Educational landscapes are currently seeing an evolution of teaching and learning strategies, where more focus is being placed on cultivating better learning experiences among students. However, educators are still facing challenges in creating and designing learning environments that engage, enhance, empower and motivate students to become active participants in their learning processes. This is due to the lack of confidence among educators in building appropriate educational frameworks that enable effective redesigning of their classes, resulting in a persistence in graduate employability issues and the lack of 21st century skill sets. In Malaysia, the Malaysian Educational Blueprint Higher Education (2015-2025) presented the issue of the lack of problem-solving and communication skills among Malaysian graduates. In Indonesia, the issue of its large population has led to declining quality of education in universities which needs addressing. A popular instructional strategy to address these issues is project-based learning. Project-based learning (PjBL) has been shown to be an effective classroom design that helps facilitate collaboration, problem-solving and communication among students. In a PjBL learning environment, students work in groups to collaborate and investigate solutions to an ill-defined problem, which they need to solve as a team. The interactions occur in a social setting and the learning outcomes are presented at the end of the project duration. However, the efficacy of PjBL is still being investigated with regards to whether they result in real-life relevance between what was experienced and what can be transferred to the workplace. In such instances, pedagogical support is needed to enable this to take place. Authentic learning, a Constructivist-based learning approach, has been shown to positively impact the student learning process through the inclusion of authentic tasks and context, reflection, authentic assessments, and more, which have been shown to cultivate real-world relevance in students. As such the combination of PjBL and authentic learning principles can result in enhanced and positive learning experiences for students.

In this study, an authentic learning PjBL environment was created and deployed on Malaysian and Indonesian students taking design courses in Malaysian and Indonesian design faculties, respectively. The environment was mapped to authentic learning principles and the project required both cohorts to work on a real-life joint Malaysian-Indonesian project centered around the United Nations’ Sustainable Goals Development (SDGs). Learning outcomes from both cohorts culminated in an international exhibition showcase in an international forum. A mixed method research design was employed and data was collected and triangulated from student surveys, comments and open-ended questions. Findings showed positive results for motivation, real-world relevance, collaboration and communication, creative and critical thinking, and enjoyment, in both Malaysian and Indonesian cohorts. These research outcomes provide strong support for the synergistic combination of PjBL and authentic learning principles as an effective learning framework for the redesign of 21st century classrooms and improved student learning experiences.

Keywords: Authentic learning, Project-based learning, Malaysia, Indonesia, design education.