Final Year Engineering Project and Its Contribution to Holistic Education

Abstract

The fi nal year project is a crucial component of engineering undergraduate education that is made a compulsory requirement by engineering accreditation bodies worldwide. This paper documents an approach toward the fi nal year engineering project that is consistent with an outcome-based education methodology as required by accreditation bodies but also incorporates the development of a desirable range of graduate capabilities through its unique approach. The method, implementation, measurement of outcomes, and survey fi ndings on the students taking this module are presented in this paper. For the measurement of outcomes, both qualitative and quantitative approaches were utilized. The quantitative approach consisted of using a Likert scale online survey as well as a software tool to capture the marks from various assessment components of the module to use as a comparison. The software tool links these assessment components to the module learning outcomes and the learning domains of Bloom's taxonomy. The marks attained were considered to be refl ective of the attainment of the outcomes. The qualitative approach utilized a written survey that is part of the online survey. This online survey focused on student perceptions assessed through the Likert scale and written feedback instead of marks. The data obtained from both approaches were analyzed and compared, and the fi nal year project module is evaluated for its effectiveness in delivering holistic education. These different approaches substantiated the fi ndings of one another and helped determine to what extent the holistic education outcomes were achieved.

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“…This is especially in worrying state for courses involving practical sessions that normally require face-to-face interactions such as laboratory work and final year project (FYP). A Final Year Project (FYP) is an academic task and/or a small investigation work carried out by a final year student that is formulated specifically to solve a complex research-oriented engineering problem over the course of a year (Gusau et al, 2019;Tien et al, 2015). Engineering accreditation bodies worldwide has made such a project a compulsory requirement for any engineering undergraduate education programs (Tien et al, 2015).…”

“…A Final Year Project (FYP) is an academic task and/or a small investigation work carried out by a final year student that is formulated specifically to solve a complex research-oriented engineering problem over the course of a year (Gusau et al, 2019;Tien et al, 2015). Engineering accreditation bodies worldwide has made such a project a compulsory requirement for any engineering undergraduate education programs (Tien et al, 2015). Although such project needs to be completed individually by every undergraduate student, it still requires supervision from an expert which in this case, the professors in the higher learning institute.…”

“…Clearly, FYP is an essential two-way teachinglearning process. First, it is an opportunity for the student to put all the skills and knowledge he or she has acquired throughout their studies into practice and thus, solving real life problems (Gusau et al, 2018;Tien et al, 2015;Uziak, 2015). Secondly, it is also a chance for the educators to identify the achievement of each student in the content of knowledge gained during their studies and obtainment of relevant graduate attributes (Tien et al, 2019;Uziak, 2015).…”