A Data-Driven Framework for Tailoring Project Management Education to Individual Needs Using Machine Learning

A Review of:
 Serrano, S. C. & Avilés, R. A. (2016). Academic librarians and project management: An international study. portal: Libraries and the Academy, 16(3), 465-475. http://dx.doi.org/10.1353/pla.2016.0038
 
 Abstract
 
 Objective – To investigate academic librarians’ project management education and training, project management skills and experiences, and perceptions of project management courses within the library and information science (LIS) curriculum.
 
 Design – Online questionnaire.
 
 Setting – 70 universities worldwide with LIS programs and at least one project management course. 
 
 Subjects – 4,979 academic librarians were invited to complete the online questionnaire; 649 librarians participated.
 
 Methods – From the identified institutions, the authors invited academic librarians to participate in a 17-question survey via e-mail. The survey was available in both English and Spanish and was validated via a pilot trial. A total of 649 individuals participated, for a response rate of 13%. The survey included questions related to geographic region and institution affiliation, university education and librarian training associated with project management, project participation and use of project management software or methods, and project management courses in LIS curriculums, and a final open-ended comment section. 
 
 Main Results – Of the 649 librarians who participated in the survey, 372 were from North and South America (58%). The next highest number of responses came from Europe (38%), followed by low response rates from Africa, Asia, and Oceania. Respondents reported working in a variety of library departments and identified themselves as being one of a director or manager, assistant librarian, or library page. Of the 436 respondents who reported having a university degree, 215 attended an LIS Master’s level program, and 12 studied at the doctoral level. The majority of respondents indicated they have had training in project management, participating in formal coursework, conferences, webinars, or other self-directed learning methods. Of the 459 academic library staff responding to the question, 40% considered project management courses of “high importance in the university curriculum” and 26 % responded that project management courses were “extremely important in their field of expertise and working environment” (p. 472). The consensus among participants was that project management courses should be included in both undergraduate and graduate level LIS curricula.
 
 Conclusion – The high participation of librarians in project management, compared to the limited formal education received, suggests that courses in project management, including software and methodology, are needed in LIS university curricula. Additionally, less than 40% of academic librarian survey respondents were trained in LIS; other professions are working as librarians and therefore may have insufficient knowledge and skills to manage the projects they direct. The research results confirm the relationship between strategic planning and project management skills. The authors conclude that universities should revise their LIS curricula to include and require additional project management courses.

Project management learning involves realization of the project management’s knowledge areas, familiarity with advanced tools as well as developing abilities like critical thinking and decision-making. The majority of inexperienced project managers struggle to achieve these essential skills. Teaching project management is sometimes difficult due to the involvement of practical implementation along with delivering the theoretical concepts. The subject has been explored in a variety of ways by the research community covering the improvisations in teaching methodologies and curricula as well as the applications of alternative approaches such as blended learning and gamification. This article presents the review of the state-of-the-art research in project management education by carefully reviewing the selected research articles published between 2015 and 2022. The primary goal of this study is to summarize the impact of blended learning, curriculum and gamification in project management education by examining the empirically verified research. The key findings represent that “evaluation research” and “solution proposal” are the two most used research categories. Furthermore, this study proposes a taxonomy, which is designed to summarize the fundamental components of blended learning along with their advantages. Moreover, the challenges and gaps as open issues are also presented in the area of project management education. Additionally, this research suggests a project centric model to enhance the learning outcomes of project management courses and provides guidelines for instructors to improve the blended learning and gamification experience for students of project management courses. Finally, the prospects of future research have been offered to the fellow researchers and practitioners engaged in project management education.

Modern project management approaches focus on maximizing the value realized from project; yet, many project management textbooks and courses do not incorporate this aspect in their curriculum. This paper reports on our experience in developing and teaching project management courses that integrate the element of maximizing project value in their syllabi. The suggested teaching approach uses traditional and innovative models to teach students how strategic and tactical project decisions should be made. Students are introduced to models that support strategic decisions such as matching a project objective to a business case, deciding on a project configuration, and developing a project plan. They also learn about tactical decisions such as ones that are made during project's execution and control, which are also important for realizing all the project benefits. Thereafter, students use an innovative model that links strategic and tactical decisions, implemented in a simulation tool, to experience the various tradeoffs that affect project value. Based on teachers' and students' evaluations, we recommend using the suggested approach in project management education.

