UTM Stories: When learning got a little heated
Arduinos, soldering, and burning plastic spiced things up in HSC402: Digital Learning Environments in Biology and Health Sciences
Listen to the audio version of this article here!*
Tucked away on the third floor of the Communication, Culture & Technology Building, lectures in the windowless computer lab used for all biomedical communications courses separated students from the outside world for three hours at a time. Beneath the steady hum of fluorescent lights, rows of identical Mac desktops glowed against birch tables.
This is the place where I learned design software and spent hours turning scientific ideas into visual stories. The lab gradually became a studio where students dropped by between classes to secure and work on the computer that had their work saved.
For one course, the computers slowly disappeared beneath colourful jumper wires that curled across the tables like vines, Arduino boards, and breadboards dotted with miniature lights waiting for the right line of code to bring them to life. Across the room, an LED light blinked triumphantly as the applause of twenty exhausted students erupted. Most of us had never interacted with these electronics before, yet our professor had us connect circuits with the optimism of beginners who had no idea how much could go wrong.
Halfway through a class, a strange smell drifted through the room—the scent of melting plastic and scorched metal. Heads lifted in unison as students sniffed, wondering whether the smoke belonged to their neighbour’s project or their own. Our fingers hovered over power cables, ready to unplug everything. At that moment, our inventions seemed like fire hazards scattered across the tables.
The incident should have exposed that biology students armed with wires and microcontrollers were not quite ready for this kind of responsibility. Instead, our professor doubled down.
The following week, he wheeled his own soldering station into the lab. Soldering irons rested in metal cradles with spools of silver wire caught in the fluorescent light. Rather than turning to lectures or demonstrations, he trusted us with another unfamiliar tool. He guided us through the delicate process of creating permanent connections for our inventions.
Some classrooms are remembered for what was written on the board. I remember this one for the confidence our professor placed in us before we fully earned it. In that room, my peers and I discovered that learning could take the form of creating. Ideas lived beyond the screens and manifested as something we could build, touch, and, occasionally, smell.
*AI-Generated Audio Transcription Disclaimer
The audio transcription included in this article was generated using artificial intelligence (AI) technology with the purpose of improving accessibility for our readers and providing an alternative opportunity to engage with The Medium‘s content. Please note that AI-generated transcriptions may contain errors or inaccuracies in pronunciation, wording, or interpretation.
The original written article remains the authoritative version of the content. If you notice an error in the audio transcription, please contact social@themedium.ca so we can for further reviews and corrections.
