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AuthorDu, Xiangyun
AuthorLundberg, Adrian
AuthorAyari, Mohamed A.
AuthorNaji, Khalid K.
AuthorHawari, Alaa
Available date2023-05-23T09:39:12Z
Publication Date2022
Publication NameJournal of Engineering Education
ResourceScopus
URIhttp://dx.doi.org/10.1002/jee.20430
URIhttp://hdl.handle.net/10576/43345
AbstractBackground: Few studies have reported how students enact learner agency in a team setting or examined what elements of team settings students perceive as more supportive of their learning in problem- and project-based learning (PBL) processes. Purpose: This study explores how engineering students perceive their enactment of learner agency, particularly which aspects of the PBL process they find most important. Method: Thirty-nine students from two PBL civil engineering courses in Qatar participated in the study. Q methodology was chosen for both qualitative and quantitative data collection and analysis. A 40-item Q set based on a theoretical model of learner agency was used. Results: Eight significantly different student viewpoints emerged from the Q methodological factor analysis, indicating a range of individual perceptions of learner agency. Intrapersonal dimensions were highlighted by three of the eight viewpoints, behavioral dimensions were underlined by seven viewpoints, and environmental dimensions were valued by all viewpoints. Conclusion: While the results reveal a wide range of individual experiences with learner agency across the three dimensions, students addressed self-directed learning aspects both actively and passively, suggesting that many participants still value instructors' roles of providing direct instruction and authorized knowledge in PBL. The results highlight the need for more awareness of learner agency and more opportunities for students to enact learner agency by increasing PBL knowledge, skills, and efficacy. Q methodology can contribute to engineering education research by providing new theoretical and empirical insights into learners' subjective understanding of agency in a PBL setting as a complex system. 2021 The Authors. Journal of Engineering Education published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of American Society for Engineering Education.
SponsorOpen access funding enabled and organized by Projekt DEAL.
Languageen
PublisherJohn Wiley and Sons Inc
SubjectEducation computing
Engineering education
Learning systems
Data collection
Engineering course
Learning process
Problem- and project-based learning
Project based learning
Qualitative data
Quantitative data
Student perceptions
Team setting
Theoretical modeling
Students
TitleExamining engineering students' perceptions of learner agency enactment in problem- and project-based learning using Q methodology
TypeArticle
Pagination111-136
Issue Number1
Volume Number111
dc.accessType Open Access


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