Supporting the attainment of professional attributes in a work based learning programme

With the impending change in the higher education landscape within the UK there is a greater need for flexibility and innovation in the delivery of degree programmes. One flexible and innovative form of programme delivery is the work based learning platform. Additional academic guidance is imperative for students undertaking a work based learning programme due to the flexible nature of the programme. However in providing this academic guidance and support it places additional demands upon both tutor and student. Hence creative approaches which alleviate these demands are required to facilitate conversations between tutor and student as well as that from student to tutor. This paper will describe the current approaches used and how these demands are particularly important within the context of the personalised nature of work based learning. The contrasting characteristics with classroom based teaching will be highlighted. In particular this will include the authenticity and those factors which relate to the strong ownership of the context by the student within this mode of learning

Approaches to the embedding of sustainability into the engineering curriculum - where are we now, and how do our graduates become global engineers?

This paper presents a resume of how the topic of sustainability can become fully-integrated into the engineering curriculum in the UK, and how this needs to evolve toward consideration of how graduates could be better developed as global engineers. The paper begins by providing a justification as to why sustainability is an important feature of the already overcrowded engineering curriculum, and briefly reports, through illustrative examples, on alternative approaches which currently embed sustainability into the engineering curriculum. The paper makes the case that it is timely now to re-address the learning outcomes in order to enhance the students’ experience beyond just the inclusion of new curriculum content It does this by consideration of the identified drivers that range from the accrediting bodies and from the aspirations of employers, through revised approaches to embed sustainability, to the consideration of students’ own perceptions of sustainability and ultimately to their becoming employed as global engineers. The paper therefore discusses both the current and planned work toward supporting the development of engineering graduates into global citizens, with a greater emphasis upon their responsibility to ensure a sustainable future world, moving beyond sustainability awareness towards informed application of sustainability thinking

An introduction to sustainable development in the Engineering curriculum

The guide looks at why and how EngSD is included in the engineering curriculum and considers embedded versus discrete approaches. It discusses approaches to teaching and learning for EngSD, including examples of EngSD within the curriculum and a ‘what next?’ section, which points the reader towards further areas of study and practice. As an introduction to EngSD within engineering programmes, this guide does not seek to prescribe courses of action but rather aims to outline the main opportunities, sources of guidance and educational resources which may enable informed debate and decision making. Both personal action and leadership are required in equal measure if graduate engineers are to meet the needs of society, even when society itself may not be taking action (Blincoe, 2009). Readers of this guide should, therefore, feel empowered toward personal action and leadership in the encouragement of their future graduates in becoming effective global engineers

Staff and student perspectives on embedding sustainability into the engineering curriculum

Recognising that sustainability is an important concept within engineering this paper describes a project run by a team of academics which sought to investigate how engineering students viewed sustainability, what role they perceived it to hold in their work, and how they felt it should be incorporated into their education. Students and academics acted as equal stakeholders in the project with the students coming from a range of backgrounds including undergraduate and postgraduate programmes in Mechanical Engineering, Product Design, Electrical Power Engineering and Multidisciplinary Design Innovation. The investigation sought to understand student and staff perceptions of how the university approached the concept of engineering education for sustainable development into the curricula. An additional aim of the research and activities of the project was to contribute to influencing how sustainability may contribute to engineering curriculum change within UK higher education. The activities conducted by the project team demonstrated that students and staff currently have an awareness, yet a limited understanding, of sustainability. Students strongly felt that sustainability was a key part of an engineer’s role and responsibilities. The findings recognized scope for concepts of sustainability to be more effectively included it in the curriculum for engineers adding many opportunities for imaginative pedagogies. It is proposed that students should also be encouraged to generate their own conceptions of sustainability and globalization and participate in discussions around these to ensure personal engagement with them. The project outcome generated valuable material which could support communication and dialogue about sustainability to support the education of global engineers

Interaction effects between surface radiation and double-diffusive turbulent natural convection in an enclosed cavity filled with solid obstacles

