Introduction LabVIEW is a graphical programming language for developing automated instrument test and measurement systems. Kindly see https://www.ni.com/en-za/shop/labview.html for further information. As such, it is considerably important for up-skilling students who may proceed to experimental or engineering physics research environments or industry. We have conducted a 6-week LabVIEW short-course as part of the practicals for our PHY00B3 third-year Physics course in the second semester, involving sixteen students. The introductory course entailed lectures and demonstrations of the graphical coding at 3- to 4-hour practical sessions once per week, over four weeks, in one of our computer laboratories. This included setting 3-4 assignments and grading of these assignments. This was followed by a bigger project assignment, spanning three weeks, where students were tasked with developing the graphical code and graphical user interface (front-end) for a smart measurement system for a specific application (e.g., temperature monitoring and associated alarm response system). The purpose of acquiring teaching innovation funding from UJ in 2022 was to employ a suitably qualified candidate to teach the LabVIEW coding and run the short course. We thus used the funding to secure the services of an individual with years of experience working with LabVIEW in a research laboratory environment. That candidate has now joined our Department as a postgraduate in Physics. Benefits for teaching & learning, particularly for students To enhance the “hands-on” training aspects of the course, we incorporated Arduino microcontrollers as part of building a smart measurement/ monitoring system in the project phase. The Arduino UNO is a low-cost, flexible, and easy-to-use programmable open-source microcontroller board that can be integrated into a variety of electronic projects. See https://docs. arduino.cc/learn/starting-guide/whats-arduino for further information. This board can be interfaced with other micro-controller boards and can control a variety of external devices and sensors, e.g., relay switching, LEDs, servos, motors, ultrasonic distance sensors, etc. We have acquired a number of such Arduino UNO boards and associated project kits for an introductory course in electronics, which we run in the first semester. Teaching Innovation for the 21st Century | Showcasing UJ Teaching Innovation Projects 2022 37
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