comparisons of efficacy of various game-based methods. Students in the Construction Safety class took the OSHA fall prevention questionnaire at the start of the Spring 2021 semester to determine their preexisting knowledge in this area, received instruction in via a standard lecture, and then took the questionnaire again to measure learning gains. The pre- and post- instruction questionnaires also allow investigation as to fall prevention topics that remain challenging for students to learn/remember. Future work will include student testing of existing computer games and a pilot VR game experience that incorporates the findings of this initial phase.

Citation
Format

Talley, K. G., & Spencer, B. J., & Hatipkarasulu, G. S., & Kisi, K. P. (2021, July), Work in Progress: Finding the Holes in Safety Education Paper presented at 2021 ASEE Virtual Annual Conference Content Access, Virtual Conference. 10.18260/1-2--38161

TY - CPAPER
AB - The construction industry is inherently a riskier workplace than the average office job. The high-risk activities, such as work at elevation, often in complex and dynamic environments, tend to create more injuries and fatal accidents. According to the 2018 fatalities report from Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), forty percent of the total fatal hazards were related to falling. Many different safety training programs have been developed to reduce this risk. In addition to OSHA oversight, numerous initiatives from academia, insurance companies, and others in the construction industry have developed assorted computer programs and training modules to decrease fall accidents. In recent years, gamification in safety education using technologies have been introduced to enhance active learning as well. It is essential to use these tools only when they provide value. This study is examining efforts made to create safety training games, both in virtual reality and phone/tablet-based applications, to see what the gaps in these attempts are. This work in progress is part of a process to evaluate the effectiveness of existing and any potential new developments in this area for construction safety education. Industry leaders on the Construction Advisory Board at Texas State University have told researchers that fall prevention is their major construction safety concern, and so the scope of this investigation is on the training for fall prevention. In this preliminary phase, the most traditional method of fall prevention training, the classroom lecture, was evaluated for baseline efficacy. Having a baseline value allows for future comparisons of efficacy of various game-based methods. Students in the Construction Safety class took the OSHA fall prevention questionnaire at the start of the Spring 2021 semester to determine their preexisting knowledge in this area, received instruction in via a standard lecture, and then took the questionnaire again to measure learning gains. The pre- and post- instruction questionnaires also allow investigation as to fall prevention topics that remain challenging for students to learn/remember. Future work will include student testing of existing computer games and a pilot VR game experience that incorporates the findings of this initial phase.
AU - Kimberly Grau Talley P.E.
AU - Bobbi J. Spencer
AU - Guntulu S. Hatipkarasulu
AU - Krishna Prasad Kisi
CY - Virtual Conference
DA - 2021/07/26
PB - ASEE Conferences
TI - Work in Progress: Finding the Holes in Safety Education
UR - https://peer.asee.org/38161
DO - 10.18260/1-2--38161
ER -