Co-teaching in a Singapore engineering classroom: students’ perceptions and learning outcome in speaking and writing

Speaking and writing skills are essential communication skills for engineering students to excel in academic classrooms and professional workplaces. This study examines the effects of co-teaching (CT) on engineering students’ learning outcomes in oral presentations and report-writing skills and students’ perceptions of their learning experience in a CT classroom, as compared to the traditional solo-teaching methods. A mixed method approach was employed, combining a true experimental design with pre-and post-tests, reflection papers, and a focus group discussion. Seventy-eight engineering students were randomly selected into three treatment and one control groups: 1) CT group (n = 20), 2) Engineering instructor (EI)-led (n = 21) group, 3) Communication skills instructor (CI)-led group (n = 22) and 4) Control group (n = 15). The results showed that CT provided a positive learning experience for engineering students, though it did not show any significant effect on speaking. Nonetheless, the CT method significantly outperformed the EI method in writing. Participants perceived CT positively in enhancing their learning experiences in promoting engagement in learning, reinforcing language awareness for specific purposes, and enhancing metalanguage use. In this way, this study offers insights into CT as a pedagogical tool for speaking and writing in an engineering context.