The role of discursive strategies in engineering education for freshmen

The education system benefits from the interaction between students and educators, which is widely associated with effective human-centred learning. In the specific case of engineering education, practical activities in collaborative work environments greatly support the acquisition of the technical and social skills necessary for engineers’ professional practice, where oral communication serves as a driving force that connects all these abilities. This study analyzes the communication practices outlined in the syllabi of undergraduate engineering programmes to improve the efficiency of the educational system. A comprehensive analysis, based on a case study, examines the discursive strategies applied to educational policies through first-year subjects and their relationship with the curriculum, with a focus on didactics and evaluation. The analysis indicates that the discursive practices recommended in the examined higher education system include both written and oral discourse, even though writing and reading have traditionally been the primary approaches to teaching and learning. Academic orality has been deprioritized in the higher education system, as evidenced by its absence in assessment. In first-year courses, such as Algebra, Calculus, and Physics, written discourse is strongly emphasised as essential for teaching complex mathematical concepts, whereas programming courses, such as Programming Workshop, emphasise a dual use of written and oral discourse in learning strategies and evaluation. The findings indicate consistent discursive patterns in syllabi of first-year engineering courses, suggesting implications for teaching and assessment design. However, as a syllabus-based study, no inferences can be made about student engagement or performance.