Impact of Project-Based Learning methodology on the academic performance of engineering students during the COVID-19 pandemic

During the pandemic period and the forced implementation of online education, an imminent need to renew teaching practices arose. Virtuality called into question the methodologies used and the learning assessment systems, since it was not sufficient to transfer the face-to-face class to a remote synchronous system. Aware of this limitation, a proposal for the renovation of mathematics subjects for the engineering degree focused on active and student-centered learning arose. For the purpose of the analysis, we collected data from 2020 to 2021, considering different groups of students who have taken the Integral Calculus subject. The results indicate that there is a slight positive effect on students with previous experience with the Project Based Learning methodology over those who did not use it previously. These findings reveal that this methodology is accessible to the students. We observed that performance on individual standardized tests was equivalent or slightly lower in the experimental group with the PBL methodology in the first subject. However, this process was reversed over a more advanced course. Even though individual written evaluations do not allow us to determine and quantify skills related to project-based learning methodology, such as responsibility, self-regulation, and critical thinking, the effects of applying an active student-centered methodology have positive long-term effects that can be transferred from one subject to another.