Making Foundation Design Courses More Engaging and Effective for Students-Paper

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The paper presents an inductive, project-based approach to teaching senior-level foundation design. At the start of the semester, students work in teams as geotechnical consultants tasked with designing foundations for a hypothetical city hall. Rather than being given a fixed sequence of design steps, teams identify the steps through course lectures and request relevant information from the instructor. A game-style competition rewards teams for correctly identifying steps and completing the design, while the final report is assessed for technical reasoning, design quality, and professionalism.<br /><br />The approach was used in two courses involving 43 students. Survey responses indicated that 90% felt the project contributed to their learning, and 70% said it helped them think more like engineers. Students valued the teamwork, challenge, and opportunity to apply course concepts. However, enthusiasm for the competitive element was mixed: 45% found it made the assignment more fun, while 25% disagreed, with some describing it as stressful. Students also sometimes struggled to define the design steps and assumptions.<br /><br />Overall, the project appeared to encourage engagement, critical thinking, and problem-solving, but its effectiveness is based on a small sample and self-reported feedback. The instructor’s guidance and careful structuring of the competition may help reduce confusion and stress.

Keywords

foundation design

inductive learning

project-based learning

geotechnical engineering

team-based learning

engineering education

student competition

critical thinking

problem-solving

civil engineering