Gamified Arduino-based instrumentation modules in technology education: a quasi-experimental evaluation linking simulator-to-hardware transfer to laboratory troubleshooting-reliability gains

Laboratory instruction in engineering technology education is expensive, and the question of whether simulator-based preparation transfers to physical troubleshooting remains contested. The study characterises the operating characteristics of the BACI estimator under a declared variance structure: between-cluster standard deviation of 6.0, residual standard deviation of 4.5, and an intraclass correlation of 0.64. Power was estimated across 2000 replications per design cell for cluster counts of 8, 16, 24 and 32 and effect sizes of 3, 5 and 8 percentage points. The analysis indicates that 54 clusters are required to detect a 5-percentage-point effect at 80% power. The results establish the sample-size requirements and minimum detectable effects that a field trial of gamified instrumentation modules must satisfy, and they identify the intraclass correlation as the binding constraint on design efficiency.