Small Projects: A Method for improving Learning.

Ideas concerning problem-based learning (PBL) developed after running different experiences in different Spanish Universities, are discussed. The driver for introducing PBL has been the requirement for studying Mathematics by the Engineering students. A methodology hybrid of problem-based learning for Mathematics in Engineering studies is proposed. The model is a combination of formal lectures, practical and laboratory sessions with autonomous small projects.

Monitoring the communication competence in an innovative context of project management learning

This document presents an innovative, formal educational initiative that is aimed at enhancing the development of engineering students' specific competences. The subject of project management is the common theoretical and practical framework that articulates an experience that is carried out by multidisciplinary groups. Full utilization of Web 2.0 platforms and Project Based Learning constitutes the applied methodology. More specifically, this study focuses on monitoring communication competence when working in virtual environments, providing an ad-hoc rubric as a final result.

A Web-based Support System for Providing Effective Monitoring, Feedback and Evaluation in Project Management Education

This work introduces a web-based learning environment to facilitate learning in Project Management. The proposed web-based support system integrates methodological procedures and information systems, allowing to promote learning among geographically-dispersed students. Thus, students who are enrolled in different universities at different locations and attend their own project management courses, share a virtual experience in executing and managing projects. Specific support systems were used or developed to automatically collect information about student activities, making it possible to monitor the progress made on learning and assess learning performance as established in the defined rubric.

Active learning and generic competences in an operating systems course

The Bologna Declaration and the implementation of the European Higher Education Area are promoting the use of active learning methodologies. The aim of this study is to evaluate the effects obtained after applying active learning methodologies to the achievement of generic competences as well as to the academic performance. This study has been carried out at the Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, where these methodologies have been applied to the Operating Systems I subject of the degree in Technical Engineering in Computer Systems. The fundamental hypothesis tested was whether the implementation of active learning methodologies (cooperative learning and problem based learning) favours the achievement of certain generic competences (‘teamwork’ and ‘planning and time management’) and also whether this fact improved the academic performance of our students. The original approach of this work consists in using psychometric tests to measure the degree of acquired student’s generic competences instead of using opinion surveys, as usual. Results indicated that active learning methodologies improve the academic performance when compared to the traditional lecture/discussion method, according to the success rate obtained. These methods seem to have as well an effect on the teamwork competence (the perception of the behaviour of the other members in the group) but not on the perception of each students’ behaviour. Active learning does not produce any significant change in the generic competence ‘planning and time management'.

Cooperative Learning vs. Project Base Learning.

The Bologna Declaration and the implementation of the European Higher Education Area are promoting the use of active learning methodologies such as cooperative learning and project based learning. This study was motivated by the comparison of the results obtained after applying Cooperative Learning (CL) and Project Based Learning (PBL) to a subject of Computer Engineering. The fundamental hypothesis tested was whether the academic success achieved by the students of the first years was higher when CL was applied than in those cases to which PBL was applied. A practical case, by means of which the effectiveness of CL and PBL are compared, is presented in this work. This study has been carried out at the Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, where these mechanisms have been applied to the Operating Systems I subject from the Technical Engineering in Computer Systems degree (OSIS) and to the same subject from the Technical Engineering in Computer Management degree (OSIM). Both subjects have the same syllabus, are taught in the same year and semester and share also formative objectives. From this study we can conclude that students¿ academic performance (regarding the grades given) is greater with PBL than with CL. To be more specific, the difference is between 0.5 and 1 point for the individual tests. For the group tests, this difference is between 2.5 and 3 points. Therefore, this study refutes the fundamental hypothesis formulated at the beginning. Some of the possible interpretations of these results are referred to in this study.

A web-based application for the management and evaluation of tutoring requests in PBL-based massive laboratories

One important steps in a successful project-based-learning methodology (PBL) is the process of providing the students with a convenient feedback that allows them to keep on developing their projects or to improve them. However, this task is more difficult in massive courses, especially when the project deadline is close. Besides, the continuous evaluation methodology makes necessary to find ways to objectively and continuously measure students' performance without increasing excessively instructors' work load. In order to alleviate these problems, we have developed a web service that allows students to request personal tutoring assistance during the laboratory sessions by specifying the kind of problem they have and the person who could help them to solve it. This service provides tools for the staff to manage the laboratory, for performing continuous evaluation for all students and for the student collaborators, and to prioritize tutoring according to the progress of the student's project. Additionally, the application provides objective metrics which can be used at the end of the subject during the evaluation process in order to support some students' final scores. Different usability statistics and the results of a subjective evaluation with more than 330 students confirm the success of the proposed application.

Adquisición de competencias en dirección de proyectos en un contexto colaborativo descentralizado

Se presenta una experiencia educativa en el ámbito de la adquisición de competencias relacionadas con la dirección de proyectos. Alumnos de tres universidades y tres titulaciones distintas colaboran en la realización de un proyecto conjunto como instrumento conductor del proceso de enseñanzaaprendizaje. El objetivo es valorar la idoneidad de un enfoque multidisciplinar de colaboración a distancia basado en la metodología Project Based Learning en el actual contexto de cambio de paradigma educativo. La experiencia resulta innovadora y es utilizada para definir una rúbrica que permita medir un determinado número de competencias relacionadas con la ingeniería de proyectos y la dirección de proyectos de ingeniería. Un sistema software facilita la integración de las métricas definidas y simplifica los procesos de supervisión de la adquisición de competencias.