Mathematics Day: Elements and Applications of Mathematics in the Final Year Project

Mathematics is one of the major subjects that every engineering student needs to learn. However, every student may have different views and interests on Mathematics subjects because of their different levels of thinking. To foster the appreciation of engineering students on the applications of Mathematics in engineering courses and help them apply and enhance their mathematical knowledge, the Fundamental Engineering Unit at the Faculty of Engineering and Built Environments, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM), organised the first ‘Mathematics Day' on Thursday, May 4, 2017. For their final year project, 12 students participated in a competition where they used mathematical or statistical applications to create a poster. The competition was judged by the academic assessors, industry and UKM alumni. This study examines the mathematical elements and applications in students' posters. The relevance of the elements and topics in the Engineering Mathematics course in the posters is reviewed. Reports from students who were present during the competition are also analysed to determine the effectiveness of the activity. The expected outcome of the student reports is interpreted using a statistical descriptive method, and results indicate that the students had a positive reaction to the activity.