Status and scope of project management in the hospitality industry

Interactive, two components combined to make one word. Inter, meaning between, among, or involving individual elements. Active, meaning to cause motion or change, implying action. A project is composed of the proposal, the plan, the schedule, the budget, the performance measures, the status updates, the termination, and the audit. These are all key concepts covered in a project management course. Often, when taught, these elements of a project come across as being stagnant, stand-alone entities. In the real world, these topics are anything but static. For this reason a Project Management course should be interactive. The outcome of each element affects the outcome of the others. Proposals are updated and resubmitted. Plans are changed. Schedules are altered. Budgets are cut. Changes are made based on the status reports given, and so on. Teaching project management should be more than teaching the individual components of a project, it should also impress upon students the importance of the interactions among these components. A well-taught course should ensure that the students have an understanding of how to react to the changes so prevalent in the working world. How is it possible to take a stagnant list of assignments and turn them into a dynamic, interactive experience? What changes need to be made to enhance the teaching of each stage of a project? How can the instructor show the interrelationships between the components? How can the instructor mimic the actions and changes prevalent in industrial projects? What activities does the instructor need to plan in order to show the relationship between the various elements of a project? This paper intends to provide readers with a structure for teaching an interactive Project Management course.

This study proposes an in-depth investigation into the efficacy of combining flipped learning and active experiential learning methodologies within the context of project management education at Open University Malaysia. The primary aim is to overcome the shortcomings of the traditional lecture-based teaching approach, which often falls short in engaging students and equipping them with the practical skills required for effective project management in real-world scenarios. By transitioning towards a more student-centered model through the implementation of flipped classrooms, this research seeks to enhance student engagement, learning outcomes, and overall satisfaction with the course. Employing a mixed-methods approach, the study will involve quantitative and qualitative techniques to gather comprehensive data. This includes pre- and post-assessment of students' knowledge and understanding of project management principles, alongside surveys and reflective journals to capture students' perceptions of the learning experience. The participant base will consist of students enrolled in a project management course, allowing for direct observation of the pedagogical strategies' impacts. The anticipated outcomes of this research are twofold. Firstly, it aims to provide empirical evidence on the effectiveness of integrating flipped learning and active experiential learning in project management education. Secondly, it seeks to offer actionable insights for educators and educational institutions on how to design and implement more engaging and effective instructional strategies. Ultimately, this study aspires to contribute significantly to the literature on educational methodologies in project management, paving the way for enhanced educational practices and student preparedness for professional success.

Student evaluation of a virtual experience for project management learning: An empirical study for learning improvement

Project-based learning (PBL) approaches are common in software engineering (SE) and project management education. However, the blended learning modality is still little explored in this context. The application of PBL in blended learning environments is called blended project-based learning (BPBL). In order to fill in this research gap, this study analyzed the implementation of an undergraduate SE project management course carried out in a Brazilian private university using the BPBL method. In order to evaluate the outcomes of the adoption of this method, a questionnaire was administered to students who were also invited to identify some lessons learned, assessed using content analysis. In terms of student performance and satisfaction, the results of this survey showed that student opinions are mixed. However, the students considered more “blended-ready” are said to be very satisfied with the experience and looking forward to another one. The outcomes of this study can be used to better prepare teachers and students to adopt BPBL in software project management courses.

Many scholars have criticized formal project management education as being based on various Bodies of Knowledge (BOKs), lacking real-world application and representing a narrow view of the profession. Through a survey questionnaire, this research inquiry has examined the alignment of project management professional needs with the aspirations of project management education within Australian universities. The research findings show positive links between project management education, increased employability, better workplace performance and successful professional careers. However, the research has also identified poor alignment of current project management education in Australian universities with project management practice and recommends possible revision of project management education programs to meet the knowledge requirements expressed by project management professionals. The findings of this research contribute to the debate in respect of bringing project management education closer to project management practice.

Responsible forms of project management education: Theoretical plurality and reflective pedagogies

To increase the interest in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) among high school students, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) created the “High Schools United with NASA to Create Hardware” (HUNCH) program. To enhance the experience of the students, NASA sponsored two additional projects that require universities to design and implement educational modules to be delivered over two (fall and spring) semesters to the six high schools in the area of project management. These modules exposed the students to project management concepts and tools that can be applied in their HUNCH projects. The benefits of the project management modules are: 1) acquiring knowledge in project management, 2) timely, cost- effective execution of the HUNCH projects, and most important, 3) increased student interest in STEM. This article discusses the details of Texas A&M University’s design and implementation of the project management modules. The faculty members involved in the sponsored research projects designed and taught the educational modules. The educational modules were reviewed by the Project Management Institute-Clear Lake (PMI-CL) to ensure consistency with PMI’s project management standards. Texas A&M University partnered with three high schools during this project. Undergraduate students at Texas A&M University who were enrolled in a project management course using project management techniques to complete their capstone design projects mentored the high school students. The interactions between the undergraduate and high school students proved beneficial to both parties. Pre- and post- tests in project management were designed and conducted in each high school. The data are used to analyze the effectiveness of student learning.

