A PROBLEM-BASED LEARNING APPROACH TO DEVELOP MINORITY STUDENTS’ SUSTAINABILITY KNOWLEDGE AND PROFESSIONAL SKILLS

Rubaya Rahat; Piyush Pradhananga; Mohamed Elzomor

Download Paper | Permalink

Conference: 2022 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition
Location: Minneapolis, MN
Publication Date: August 23, 2022
Start Date: June 26, 2022
End Date: June 29, 2022
Conference Session: Minorities in Engineering Division Technical Session 6
Page Count: 16
DOI: 10.18260/1-2--40919
Permanent URL: https://peer.asee.org/40919
Download Count: 482

Request a correction

Paper Authors

biography

Rubaya Rahat Florida International University

visit author page

Rubaya Rahat grew up in Bangladesh, where she pursued her Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering at the Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET). After graduating she worked for two years in a construction management company in Dhaka,

visit author page

biography

Piyush Pradhananga

visit author page

Piyush Pradhananga is a Ph.D. Candidate in Civil and Environmental Engineering at Florida International University (FIU). Piyush holds a B.S. in Civil Engineering from Tribhuwan University (TU). Following his graduation in 2016, he joined a leading real estate corporation in Nepal as a site engineer working on a multi-million project. He later joined a research firm based in London where he worked as an Engineering Graduate Researcher. Piyush is currently a Graduate Research Assistant and Teaching Assistant at the Moss School of Construction, Sustainability, and Infrastructure at FIU where he focuses on multidisciplinary research that harmonizes sustainability in construction. His other research interests include Sustainable Construction, Robotics, and AI-based Construction, Engineering Education, Green Buildings, Sustainable Infrastructure, Resilient and Sustainable Post-Disaster Reconstruction, and Circular Economy. Piyush is also a LEED Green Associate and ENV SP (i.e., Envision Certified Professional in Infrastructure Sustainability).

visit author page

author page

Mohamed Elzomor Florida International University

Download Paper | Permalink

Abstract

The motivation of this study is to position problem-based learning (PBL) as an effective method to teach infrastructure sustainability as well as enhance the professional development of minority students in engineering. Indeed, the minority students’ exposure to active learning methods such as problem-based learning (PBL) can effectively foster their capability to deal with open-ended technical problems in their future careers. Additionally, the interactive nature of such methods can facilitate knowledge retention of emerging and effective sustainability concepts. This study highlights how the PBL technique can develop soft skills during sustainability education to Architecture, Engineering, and Construction (AEC) students at a minority-serving institution as an effort to promote professional skills of underrepresented groups, i.e., women of color, Latinos/Hispanics in a classroom. This study designed and implemented a PBL activity in a cross-listed Sustainable Approach to Construction course which introduced the students to: (1) sustainable infrastructure and Front-End Planning (FEP) techniques; and (2) how they complement each other to build sustainable infrastructure systems effectively. Sustainable infrastructure systems are critical to reducing social, economic, and environmental impacts on the built environment and FEP can complement building infrastructure systems sustainably by providing effective planning, better scope definition, and improved decision-making. A post-activity survey allowed the 35 AEC students to evaluate the improvement of their sustainability knowledge as well as multiple professional skills including leadership, communication, critical thinking ability, working in teams, and project management through the activity. The results indicated that most of the students including minorities had substantial improvement in their professional skills as well as advanced their knowledge in both areas of infrastructure sustainability and Front-End Planning. Furthermore, the analysis of the open-ended questions revealed that the students valued the PBL method because it offers interactivity, teamwork, an interdisciplinary knowledge-sharing platform, and the ability to simulate a real-life work environment. The findings of this study reveal the positive outcome of the implemented approach by integrating PBL activity in sustainability education for minority students from AEC majors. This method conveys an effective scheme to foster infrastructure sustainability concepts while nurturing multiple professional skills of minority students, particularly the underrepresented groups to better prepare them for the competitive real world.

Citation
Format

Rahat, R., & Pradhananga, P., & Elzomor, M. (2022, August), A PROBLEM-BASED LEARNING APPROACH TO DEVELOP MINORITY STUDENTS’ SUSTAINABILITY KNOWLEDGE AND PROFESSIONAL SKILLS Paper presented at 2022 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition, Minneapolis, MN. 10.18260/1-2--40919

TY  - CPAPER
AB  - The motivation of this study is to position problem-based learning (PBL) as an effective method to teach infrastructure sustainability as well as enhance the professional development of minority students in engineering. Indeed, the minority students’ exposure to active learning methods such as problem-based learning (PBL) can effectively foster their capability to deal with open-ended technical problems in their future careers. Additionally, the interactive nature of such methods can facilitate knowledge retention of emerging and effective sustainability concepts. This study highlights how the PBL technique can develop soft skills during sustainability education to Architecture, Engineering, and Construction (AEC) students at a minority-serving institution as an effort to promote professional skills of underrepresented groups, i.e., women of color, Latinos/Hispanics in a classroom. This study designed and implemented a PBL activity in a cross-listed Sustainable Approach to Construction course which introduced the students to: (1) sustainable infrastructure and Front-End Planning (FEP) techniques; and (2) how they complement each other to build sustainable infrastructure systems effectively. Sustainable infrastructure systems are critical to reducing social, economic, and environmental impacts on the built environment and FEP can complement building infrastructure systems sustainably by providing effective planning, better scope definition, and improved decision-making. A post-activity survey allowed the 35 AEC students to evaluate the improvement of their sustainability knowledge as well as multiple professional skills including leadership, communication, critical thinking ability, working in teams, and project management through the activity. The results indicated that most of the students including minorities had substantial improvement in their professional skills as well as advanced their knowledge in both areas of infrastructure sustainability and Front-End Planning. Furthermore, the analysis of the open-ended questions revealed that the students valued the PBL method because it offers interactivity, teamwork, an interdisciplinary knowledge-sharing platform, and the ability to simulate a real-life work environment. The findings of this study reveal the positive outcome of the implemented approach by integrating PBL activity in sustainability education for minority students from AEC majors. This method conveys an effective scheme to foster infrastructure sustainability concepts while nurturing multiple professional skills of minority students, particularly the underrepresented groups to better prepare them for the competitive real world.
AU  - Rubaya Rahat
AU  - Piyush Pradhananga
AU  - Mohamed Elzomor
CY  - Minneapolis, MN
DA  - 2022/08/23
PB  - ASEE Conferences
TI  - A PROBLEM-BASED LEARNING APPROACH TO DEVELOP MINORITY STUDENTS’ SUSTAINABILITY KNOWLEDGE AND PROFESSIONAL SKILLS
UR  - https://peer.asee.org/40919
DO  - 10.18260/1-2--40919
ER  -