Team-based Learning: Promoting Equal Development of Teamworking Skills in Engineering Education

Abstract

Team-based Learning (TBL) has been widely claimed to be an inclusive pedagogic model as it has facilitated to reduce the attainment gap between different ethnicity and gender backgrounds. However, no empirical studies have so far demonstrated whether TBL consistently develops teamwork skills across different demographic factors, such as gender. In this case study, 24 diverse teams quantitatively assessed the teamwork abilities of their peer team members after completing a 10-credit TBL module by means of a digital peer-assessment tool. The results were subjected to a statistics test (Mann-Whitney U) to infer the significance of the students’ gender upon the development of different teamwork skills in a TBL module. Underpinned by the social-constructivist learning framework, the results indicate that TBL has no significant impact on favouring the promotion of teamwork skills across any specific gender group, at least under the condition of gender-balanced groups.

TBL applied to teaching engineering is demonstrated to promote gender-inclusive learning, and to prompt consistent perceived team performance, individual adjustment and support, and decision-making abilities across genders.