A three-wave survey of 166 students in a Chinese UI-design course found that project demands, teacher role, assessment and social context predicted engagement, which in turn predicted design-thinking competence (β=0.535).
Key findings
- Project demands (β=0.174), teacher role (β=0.313), assessment (β=0.280) and social context (β=0.253) predicted engagement. Direct paths to competence were non-significant, while all engagement-mediated paths were significant.
Why this matters globally
The model informs project-course design by balancing challenge with supportive resources, relevant to design and innovation education internationally.
Thai researcher contribution
KMITL industrial-education researchers collaborated with Chinese and UK partners to develop and test the learning model.
Limitations to consider
The single-course sample of 166 relies on self-report. Time separation helps but no randomised comparison exists, leaving common-method and causal limitations.