| |19 DECEMBER 2025HIGHERReviewlearn specific concepts by reading books or watching videos and classroom hours are dedicated to engaging discussions. This will ensure that the lectures remain interesting and the students can answer any questions that may arise as a result of their self-directed learning. In general, these approaches motivate students to learn independently, try out new things, encounter challenges, and subsequently consult an expert to understand why a particular method failed. The core idea is learning by doing.How can partnerships with industry enhance experiential learning opportunities for students?Industries serve as a significant source of meaningful and relevant problem statements. In the case of industries collaborating with educational institutions, the curriculum is given credibility and better fitment to practical needs. Such partnerships can also help students to work on real-world projects and gain access to the latest developments and innovative technologies. Furthermore, internships and apprenticeship programs also provide students with an opportunity to apply classroom learning in practice, thereby improving practical skills, project management skills, and overall career readiness.The courses and laboratories should be developed in collaboration with the industry, and the problem statements used in the laboratories are often offered by the industry directly. Such problem statements put students in touch with the real-world problems, practical constraints, and the reasons why ideal solutions are not always applicable, and what kind of engineering approximations are required in practice.What are the biggest challenges that students face when applying theoretical knowledge in practical settings?One of the major challenges in the application of the theoretical knowledge is the fact that theory is normally taught in an ideal environment. In practice, these ideal conditions are rarely exist and requiring the use of engineering approximations. Real-world problem-solving is not a one-step action; it has to be iterative, refined and constantly adjusted.There are also psychological barriers. When students step into real-life situations, they often experience a fear of failure and a fear of the unfamiliar. These issues can be overcome with practical training, internship, and even environment simulation. Providing safe spaces for experimentation such a tinkering labs, maker spaces, VR labs, or active campus clubs such as the Science and Technology Council allows students to engage with real-world problems.
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