Abstract:

It is assumed that most professions will no longer exist in 20-30 years. New professions will be created, resp. the original ones will exist in a different form. Already today, all professionals and specialists are required to have an innovative approach to work and resilience to constant changes in work situations, conditions and requirements. The right combination of knowledge and skills is important for the success of individuals and companies. The four key competencies for the 21st century include the so-called soft skills: critical thinking, creativity, collaboration and communication. The current concepts of the teaching process applied in the environment of universities also try to adapt to this trend. New forms and methods of education and preparation of students for their future profession are being sought. The personal approach of today's students to their studies must also be taken into account. One of the ways to support the all-round development of students' personalities at technical universities is the application of the project teaching method.

This article describes and analyses the process of preparing and applying a project method in a subject "Operation Parameters Analysis of Technological Equipment". The content of the subject is focused on determining the technical condition of machines using non-destructive diagnostic methods. The main purpose of the project was to simulate the conditions of real company practice. Several methods and forms of higher education were used in the application of project teaching. The article presents an analysis of the role of the teacher as the author and coordinator of the entire project process. The analysis of the fulfilment of the set goals of the project, which was done after the end of the semester project, is also described. The continuous fulfilment of partial tasks; the working procedures used, the method of mutual communication and the results of the work of the research teams; students' approach to solving individual tasks, the ability to work in a team, the level of acquisition of new knowledge and skills and the overall course of teaching were analysed and evaluated.

Keywords:

Project method, cooperative teaching, role of the teacher, soft skills.