AAEE Award Winners 2005
Dr Gerard Rowe of the University of Auckland is the winner of the Teaching and Learning Category of the AAEE Excellence in Engineering Education Awards.
This awards caps a teaching career of over 20 years in Electrical Engineering in which Dr Rowe has won over 16 Teaching awards from the Faculty, the University, and in 2004 a national (NZ) Tertiary Excellence in Teaching Award – all of which have validated his interest in the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning
These awards have been the result of commitment, and conscious thinking about the effects he wants to have on his students. With a well defined philosophy underlying his teaching, which he summarises as “student centred” and “integrated”, Gerard not only performs well against the criteria of the award, but even more importantly he understands why he does so well. In the words of a former ex-student and now peer colleague, Gerard’s concern for and support of students has “endeared him to a generation of students”.
Gerard contributes on a regular basis to the University Continuing Professional Development Programme and his teaching philosophy is used as an exemplar of good practice in the University’s Certificate of Learning and Teaching program, in which he acts as a reviewer and mentor.
As Deputy HOD Academic, Gerard is seen as willing to unreservedly and proactively work on matters related to all aspects of curriculum design and delivery and most recently has been the major “architect” of the restructured Electrical and Electronic degree.
Associate Professor Neil Broom of the University of Auckland has been awarded the Highly Commended Award in the Teaching and Learning category.
This award is based on the clear evidence of a sustained record of high achievement and quality outcomes, not only in his teaching performance, but also for his leadership role within the Faculty of Engineering, as Chair of the Teaching and Learning Quality Committee, where he challenges and mentors all to improve their teaching.
Neil has set the “marque” for all Part 1 teachers, with his ability to make complex issues meaningful to large classes of students from all disciplines in the compulsory Materials Science course. With a focus on conceptual connectedness, stimulating classroom dynamics targeted at a range of learning styles, and the ability to incorporate his own and others’research into his teaching, Neil has been a regular winner of Distinguished Teaching Awards over a period of 10 years within the Faculty, with student evaluation scores of consistently above 8.5 on a 9 point scale. Neil was awarded one of three University of Auckland 2004 Sustained Excellence in Teaching awards at this year’s graduation ceremony.
Virtuous Reality : A model for transdisciplinary teaching and learning is the winner of the Curriculum Innovation award. The team behind this project is Prue Howard and Yvonne Toft of Central Queensland University.
This curriculum innovation had its beginnings as far back as 1996 as an action research project that developed and promoted synergy between the disciplines of engineering and ergonomics in two undergraduate courses, Mechanical Systems Design and Human Factors. The project has evolved through a number of cycles to a transdisciplinary team and communication model that not only incorporates project based learning, in distance mode, but also uses linked assessment for the two courses pertaining to common learning outcomes which reflect both disciplinary and generic graduate attributes. The latest cycle has consisted of a web-based learning community for the engineering and ergonomics students plus other allied professionals, and an online learning resource centre for engineering educators “Creating designs fit for people”. http://peopledesign.cqu.edu.au.
The team has published widely in the area over the last few years and in so doing has demonstrated the high level of relevant, practical and forward thinking perspective that they bring to the area of study.
OASIS Online Assessment System with Integrated Study Highly Commended in the Excellence in Curriculum Innovation category.
The team behind this project is Chris Smaill, Colin Coghill, Dr Abbas Bigdeli and Prof John Boys of the University of Auckland.
The OASIS project arose in 2000 at a time of decreasing staff:student ratios, firstly as an opportunity to use developments in computer technology to reduce the drudgery of marking, and secondly to play a key role in formative assessment by offering students skills-practice opportunities backed by prompt feedback.
OASIS comprises a large question database and server-side programme that delivers questions, marks student responses, provides prompt feedback and records a log of student activities. Students can access OASIS from any Internet capable computer, and can practice 24/7 (and they do!) before final assessments are conducted online. The system has developed and grown being currently used in more than a dozen Engineering and Physics courses with applications in other areas such as course concept inventories under development.
An action research programme involving statistical evidence, surveys, interviews, and focus group discussions has generated evidence on student behaviour and informed continuous improvements to the software which have been regularly reported to the engineering education research community.
