Abstract:

The paper discusses the Problem Based Learning (PBL) as a teaching methodology chosen to enhance learning and studying and, moreover, to develop soft skills within engineering domain. It is based on a personal experience as a professional (associate professor) working with students of architecture and urban planning.

It is observed a great shift in the way young people acquire knowledge and approach design tasks nowadays. In consequence, it calls for more attractive, technology based and dynamic pedagogical methods. The contribution to EDULEARN16 is not only a case studies description but, on the contrary, in-depth analysis of students’ skills development throughout the semester while working in PBL settings.

What is more, since the course is lead entirely in English, and involving Erasmus students in the PBL groups, it definitely brings an added value to the overall outcomes. It is worth mentioning here, there is also a goal to prepare students to the international and multicultural working environment by developing soft skills such as teamwork, collaboration, tolerance and broad-mindedness.

The paper and presentation will be enriched by illustrative material and multimedia to better understand the tasks, the process of learning how to analyze a given problem, understand it, interpret and find the solutions.

The author believes the paper will contribute to a discussion on pedagogical innovations in education being one of the focus areas of EDULEARN16 Conference.

Keywords:

Problem based learning, innovation, architecture.