Important soft skills to be integrated in the teaching of technical courses: Views of lecturers versus students

Abstract

Institutions of higher education have been pressed by industry practitioners to produce quality graduates who are ready to compete in competitive job market locally and globally. Graduates, especially in the technical field are perceived as being strong in their technical skills but are lacking in non-technical or soft skills that would enable them to use their technical skills most effectively. Thus, it is vital to integrate the soft skills in the teaching and learning process especially in the realm of engineering in order to further enhance the students' ability in non-technical skills. This empirical study attempts to find out on the views of lecturers versus the engineering students on integration of important soft skills in the teaching of technical courses. The study was based on quantitative method, utilizing two sets of self-developed questionnaire survey. Perspectives from both the lecturers and final year students were sought. The findings pointed out that on the views of lecturers and students regarding the integration of soft skills in the teaching of technical courses were similar on Critical Thinking and Problem Solving skills, and Communication Skills, but significantly different on Team Work and Leadership skills. The implications of the findings are further discussed.