Comparing Engineering Students Perceptions of Online and Traditional Face-to-Face Environments During a Problem and Project Based Learning (PBL) Module

Research examining the future of engineering education has highlighted forthcoming challenges for engineering institutions, such as increasing cohort sizes, limited budgets and a demand for the delivery of flexible, diverse and student-centred curricula. To this end, scholars have suggested the use of problem and project based learning (PBL) methodologies that can be implemented within hybrid learning environments. This paper examines and compares students' perceptions of a PBL module that was delivered by means of online and traditional face-to-face environments. The goal of this paper is to highlight the students' voice over other stakeholders to provide valuable insights into their preferences of current pedagogical practices. This in turn can provide information to improve teaching and learning in hybrid learning environments. This study was carried out with two student cohorts of first year engineering students. One of the cohorts completed the module in 2021 (N=94) in an online environment and the second in 2022 (N=89) in a traditional face-to-face environment. This paper focus on analysing the 2022 cohort and comparing the results against the findings presented at SEFI 2022 in Barcelona for the 2021 cohort. The findings revealed areas of significance for educators conducting PBL within online and hybrid environments. This includes the role of communication, module planning, dealing with conflict, and flexibility in learning.