CAREER: Exploring the Relationship Between Self-Efficacy and Project-Based Learning Among Engineering Students

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This award is funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5)This engineering education research CAREER award to Franklin W. Olin College of Engineering will determine the impact of first year project-based learning courses on increasing self-efficacy in all engineering students, regardless of background and preparation. Low self-efficacy is often associated with student decisions to leave engineering programs, and better understanding differential impacts on students of implementations of project-based team-oriented learning components can improve the quality of engineering education as well as retention and diversity. This research will investigate whether the activities in these courses, as currently implemented, increase self-efficacy for all students. Individual students in a project team will spend time on different tasks and may select tasks which do not provide mastery experiences. Self-efficacy of first year students will be measured in relation to the amount of time spent on different team project tasks. The project will include students from a small private undergraduate engineering college, a medium sized private research university, and a large public university, with significant participation of women and underrepresented minority students. As a result of this research, interventions will be developed to ensure that all students engage in activities which have been identified as most likely to improve self-efficacy. This research may be transformative in understanding gender based self-confidence differences in engineering, and the results will be valuable for all students. Results of this research will be widely disseminated and workshops will be held for engineering faculty. This research will have profound impact on improving engineering education and retention in all disciplines, and will enhance the number of students who complete engineering degrees and are ready to fill engineering jobs.