The mediating impact of assessment process in the relationship between project-based learning and teamwork skills’ development

Abstract

The significance of teamwork skills has been acknowledged in most professions and many organizations make performance evaluation judgments based on learners’ teamwork skills. Project-based learning (PBL) has the ability to harness the ability of students to work together. Consequently, this study evaluated the PBL based on the workshop/laboratory experiences of students by measuring the mediating effect of the assessment process to which PBL is employed to enhance students’ teamwork skills. A set of structured questionnaires was purposively administered to 205 students in technology and vocational education-related courses in tertiary institutions of South-Western States in Nigeria. The key analytical methods for the reliabilities test, normality measurements, composite average, explorative factor analysis, confirmative factor analysis, calculation, and structural model analyzes were Structural Equation Modeling (SEM), using version Statistics Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) Version 22.0 and 22.0 of Movement Structures Analysis (AMOS). The outcomes of the analysis revealed that PBL in relation to teamwork skills were statistically insignificant. Though, the assessment process on learners’ teamwork skills was found to be significant. Thus, it implies there is a need to reinforce learners’ assessment process in influencing PBL towards the development of students’ teamwork skills in their various institutions.