Project-based STEM-courses for engineering students

Abstract

One of the world-recognized practices of modern higher education is the application of problem-based and project-based approaches to teaching STEM-disciplines. In case of integration of problem-based and project-based learning, the educational process is organized around the problem to be solved by students and stimulates them to find optimal strategies for solving, and project activities are chosen as a way of organizing work. The article describes the ongoing experience of implementation of project-based STEM-courses "Hydro- and Gas Dynamics" and "Applied Mechanics and Fundamentals of Design", which is part of training of engineering students of 151 Automation and Computer-integrated technologies speciality at the Bohdan Khmelnytskyy National University of Cherkasy during 2017-2019 academic years. The impact of problem-based and project-based approaches to teaching STEM-disciplines on the formation of professional and general competencies of future engineers had been analyzed. The dynamics of changes of personal and interpersonal skills of junior students during the teamwork on mono- and multidisciplinary projects had been studied. The case study method was chosen as the general research method, which corresponds to the number of research participants and the active role of researchers in the educational process. The results of surveys developed using the 5-point Likert scale, demonstrates that students mostly positively evaluate the projects and teamwork. The possibility of self-grouping, which made possible to form teams based on common interests and promote freer and more natural communication within the team, was the important factor of positive perception of project work. The disadvantages of the implemented approaches include the difficulties that manifested itself at the stage of students' planning of the project process. One of the reasons for this is the lack of previous experience in the realization of students' team projects. The introduction of multidisciplinary projects made it possible to optimize the workload of students working simultaneously on a project in two disciplines and increase the motivation to study the disciplines of the STEM cycle.