Case Study to Analyze the Impact of Multi-Course Project-Based Learning Approach on Education for Sustainable Development

This work presents a multi-course project-based learning (MPL) approach implemented using two electrical engineering (EE) interdisciplinary undergraduate courses at Qatar University. Implementing an MPL approach helps in the development of critical thinking and collaborative decision-making skills. The attainment of these skills is also the outcome of education for sustainable development (ESD); the skills help students acquire the knowledge, attitudes, and values necessary to shape a sustainable future. The participating students’ worked on a design project, which was used to assess the fulfillment of a set of student learning outcomes (SLOs), focusing on engineering soft skills and project management skills. The skills include the ability to communicate effectively, to work collaboratively in a team, to think both critically and creatively, and to manage projects efficiently with realistic constraints and standards. The challenges of implementing the MPL method are the organization of pedagogical activities that are planned for each of the courses involved, the coordination of the materials delivered by each course, and the supervision of around 90 students per year performing the MPL method. The experience of MPL deployment in the EE program was rated using student surveys. It was assumed that the MPL approach would be beneficial to the students based on the instructors’ and students’ feedback from the same courses in previous years. This was verified using chi-square statistics of the survey results. The implementation of the MPL also helped in increasing the average marks scored by the students in the design project. Some interesting feedback, statistical analyses, and improvement actions are reported for future upgrades. This work also contributes to the MPL pragmatic body of knowledge by exploring a successful initiative and its outcomes, which can help in attaining the skills needed for ESD.

[1]  N. Wijayati,et al.  Improving Student Creative Thinking Skills Through Project Based Learning , 2019, KnE Social Sciences.

[2]  M. Segers,et al.  Effects of problem-based learning: a meta- analysis , 2003 .

[3]  Arnim Wiek,et al.  How much time do we have? Urgency and rhetoric in sustainability science , 2012, Sustainability Science.

[4]  Joaquin Eloy-Garcia Carrasco,et al.  Problem-Based Learning in Wind Energy Using Virtual and Real Setups , 2012, IEEE Transactions on Education.

[5]  Arnim Wiek,et al.  Key competencies in sustainability: a reference framework for academic program development , 2011 .

[6]  M. Portman,et al.  Project-Based Learning in Education for Sustainable Development: A Case Study of Graduate Planning Students , 2019 .

[7]  F. Bogner,et al.  How freshmen perceive Environmental Education (EE) and Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) , 2019, PloS one.

[8]  M. Nasir Uddin,et al.  Teaching of Simulation an Adjustable Speed Drive of Induction Motor Using MATLAB/Simulink in Advanced Electrical Machine Laboratory , 2013 .

[9]  Amith Khandakar,et al.  Portable System for Monitoring and Controlling Driver Behavior and the Use of a Mobile Phone While Driving , 2019, Sensors.

[10]  Mandy Singer-Brodowski,et al.  Monitoring of education for sustainable development in Germany – insights from early childhood education, school and higher education , 2019 .

[11]  Mehmet Dal,et al.  Teaching Electric Drives Control Course: Incorporation of Active Learning Into the Classroom , 2013, IEEE Transactions on Education.

[12]  Alastair Scott,et al.  On Simple Adjustments to Chi-Square Tests with Sample Survey Data , 1987 .

[13]  H. O. Lancaster,et al.  Chi-Square Distribution , 2005 .

[14]  John E. Mitchell,et al.  Problem-Based Learning in Communication Systems: Student Perceptions and Achievement , 2010, IEEE Transactions on Education.

[15]  H. Barrows Problem‐based learning in medicine and beyond: A brief overview , 1996 .

[16]  M. Segers,et al.  Effects of problem-based learning: a meta- analysis , 2003 .

[17]  H. Vehkamäki,et al.  An Exploratory Study of the Learning of Transferable Skills in a Research-Oriented Intensive Course in Atmospheric Sciences , 2018 .

[18]  C.-H. Chen,et al.  Revisiting the effects of project-based learning on students’ academic achievement: A meta-analysis investigating moderators , 2019, Educational Research Review.

[19]  C. Hmelo‐Silver Problem-Based Learning: What and How Do Students Learn? , 2004 .

[20]  Wim H. Gijselaers,et al.  Connecting problem‐based practices with educational theory , 1996 .

[21]  T. Nguyen Searching for education for sustainable development in Vietnam , 2019, Environmental Education Research.

[22]  Rodrigo Lozano,et al.  Teaching Sustainability in European Higher Education Institutions: Assessing the Connections between Competences and Pedagogical Approaches , 2019, Sustainability.