The Australasian Association for Engineering Education NEWSLETTER - SPECIAL PRE-CONFERENCE EDITION
November 2009
The 2009 AaeE Conference
Why not take a little time to familiarise yourself with our campus via the web before you come. This link is pretty good (http://www.adelaide.edu.au/tours/virtual/nt/).
Colin Kestell, AAEE Executive (Newsletter, Web and Conference)
For many it is the end of another academic year and although for some there are still exams to mark, the light is now well and truly at the end of the tunnel. Shining brightly is the conference, which promises to be a very exciting time with some excellent keynote speakers, a number of invited papers and a whole host of other paper presentations and workshops. So far we have over 190 registered delegates. The program is now on the web (http://www.plevin.com.au/aaee2009/program.htm) but since the sessions are still settling in, please keep an eye on it.
With the exception of Dr. Thomas's keynote address (which will be in Union Hall), all of the other sessions will be in the Napier Building (just behind Bonython Hall). All of the catering, internet access and the exhibitions will be in the Equinox rooms of the Union Building, which is only a short stroll away. The Keynote and concurrent oral sessions will be held Monday 7 December - Wednesday 9 December 2009. The conference will commence with an informal welcome reception on Sunday 6th December in the University of Adelaide Cloisters at 5.30pm - 7.00pm. Beverages, food and entertainment will be provided.
The awards dinner will be held on Tuesday 8th December at the National Wine Centre commencing at 7pm sharp. This will be an excellent opportunity to sample some of Adelaide's finest cuisines, wine and local beer. The social dinner is intended to be less formal than the Awards Dinner; this is on Monday 7th in the conservatory of historic Ayres House, beginning at 7pm. Both dinner venues are in easy walking distance of the University and our recommended hotels.
The Engineering Research Methods stream of the conference is always extremely popular and so in addition to the paper presentation session and a conference workshop, there are also a couple of additional opportunities: an optional Tuesday morning breakfast at Cafe Brunelli, 187 Rundle Street at 7am, and an optional full day workshop on the Thursday. Please contact Lesley Jolly for further details (ljolly@bigpond.net.au).
There will also be a CDIO special session as well as an introductory CDIO workshop. Next year, we are very pleased that the 2010 CDIO Collaborator's "Fall" meeting will be held in Sydney in conjunction with the 2010 AAEE Conference.
If you have trouble contacting me, you can also try: Erin Thomas at erin.thomas@plevin.com.au (preferred); Steve Grainger (Co-chair, Papers) at steven.grainger@adelaide.edu.au; or John Cheung (Co-chair, Sessions) at john.cheung@adelaide.edu.au
PhD Scholarship in Engineering Education - NEW at USQ
Professor Frank Bullen, Dean of FOES, has approved the offering of a post graduate scholarship in the field of Engineering Education for three years funded at $30,000 per year. The successful candidate may be able to supplement the scholarship by performing tutor and marking roles within the Faculty. Research proposals in topic areas such as the role of virtual teams in engineering education, problem-based learning, identifying and grading personal effort within the team context, methods for enhancing on-line engineering education, and problem conception and design for early levels of engineering education may be of interest. Please contact: Assoc Prof John Worden, worden@usq.edu.au, ph 07 4631 2215; or Lyn Brodie, brodie@usq.edu.au, 07 4631 2509.
New Journal focussing on engineering Applications and practice
The International Journal of Applications and Practices in Engineering Education (http://ijietap.utep.edu/ojs/index.php/japee) is focused on understanding engineering education practice and practitioners. The journal is an outgrowth of three CCLI projects. We are compiling the inaugural issue (to be out before March 2010) and welcome submissions from engineering educators. Arunkumar Pennathur, PhD - apennathur@utep.edu
Australasian Engineering Education Research Groups
A number of Engineering Faculties have formed Special Interest or Research Groups for Engineering Education. A new initiative is to provide details of such groups on our aaee-scholar wiki (http://www.aaee-scholar.pbworks.com) to facilitate networking opportunities and identification of areas of expertise. Please email details to Gerard Rowe at the University of Auckland (gb.rowe@auckland.ac.nz).
Resources and Bibliography available on Wiki
One of the key goals of AAEE is to provide helpful resources to our membership. One of our more ambitious projects in recent years was the collation of the AAEE bibliography. This is now accessible via our Wiki at http://www.aaee-scholar.pbworks.com. Here you will find key publications and a wealth of other resources on a number of relevant topics including details of workshops and conferences, resources for Special Interest Groups, