Abstract:

This study assesses the development of a learning model that addresses the reinforcement of teamwork (TW) and information management (IM) competencies of undergraduate business students enrolled at the EAE Business School, ascribed to the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya (UPC). EAE teaching strategy tries to enhance the ability of learning how to learn, which is associated with the concept of developing meta-competencies. Under this approach, the graduated student acquires meta-competencies when he is able to apply knowledge and skills by relating, combining and conjugating them in appropriate situations. This self-cognition is correlated with the student engagement throughout the learning process, and according to some empirical research results, it is consistently linked to high learning outcomes.

Accordingly, the main aim of this project consists of estimating the impact of the student's engagement and their perception of learning outcomes derived from a set of training activities associated with the generic competencies TW and IM, which are common to all the degree programs at the UPC. The project is comprised of two phases. The first part analyses the learning engagement in class activities, which is implemented in the context of the subjects of introduction to economics (first year), and worldwide economy (second year) to different groups of BBA students. The second part deals with analysing the impact of the learning engagement linked to the two mentioned competencies of those students when they are developing their final year projects (FYP). As such, this project involves a longitudinal study that corresponds to a timeline period from 2014 to 2018.

The research is framed by the following hypothesis: the assessment of the activities should make first year students aware of the importance and the need to acquire IM and TW competencies as a way to improve their engagement and the perception of their learning outcomes. In the implementation of the methodology comprising the first phase of this study, in order to assess the process of self-cognition of student’s evolution, intermediate and final objectives were set. During the class activities, students were given an assessment rubric that was used also as peer review evaluation tool aiming at reinforcing their participation, metacognition and engagement. Throughout the set of assessment activities carried out, the students had to interchange participation in mandatory and voluntary working teams, aiming at making students aware of the particularities of the TW and the management of roles in different groups. The IM competency was emphasized across the thematic contents of the activities. The second phase comprised the comparative comparison of the results of the first phase, by applying a self-assessment competency skill test to the students when they were enrolled to the FYP, at the fourth year.

The preliminary results may show that student’s cohort of 2014 positively impacted the self-assessment test, acknowledging that students subjective improve their TW and IM skills, and partially allow us to assume the utility of the learning model. The analysis of principal’s components (CPA) by cohorts and accumulated also supports this results. Since this preliminary results correspond only to the first year of potential impact, and are under revision; the systematic application would allow to isolate the bias by difference of cohorts in order to validate the model.

Keywords:

Assessment, learning evaluation, meta-competency, generic competencies, teamwork, managing information, cooperative learning.