Enhancing communication skills of engineering students through EFL platform-assisted project work

Abstract

The primary goal of higher education is to prepare graduates for the working environment. However, traditional university courses often fail to teach the knowledge and skills highly demanded in the job market today. In particular, verbal and non-verbal communication skills in a professional context are essential. Fortunately, digitalization has made learning more convenient and effective through the implementation of technology. This article explores the use of EFL (English as a Foreign Language) platform-based engineering projects in ESP (English for Specific Purposes) extracurricular courses for engineering students in higher education contexts. The study aimed to assess the impact of using engineering projects developed with the help of partial incorporation of ESP learning courses on the Prometheus platform, on the formation of verbal and non-verbal communicative competencies of engineering students in the experimental group. The sample involved two groups of first-year students majoring in Electrical Engineering, Electromechanics, and Electrotechnology, with one group serving as the control group (ncontr. = 25) and the other as the experimental group (nexp. = 20). Data was collected from students’ engineering projects according to verbal and non-verbal communication skills criteria. For data analysis, we used Fisher’s criterion to assess the formulated hypotheses, and the calculations were carried out with the help of MS Excel. The results showed that engineering students in the experimental group outperformed their group mates by more than 1.5 in terms of written competencies and non-verbal communication skills in the profession-based context. Further data analysis based on Fisher’s criteria revealed a reliable difference in the share of participants who succeeded in defending the project in both groups. The study suggests that language learning platforms have the potential to be used in project-based study in ESP classes to help engineering students improve their verbal and non-verbal communication skills in a professional context.