Trial through Communication Games for Teamwork Skill Enhancement at First-year Students in Science and Technology Course

Abstract

The Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) of Japan had been promoted a “program of student employability” to cultivate a sense of sociality and independence in university education. Reflecting these trends, educational programs to improve the teamwork skills are in demand. At our university, first-year students are trained in group work skills and cooperative education. For this purpose, Career Planning and Career Design courses
are offered during first and second semesters of first-year education. Enhancement of teamwork skills at an early stage of education is deemed extremely important. In this paper, we report on a training program to enhance teamwork skills for first-year students of science and technology. Communication games were used to evaluate the importance of communication and teamwork. The effect of this trial was analyzed through a student questionnaire. As a result, we
confirmed that students experienced the importance of teamwork for the solving of problems through the trial of teamwork ability using communication games.