February 16, 2021

About the additional qualification of the seminar "Trainer qualification" within the Studium Generaleof the Karlsruhe University of Applied Sciences, the participating students can obtain a certificate of the IHK (Chamber of Industry and Commerce) about the proof of the vocational and work pedagogical aptitude. This certificate is the prerequisite for training the next generation of skilled workers. For this reason, this offer is also very popular and has been completed by almost 800 students since its introduction.

However, due to the Corona pandemic, its lecture and examination structure had to be fundamentally changed last semester. Previously, the seminar was conducted entirely via face-to-face lectures.After all, the course also covers application-oriented instruction topics such as how to assemble a circuit board, how to set up a theodolite, how to use software, how to conduct an inventory, and how to organize an introductory week.

At the beginning of the pandemic period in April 2020, lecturer Alexandra Wuth conducted a digital course for the first time using a video conferencing tool. The exam took place at the university and for the presentation exam Tobias Baum, coordinator of Studium Generale, and exam coordinator Eike Brüggemann had developed a hygiene concept.

By implementing the corona-related hygiene and distance rules at the university, the January course was also held completely digitally. Only the exam took place in presence under great precautionary measures. For the first time, the final presentation exam could be offered in digital form. For this purpose, the examiners used the tool "BigBlueButton". In a virtual room, they took on the role of a moderator and examined the 30 participating students. The participants had submitted the written instruction draft in advance by e-mail. Over the course of two days, the individual candidates gave their presentation to the examination management and were able to communicate directly with the examiners during the following technical discussion. Thus, all students could be examined "contactless" - thanks to a successful implementation of the online concept.