An article about some of the most relevant didactic aspects of the course "UCE15 Seminários" was published in the "European Journal of Engineering Education". The article, entitled "An integrated approach to develop professional and technical skills for informatics engineering students", is co-authored by J. M. Fernandes, N. van Hattum-Janssen, V. Fonte, A. Nestor Ribeiro, L. P. Santos, and P. Sousa.
The full article is available at the web of the journal: DOI 10.1080/03043797.2012.666517.
Abstract
Many of the current approaches used in teaching and learning in engineering education are not the most appropriate to prepare students for the challenges they will face in their professional careers. The active involvement of students in their learning process facilitates the development of the technical and professional competencies they need as professionals. This article describes the organisation and impact of a mini-conference and project work – the creation of a software product and its introduction in the market – aimed at the development of professional competencies in general and writing skills in particular. The course was evaluated by assessing the students’ perception of the development of a number of professional competencies through a questionnaire completed by 125 students from two consecutive year groups. The results indicate that the projectwork and the mini-conference had a positive impact on students’ perceptions of the development of professional competencies.
2012.05.08
