Using Problem-Based Learning to Stimulate Entrepreneurial Awareness Among Senior African Undergraduate Students

Abstract

Literature states that entrepreneurial awareness is required in countries where entrepreneurship is neither publicized nor acclaimed, which is currently the situation in South Africa. Entrepreneurial skills include the ability to market one’s product by means of a sales poster while problem-based learning is viewed as fundamental to entrepreneurial education. The research question arises “How may academics use problem-based learning to stimulate entrepreneurial awareness among senior African undergraduate students?” The purpose of this article is to present a practical assignment which was designed to help students think about entrepreneurship while engaging in problem-based learning. Engineering students were asked to help resolve the problem of poor television reception in the Vaal Triangle community by designing and constructing a specific antenna and then designing a sales poster to market their product. Quantitative and qualitative data reveals that students are able to engage in problem-based learning in engineering, but lack the ability to design an effective sales poster which forms part of entrepreneurial skills. Results further reveal that students were able to meet the learning outcomes for this practical assignment and really enjoyed the problem-based learning approach.