Enhancing holistic thinking among undergraduate students in architecture, engineering, and construction through a digital twin-integrated learning platform

The National Science Foundation Division of Undergraduate Education awarded Louisiana State University $744,660 on October 1, 2026, under the STEM Education program (CFDA 47.076) to develop and study a digital twin-integrated learning platform for undergraduate students in architecture, engineering, and construction.

The project will design, implement, and assess learning modules that use digital twins—data-enriched virtual representations of real systems—to cultivate holistic and systems thinking among undergraduates. The platform will deliver real-world, interdisciplinary scenarios, interactive learning activities integrated with predictive artificial intelligence, educator-authoring templates, and sandbox environments for selected undergraduate courses. The work will produce scalable learning materials and evidence about how digital twin-driven instruction strengthens integrative reasoning, systems thinking, and student readiness for a technology-rich architecture, engineering, and construction workforce. The project will also investigate conditions under which improved student learning occurs in this educational domain.

Performance occurs in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, with a period of performance from October 1, 2026, through September 30, 2029. The assistance type is a Project Grant, classified as Level II Engaged Student Learning by the funding program.

Abstract

This project aims to serve the national interest by cultivating holistic thinking among undergraduate students in architecture, engineering, and construction through a digital twin-integrated learning environment. Modern building and infrastructure projects require professionals who can connect design, engineering, construction, operations, stakeholder needs, resource constraints, and long-term societal impacts. Undergraduate students benefit from learning experiences that help them see these connections early and apply them to realistic problems. The significance of this project is that IT plans to use digital twins, data-enriched virtual representations of real systems, to help students explore how decisions in one part of a project can affect cost, schedule, safety, resilience, sustainability, and building performance over time. This level II engaged student learning project plans to develop and study the digital twin-integrated learning environment and platform, which will provide real-world, interdisciplinary scenarios, interactive learning activities integrated with predictive artificial intelligence (AI), educator-authoring templates, and sandbox environments for selected undergraduate courses. The project intends to produce scalable learning materials and evidence about how digital twin-driven instruction can strengthen students' integrative reasoning, systems thinking, and readiness for a technology-rich architecture, engineering, and construction workforce. The goals of this project are to advance understanding of how digital twin-integrated learning supports holistic thinking and to investigate conditions under which improved student learning occurs in undergraduate architecture, engineering, and construction education. The scope includes the design, implementation, and assessment of learning modules in selected courses using three digital twin technological affordances: real-time reflection of changing project conditions, cross-disciplinary data fusion, and life-cycle performance visualization. The project plans to examine how these affordances influence five learning parameters of holistic thinking: interdisciplinary integration, stakeholder and resource coupling, temporal and system-dynamics reasoning, adaptive cognition, and coherent synthesis. The methodology includes design-based development of course activities, realistic interdisciplinary problem-solving scenarios, browser-based platform features, self-report measures, performance tasks, and fine-grained learning analytics. Assessment and evaluation will examine both overall learning gains and the specific learning parameters that appear to drive those gains. Project results, modules, templates, and implementation guidance are planned for dissemination through publications, conference presentations, educator-facing resources, and open learning materials that can support adaptation in related stem courses and workforce development settings. The NSF iuse: EDU program supports research and development projects to improve the effectiveness of stem education for all students. Through the engaged student learning track, the program supports the creation, exploration, and implementation of promising practices and tools. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.- subawards are not planned for this award.