Open Ended Laboratory (OEL) Assignment as Tool Imparting Generic Skills for Engineering Students

It is remarkable how often academic staff discover students' weaknesses in expressing their thoughts in written and oral contexts, and in team working. To examine these weaknesses, a study was conducted in 2009–2010 and 2010–2011 of students taking an engineering course. Students self-reported an initial high level of weakness in both communication skills (writing and speaking), while expressing higher levels of confidence in their team working skills. This suggested that there was significant potential for improvement in both forms of communication skills and a lower potential for the improvement of team-working skills. On that basis the Technical University of Crete organized short training workshops based on experiential learning methods, during the academic year 2012–13. Other factors taken into account were the lack of awareness of such skills in traditionally-organized Greek universities; the inability to redesign all courses, currently dependent on a content-based curriculum, on a competency basis; and findings in the international literature, which highlight specific generic skills of engineering students as essential to their studies and future career prospects. The aim was to enhance the three skills of writing, speaking and team working. Participation was voluntary and open to students from all schools in the university. This paper assesses this initiative and analyses the contribution of the workshops to skills development.

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Direct evidence of engineering students' generic skills learning: From research to practice in an undergraduate course in information engineering

2017 IEEE Frontiers in Education Conference (FIE) ◽

10.1109/fie.2017.8190634 ◽

2017 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Rosanna Yuen-Yan Chan ◽

Cecilia Ka Yuk Chan ◽

Carmen Lau ◽

Jiaxin Liang ◽

Huaiyi Huang ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Engineering Students ◽

Direct Evidence ◽

Research To Practice ◽

Generic Skills ◽

Information Engineering ◽

Skills Learning

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Improving the soft skills of engineering undergraduates in Malaysia through problem-based approaches and e-learning applications

Higher Education Skills and Work-based Learning ◽

10.1108/heswbl-07-2018-0072 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 9 (4) ◽

pp. 662-676 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Sadia Deep ◽

Berhannudin Mohd Salleh ◽

Hussain Othman

Keyword(s):

Engineering Students ◽

Soft Skills ◽

Group Learning ◽

Learning Tools ◽

Student Centered ◽

Generic Skills ◽

Content Type ◽

E Learning ◽

Teaching Learning ◽

Practical Implications

PurposeVarious studies around the globe indicate lack of soft skills in engineering students, graduating from universities, although the bulk of studies in various disciplines indicate an improvement in various skills through implementation of a problem-based learning (PBL) approach. The purpose of this paper is therefore to identify and determine the effects of PBL in improving and developing soft skills, conflict resolution traits and aspects of enhancing group learning in undergraduates.Design/methodology/approachA study with mixed methods was used, involving questionnaire, observation and document analysis. A total of 57 students from different faculties participated in the semester-long study. Pre-tests and post-tests were administered at the beginning and end of the study. The researcher attended all the classes to observe systematically the teaching-learning process and its outcomes.FindingsThe findings revealed that PBL has a significant effect on improving students’ soft skills and enhancing group learning, including overcoming communication conflicts.Practical implicationsPractical implications of the study involve the enhancement of generic skills of the engineering graduates with the student-centered and interactive methodologies like PBL and e-learning applications.Originality/valueThis research endeavor stands unique due to its usage of e-learning tools in the PBL classroom learning such as Schoology, Padlet, videos, internet surfing. Another unique feature of this research is the holistic nature of the study, i.e. the measurement of a number of soft skills, traits and group learning skills that are not focused in other studies of engineering.

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Generic Competencies in the Education of Engineers: The Case of Engineering Program in a Public University in Mexico

Higher Education Studies ◽

10.5539/hes.v8n1p58 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 8 (1) ◽

pp. 58

Author(s):

Alejandra García-Serna ◽

José Luis Arcos-Vega ◽

Juan José Sevilla-García ◽

María Amparo Oliveros-Ruíz

Keyword(s):

Engineering Students ◽

Public University ◽

State University ◽

Educational Model ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Generic Skills ◽

Engineering Program ◽

Generic Competencies ◽

Generic Competences ◽

The University

We present an analysis regarding generic skills on engineering program offered in a public state university in Mexico (UABC). The university implemented a new educational model changing rigid programs to flexible programs based on competencies. The goal is to determine generic skills related to the four pillars of learning: learning to do, learning to know, learning to be, and learning to live together. This work is non experimental, cross-sectional, and descriptive. The study reflect upon the generic competences that students consider are being promoted during their first years in the university and provides a reference for the methodology to identify development of generic skills in engineering students.

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Priority Goals and Organization of Engineering Training at Russian Universities

Высшее образование в России ◽

10.31992/0869-3617-2020-29-4-73-84 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 29 (4) ◽

pp. 73-84

Author(s):

A. M. Lider ◽

I. V. Slesarenko ◽

M. A. Solovyev

Keyword(s):

Teaching And Learning ◽

Engineering Students ◽

Integrated Approach ◽

Integrative Approach ◽

Generic Skills ◽

Global Trends ◽

Teaching Aids ◽

University Performance ◽

Engineering Training ◽

Russian Universities

The present paper analyzes and discusses of the best practices offered by the Russian universities in the field of organization of practice-based training in engineering specializations. Based on the integrated approach to forming professional competences and generic skills in university engineering graduates, the professional portfolio of a university engineering graduate is viewed as the three in one set of competences including those in research, engineering and development entrepreneurship. Based on the review of documentation, reports, information databases, including the analysis of the statistical findings, the authors discuss the main global trends in the development of engineering education and training and offer the solutions to tackle the priority objectives in organizational field of university performance, teaching and learning processes organization and teaching aids development. The article discusses the educational practices of the six leading Russian engineering universities from the standpoint of the implemented teaching and learning formats, correspondent teaching aids development and the organizational solutions. The authors dwell on the example of Tomsk polytechnic university (TPU) in providing practice-based training to university students in physics, the critical organizational solutions in teaching and learning as well as approaches to teaching aids development that enable to shape the professional portfolio of a future engineer from the viewpoint of professional competences and generic skills enhancement. The discussed TPU experience in the field of practice-based training in physics is realized in compliance with the complex, integrative approach to forming the trinity of research, engineering, and entrepreneurship competences in a university engineering graduate. The designed system of practice-based engineering training implemented at TPU can be successfully extrapolated to the bachelor, master and PhD degree training of engineering students.

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