STRATEGIES FOR IMPROVING PRACTICAL SKILLS ACQUISITION OF CIVIL

ENGINEERING UNDERGRADUATES:
AN AVENUE TO PACIFY FUTURE WORK PROBLEMS

TOPICAL OUTLINE

I. Practical skills directly determine an engineering student’s future work efficiency.

A. Work-related problems are traced back to an engineer’s lack of practical skills (Needs
Assessment).

B. Students’ practical ability, especially civil engineering students’ hands-on practical ability,
is an important factor for measuring the overall quality of students (Degang Shi).

C. An ideal engineer must apply the knowledge and convert theory into practice. The
engineer must be skilful and practical in the chosen field (Duyen Q. Nguyen).

II. Variables which are directly responsible for the lack of practical application skills of
the Civil Engineers in terms of:

A. Theory and practice unequal emphasis in engineering schools.

1. Less practical application training while laboratories are taught in a theoretical

manner (A.Rajesh Kumar, Dr.K.Murali).

2. Students studying civil engineering spend most of their time learning basic
theories (Degang Shi).

3. Practice is overrun by theory. (Kyle Wagner).

B. School conditions

1. The peak enrolments shortage in faculty, lack of educational resources, teaching

and lab equipment, resulting in the lack of practical ability among students.

2. Teacher teaches theory at the blackboard and students take notes due to lack of
models and equipment.
 C. Teacher (instructional methods)

1. Real practical ability and creativity are rarely required by the testing system.
As a result, students are most concerned about how to pass the examination
and get a diploma (Degang Shi).

2. Methods of teaching are the most significant predictor of practical skills of

students (Audu, R., Yusri Bin Kamin , Aede Hatib Bin Musta’amal &
Muhammad Sukri Bin Saud).

3. Training institutions have competent and experienced teachers that adopt

effective and efficient instructional methods.

4. Most of teaching faculties are unskilled; they were not ready to update their
knowledge in current trends. Poor teaching methodology. (A.Rajesh Kumar,
Dr.K.Murali)

D. Students’ Characteristics

1. Lack of interest in practices (Degang Shi).

2. Less confident in participating internships (Jan Wrenn & Bruce Wrenn).

III. Strategies to address the need to improve the practical skills acquisition of Civil
Engineering undergraduates

A. To prioritize practical training in engineering schools to enable students to apply

theories to practices (King, & Duan, 2010).

B. Strengthening practical teachings more or in equal proportion to that of theoretical

discussions; Reform and reorganize old curriculums apt for the trend and
advancement. (Shi, 2014).