2026 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Civil Engineering plays a central role in designing, constructing, and maintaining the infrastructure systems that support the security, economy, public health and safety of society. It requires students to develop a deep knowledge of core concepts before entering practice. The traditional classroom, which utilizes single-attempt assessments and inflexible schedule, can lead to a high-pressure learning environment, resulting in a focus on grades instead of a deep understanding of the course material. In the traditional classroom, students proceed to the next topic regardless if a concept was sufficiently learned. This results in engineers having knowledge gaps at the completion of their higher-education training.

Competency-Based Education (CBE) is a learning environment where students progress through a defined set of competencies, advancing only after demonstrating mastery of the current competency. Unlike the traditional classroom, CBE provides a flexible learning schedule that includes multiple-attempt assessments paired with targeted feedback to support learning. While CBE is well established in fields such as medicine (Competency-Based Medical Education) and business, its application in engineering education remains limited.

This pilot study examines civil engineering student perceptions of CBE. This learning environment was implemented in Introduction to Transportation, a junior-level civil engineering course that contains 8 modules on topics including highway system design, geometric design, signal timing, and traffic flow theory. Core competencies were defined using civil engineering accreditation guidelines and assessments were structured with a many-to-many mapping between competencies and questions. Targeted text feedback for common errors was embedded in the Learning Management System (LMS) and students could retake assessments as needed to achieve mastery.

In Spring 2023, a single instructor taught the 16-week semester in a traditional format but introduced CBE during Module 3 (material taught in weeks 3–5). This module focused on highway vertical curve design, horizontal curve design, and sight distance analysis. Students could complete Module 3 competencies until the end of week 7. Of the 42 students enrolled, 29 completed the end-of-semester survey. Statistical significance could not be established due to the small sample size. Overall trends showed that students preferred the CBE format over traditional, regardless of test anxiety level. Those reporting medium to high homework anxiety favored CBE, while students with low homework anxiety preferred the traditional classroom. Students generally found the CBE structure easier to navigate, though opinions were mixed regarding which environment best supported learning.

Qualitative responses revealed key contrasts. Students viewed the traditional classroom as community-oriented, with stronger peer connections. They also described its rigid structure as stressful. Students appreciated CBE’s flexibility, immediate feedback, and opportunities to learn from repeated attempts. However, some noted that the additional time required for retakes and individualized pacing occasionally led to feelings of isolation, as collaboration was limited to preserve assessment integrity. Overall, the pilot study findings suggest improvements to the CBE environment to improve its future implementation in a civil engineering setting.