Health, safety and environment in the teaching of project management. The case of bachelor education in construction engineering in Norway

In today’s organisations, project managers’ responsibilities go far beyond managing projects within the triple constraints of cost, time and quality (Crawford 2005). They are increasingly being looked upon as drivers of strategic development of their organisations. This transformation in the role of a project manager calls for developing additional competencies such as business analysis and strategic leadership. The Project Management Institute emphasises a focus on these skills for project managers worldwide. Owing to the country’s fast pace of growth and the challenges that arise thereof, Indian companies and educational institutions are also fast realising the importance of holistic development of project managers. Recent research underscores the induction of soft skills and leadership capabilities in project management education. This has led to several studies in the international context that examine student experiences while attending courses in project management. A prominent characteristic that the literature has not dealt with in sufficient detail is the potential impact of prior work experience on students’ learning capabilities during the course. Since most Indian schools do not specify prior work experience as an admission requirement, cohorts usually comprise a mix of students with and without prior work experience. Hence, to analyse if pedagogy is effective, we must consider overall student experience and, in addition, whether and how the students’ heterogeneity in the form of their past work experience impacts their experience during the course. The objective of this study is to answer two questions: (1) is there a significant difference in perceptions of leadership aspects of project management between experienced and inexperienced students? (2) How can we design project management pedagogy to cater to this heterogeneity and yet provide superior student experience?

PROJECT management is a recurring theme published in EMR because innovations are typically managed as projects and thus, project management competence is essential to the career success of practicing technology managers. A course in project management is fundamental to nearly all engineering management education programs. On-line education and e-learning is growing rapidly and understanding the issues unique to teaching project management in this environment will serve the emerging generation of engineers entering the field as well as those already engaged in the profession.

Engineering Leadership in Civil Engineering Project Management CurriculumThe NAE, Industry, educators, and professional engineering societies communicate the need forthe 21st century engineer to understand the principles of leadership and to be prepared to lead in avariety of venues, including government. While many engineering schools support thisproposition, many also lack an explicit functional mechanism by which to achieve it. Someschools may seek implicitly to foster leadership development in students through co-curriculargroup activities. Some existing engineering course curricula may contain implicit and explicitleadership components.The search for life in our solar system has begun with an exploration of the planet most likely tosupport life: Mars. Similarly, the search for existing leadership content in the system ofengineering courses should begin with an exploration of the course most likely to support thiscontent: project management.While leadership may exist in various facets of engineering curricula, civil engineering projectmanagement courses serve as a likely location to gauge the presence and prevalence of suchcontent. The ASCE Engineer of 2025 suggests leadership should exist in civil engineeringcurricula, challenging academia to provide “a more robust educational path for civil engineersthat prepares them for leadership and provides the multifaceted non-technical skills to serve onprojects affecting the public good.” For the purposes of this paper, civil engineering projectmanagement will serve as a sensitive litmus test for identifying leadership elements withinexisting engineering curricula.The ABET a-through-k criteria are argued by some as offering windows for integratingleadership into the engineering curriculum across disciplines. Project management coursecontent may include elements of team development and effective communication; it may evenexplore the economic, environmental, social, political, ethical, health and safety,manufacturability, and sustainability of a project design and its impact in a global, economic,environmental, and societal context.This paper surveys introductory civil engineering project management course content andidentifies the extent to which explicit and implicit leadership-related content is currentlyincorporated within the curriculum. Syllabi were collected from ABET accredited USengineering schools graduating the largest numbers of BS civil engineers. The syllabi wereanalyzed for implicit and explicit leadership content. Criteria for identifying leadership contentwere developed through a literature survey of leadership frameworks and models. Courses wereidentified as having either no leadership content, some content within a class period, or at leastone class period dedicated to leadership content. The paper discusses the nature and extent ofextant leadership within traditional civil engineering project management courses, and exploreshow leadership topics might be better incorporated within this subject and other engineeringtopics.