Generic competences acquisition through classroom activities in first-year agricultural engineering students

Abstract

Generic skills need to be developed by university students to prepare them for lifelong learning. Higher education institutions play a key role in developing appropriate strategies for a competences-based approach with learning activities defined in terms of knowledge and skills. Although current knowledge assessments focus on individual grading, skill acquisition assessments require a social context. This paper proposes that generic skills can, and should, be developed from year 1 at university through active learning methods. The assessment of generic competences acquisition at university relies on the design and performance of useful activities rather than on specific outcomes in competence subjects of university programmes. Several active learning methods were applied to a first-year agricultural engineering course on Soil Science in the Polytechnic University of Valencia; these methods are described and their usefulness for students' skills acquisition is analysed.

Exploring factors affecting first-year students’ learning experiences: A case study of a private university in Taiwan

“…International scholars have investigated the first year experience of students in higher education. These include: the development of the generic skills (Bautista, 2016;McLean, Murdoch-Eaton & Shaban, 2013); student perceptions of their courses and attitudes toward career prospects (Bennett, Kapoor, Rajinder, & Maynard 2015;van der Meer, 2012); students engagement in the learning process through curriculum design (Bovill, Bulley & Morss, 2011); decreased motivation of students during their first year at university (Busse, 2013); peer mentoring (Carragher & McGaughey, 2016;Chester et al, 2013); the differences between foreign and local lecturers on student learning experiences (Chang, Bai & Wang, 2014); student expectations (Diniz et al, 2016;Surgenor, 2013;Yorke & Vaughan, 2013); gender and ethnic differences on learning experiences (D'Lima, Winsler & Kitsantas, 2014); the impacts of social media (Jenkins et al, 2012); sense of belonging to the university environment (Kane, Chalcraft & Volpe, 2014); intercultural learning (Lee, Williams, Shaw, & Jie, 2014); the impact of lecturers' feedback (Robinson, Pope & Holyoak, 2013); and the role of induction courses (Yan & Sendall, 2016). Based on the studies above, there are two key themes underpinning the learning experiences of FY students: enhancements and obstacles.…”

“…Two key sub-themes for enhancing FY students' learning experiences have been identified: (1) active learning activities (Bautista, 2016;Bovill et al, 2011;Levy & Petrulis, 2012;Yan & Sendall, 2016); and, (2) peer mentoring (Carragher & McGaughey, 2016;Chester et al, 2013). First, Bautista (2016) points out that lecturers should provide active learning activities; for example, a problem-solving session which includes learning methods such as building teamwork, self-responsibility, and planning. These active learning methods help to improve the generic skills of students to better prepare them for their future careers.…”

“…It is a critical factor impacting either the completion or termination of their higher education programs (van der Meer, 2012;Yorke & Vaughan, 2013). Key areas that determine a satisfactory learning experience are varied, and can include, class size, interacting with lecturers and student peers, curriculums, assessment and feedback, quality of lecturers, lifestyle, and university environment (Bautista, 2016;Carragher & McGaughey, 2016;Diniz et al, 2016;Kane, Chalcraft & Volpe, 2014). By recognising and understanding the factors that contribute to FY students' learning experiences, universities can better improve the quality of higher education for their students.…”

“…Burton, Xenos, Elgar, & Denny, 2013;Jenkins, Lyons, Bridgstock, & Carr, 2012); New Zealand (van der Meer, 2012); the U.S. (Saunders, 2015;Yan & Sendall, 2016;); the UK (Busse, 2013;Yorke & Vaughan, 2013); Ireland (Surgenor, 2013); Spain (Bautista, 2016;Diniz et al, 2016); and Portugal (Diniz et al, 2016). However, studies into FY students' learning experiences in Asia, especially in Taiwan, are limited.…”

Competencias genéricas de los estudiantes de Auditoría requeridas por las Big Four en Chile

“…Para Tobón (2005) este término representa la orientación del desempeño humano hacia la idoneidad en la realización de actividades y resolución de problemas. Y que, al igual que la inteligencia, es susceptible de ser adquirida a través de la enseñanza (Bautista, 2016) y construida a partir de las motivaciones internas del individuo (Beneitone et al, 2007).…”