USQ Engineering Problem Solving Team of the University of Southern Queensland, led by Lyn Brodie and Dr Thiru Aravinthan is the winner in the Curriculum Team Project Category.
This award celebrates the achievement of the Design, implementation and continuous development of two core Foundation courses in the Faculty of Engineering and Surveying, based on a Problem Based Learning paradigm which particularly addresses the graduate attributes of teamwork, problem solving and communication as well as specific technical skills and knowledge. The problem solving teaching team has developed unique and innovative pedagogies to deliver these team based courses to both on-campus and off-campus students around the world.
Designed and delivered by a truly multi-disciplinary, inter-faculty course team which practices the team work strategies it promotes, the courses utilise:
· Virtual Teams ( multidisciplinary) of students interacting through the Internet
· Multiple communication modes including face-to-face and web based delivery of resources, discussions and assessment.
· Continuous review and improvement including annual workshop for facilitators, an international dissemination
· Reflective portfolios by both staff and students
This online delivery of team based problem solving courses to off campus students is leading world wide developments in this field.
The Mekong –eSim project, led by Holger Maier from the University of Adelaide and Robert McLaughlan of University of Technology Sydney is Highly Commended in the Curriculum Team Project category.
The Mekong e-Sim was designed to facilitate students’ awareness of the political, social, economic and scientific dimensions of decision-making in situations requiring the management of conflict associated with resource development. This is a unique teaching and learning activity which has brought together a committed development team comprising subject mater experts, educational developers, project evaluators as well as technical expertise.
The activity has involved three different subjects and comprised 2nd, and 3rd year engineering students and 3rd year geography students drawn from the arts, science, economics and education, each having a different focus but using the opportunity for a shared learning experience. The activity has run since 2001 with between 65 and 140 students taking part each year.
The project has had a significant impact on progressing the pedagogy associated with internet mediated role-play simulation by the dissemination of e-Sim knowledge to other disciplines and to the literature.
Kepa Morgan of the University of Auckland is the winner of the Excellence in Inclusive Practice Category
Since 1998, Kepa Morgan has worked with the Faculty of Engineering, to increase the participation of Maori, in the profession of Engineering. As a respected Maori with a background of 15 years as a Civil Engineer providing credibility to the professional, academic and Maori communities, Kepa has added to his vision, passion, enthusiasm and drive to build the mechanics of a successful programme.
The strategy for increasing Maori participation integrates a diverse range of programmes (too long to list) and roles that spread over four major objectives:
· Recruitment – reaching out to schools and rural communities
· Retention – SPIES - supportive networks and peer tutoring
· Role modelling – building the pipeline - SPPEEX
· Research and curriculum integration
Recruitment, retention and pass rate statistics evidence the success of the program, but perhaps his major achievement is that Kepa has “sold” his ideas effectively to the Dean, Heads of Department and his fellow academics to such an extent that his colleagues have moved from seeing the programme as a “politically correct” imposition and resource competitor to seeing it as a needed and unquestioned part of their world.
The ITMOSS ( Integrated Team Model of Student Success) from the Auckland University of Technology, led by Tui O’Sullivan is Highly Commended in the Excellence in Inclusive Practice category.
The long term objective for ITMOSS is to improve the academic success of Maori and Pasifika students. ITMOSS locates the responsibility for ensuring improvement of the academic outcomes for these students directly with the staff and the students in their immediate academic environments. Success is seen as a pipeline starting with success in attendance, assignments, paper pass rates from one year Certificate programmes through to four year degree programmes and ultimately post graduate study.
The team in each Faculty includes an Equity Co-ordinator (for Engineering Tui O’Sullivan) and designated academic staff (Programme Leaders) who interact with other academic staff and the students. The integrated approach has enabled interventions to take place as soon as attendance, assignment deadline or academic results signal a need. This personal and peer support has seen a notable growth in participation and pass rates for both Maori and Pasifika students, particularly in the pre-degree engineering courses signalling the success of the ITMOSS policies in achieving their goals of improving academic success of students.
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