Enhancing postgraduate students’ technical skills: perceptions of modified team-based learning in a six-week multi-subject Bootcamp-style CS course

Abstract

Objective: This study explores postgraduate students’ perceptions of the modified team-based learning instructional approach used to teach it and the extent to which the Bootcamp course improves their practical skills. Method: In the beginning, participants (n = 185) were asked to rate their practical experience on the taught topics. At the end of ProgSD in S1 and Semester 2 (S2) during the Covid19 lockdown, respondents (n = 150 and n = 43, respectively) were surveyed on their perceptions of ProgSD. Wilcoxon test, Mann-Whitney U Test and Kruskal-Wallis test were used to analyse data. Thematic Analysis was used to analyse students’ comments. Findings: Results showed that students’ practical experience significantly increased at the end of ProgSD with a p-value < 0.05. Median ratings of the modified TBL activities and perception of teamwork were positive overall, and many (66.5%) felt more confident about taking the courses in S2. Qualitative results supported these findings. Implications: Findings have implications for practitioners facing the challenges identified here. Given the current pandemic, the authors suggest approaches to redesign face-to-face activities (tAPP) for online teaching and learning.