Technology-Assisted Student-Centered Learning for Civil Engineering Students

Abstract

Advancements in technology have progressed social life as well as educational scenario over the period. Every year this scenario undergoes a significant shift, due to demand of market and increment in various challenges as per the requirement of different sets of students. Consequently, revisiting the implementation of educational technology in the teaching and learning process is extremely important. This paper highlights the impact of technology to enhance students’ performance in civil engineering module, in which student-centric approach was followed. The study was conducted on civil engineering students at a private college in Muscat, Oman wherein a flipped teaching approach along with free online interactive tools is employed on most of the topics in a basic civil engineering module. A mixed method of three approaches was utilized in collecting data through various means such as questionnaires on the educational technology implemented during module delivery, records of three controlled groups based on their performance and participation in student-centric classroom activities, data and feedback analysis on students’ coursework and end-of-semester assessments. Findings revealed a significant and positive impact on students’ learning experience and their digital competency. The main thrust of the paper is anchored on how technology can be beneficial in providing ample learning avenues for students to improve their performance in class.