Geotechnical engineering is not a list of procedures, but a list of challenges 1. Geotechnical engineering projects are designed and analyzed based on data available at a particular site, which in turn are subject to quality and budget considerations. Two project sites are highly unlikely to share the same subsurface conditions 1, 2, 3. Thus, solving a geotechnical engineering problem heavily relies on a strong understanding of the basic principles of soil mechanics and a significant amount of judgment. In most introductory geotechnical engineering courses, there is often too much emphasis on methods and not enough on concepts and principles 3. In addition, most junior and senior Civil Engineering majors enter an introductory geotechnical engineering course with almost no prior knowledge in geotechnical engineering or geology.

The objectives of this multi-institutional study were to (1) assess the amount of exposure students have to geotechnical engineering prior to the introductory course, and (2) to assess student learning as a result of various pedagogical techniques used. The study was carried out at four institutions with Civil Engineering programs, three of which are predominantly undergraduate (with an emphasis on teaching) and one of which is a large research institution. Two of these universities are private, and two are public: