Instilling professional skills and sustainable development through problem-based learning (PBL) among first year engineering students

Abstract

Developing sustainable development (SD) mindset and professional skills, such as problem solving, team working and communication skills, are crucial for engineering graduates of the 21st Century. Cooperative Problem Based Learning (CPBL), which is the infusion of Cooperative Learning (CL) principles into the Problem-Based Learning (PBL) cycle, had been shown to enhance learning while developing the desired professional skills and positive behavior. This paper describes a mixed method study on the impact of an Introduction to Engineering course on first year students as they go through three cycles of CPBL to solve a sustainability related problem. In the first part of the research, anexploratory studywas conducted by analyzing reflective journals submitted by the students at the end of each CPBL cycle using thematic qualitative data analysis technique to determine the major themes in skills developed. The analysis show strong emergence of professional skills and SD. To determine the level of behavior change in SD for students who took the course, a quantitative study was then conducted. Although the students initially faced difficulties in developing the skills, by the end of the third stage, the students realized that they have managed to attain important skills and SD behavior essential as engineers of the future.