The work reported here is a 2D numerical study on the buoyancy-driven low speed flow of humid air inside a rectangular cavity partially filled with solid cylindrical objects and whose vertical walls are maintained at 1.2 and 21 oC. This is a case of double diffusion where both temperature and concentration gradients are significant. Detailed calculations were carried out and results compared with reliable data, with the aim of investigating the influence of surface emissivity on heat and moisture transport. The Rayleigh number of the fluid mixture (air and water vapour) based on the height of the vertical wall is found to be 1.45 x 109. In the computations, turbulent fluxes of the momentum, heat and mass were modelled by low-Re (Launder-Sharma) k-ε eddy viscosity model. The effect of radiation has been found to be significant even for the moderate temperature difference of 19.8 oC between the hot and the cold walls with the humid air participating in the radiation heat transfer. Variations of average Nusselt number and buoyancy flux are analysed and profiles of turbulent quantities are studied in order to observe the net effect of the intensity of turbulence. It has been found that a change in surface emissivity influences the humidity distribution and heat transfer within the cavity. It was also observed that during natural convection process the air/water vapour combination results in an increase in the heat transfer as compared to pure natural convection. An increase in heat transfer is observed using thermo-physical materials of higher surface emissivity. It can thus be implied that with the appropriate choice of components, the fluid flow, heat and mass transfer due to natural convection can be increased passively

Initial findings of a mixed methods investigation into students’ perceptions and approaches towards learning

A Mixed Methods research methodology is suggested in this paper as a suitable model for the process of evaluating teaching and learning. The aim of this paper is to introduce some findings which have been obtained from research into teaching and learning within engineering at a UK Higher Education Institution. Students’ approaches, and the effects their perceptions have in determining their approaches to learning, have been explored. The data gathered highlighted some issues with regard to teaching and learning that are relevant to a range of courses and that can inform the quality enhancement of teaching provision. It is suggested that a mixed methods evaluation has advantages over standard institutional teaching and learning evaluations in allowing a greater understanding of the learning situations students encounter, how these situations are perceived, and how they affect students’ learning behaviour. Amongst the issues raised by the research is the notion that students have definite ideas, expectations and opinions about their learning contexts. The concept of importance emerged to show that students were identifying perceptions and approaches to learning based on their importance rating of a subject. Patterns in students’ questioning behaviour were also identified, highlighting possible limitations to students’ academic development within lectures

Valuing diversity and establishing an approach to supporting excluded groups

Minority students and minority employees in Higher Engineering Education experience inequality. For academic staff these inequalities impact their personal development and career progression. To continue to grow and for engineering education to thrive as a professional discipline we must encourage diversity within both the student and staff populations. This paper cautions against a simple notion of diversity, rather a truly diverse culture within engineering is needed, one in which there is diversity of opportunity, diversity of thought and diversity of experience. To enable a more inclusive environment to flourish we must understand the scale of the inequalities which exist. However, this paper demonstrates that there are significant limitations to the current diversity data within the UK which leaves room for under-reporting and over-generalising. In addition, there are cultural challenges which give further likelihood to non-disclosure and lack of self-reporting. This paper proposes that further research is needed into the true lack of diversity within engineering and describes one example of a ‘thought experiment’ conducted by the researchers to start unpacking the data and highlighting the scale of the issue

Effectiveness of technology to support work based learning: the stakeholders' perspective

Higher education provision typically requires learners to physically attend sessions on campus. The economic climate has changed significantly over the past few years in the UK and globally. Inevitably changes to student funding and the increased competitive nature of the job market have impacted on university teaching. The use of work based learning (WBL) is an alternative flexible form of learning that attempts to tackle these issues. It enables students to learn whilst they work, addressing the funding issues, and enhancing their employability through the acquisition of higher professional qualifications. Often such WBL programmes are designed, delivered and supported from the view of the student and academic staff with little consideration of other stakeholders such as employers, workplace mentors and professional bodies and the input they can bring to enrich the learning and teaching provision. This paper presents the findings from a survey conducted among stakeholders from all four pillars of WBL, namely the learner, the academic environment, the workplace and the external context. Online questionnaires and interviews were carried out with students, tutors, program leaders, employers and professional bodies from four postgraduate programmes at the university. The results show that while there is a reluctance to embrace technology among some academic staff, students are generally positive about using the technology. The survey also demonstrates that there is a lack of creativity and imagination in the use of technology, where often platforms such as virtual learning environments are used simply as repositories for presentation slides, handouts, etc. The results of the study conclude or rather remind all involving parties to pay more emphasis on quality of online programme delivery by embracing technology and use it in novel and imaginative ways to provide a learning and teaching provision fit for the twenty-first century