Interoperable Learning Leveraging Building Information Modeling (BIM) in Construction Education

The authors, faculty members in the Department of Construction Management at Colorado State University, collaborated with industry to develop three interactive, pilot Building Information Modeling (BIM)-enabled educational modules designed to support and enhance spatial understanding, interoperability, and communication within construction education and training. The first module highlights masonry construction sequencing, the second highlights the cross-disciplinary aspects of structural analysis, and the third provides bilingual safety-training by integrating voice-narration and site specific 3D visualization. The initial development, implementation, and assessment of the three modules indicate that their use is beneficial to students and professionals, and that more research is merited. The paper previews the modules and presents preliminary lessons learned from their development and pilot implementations.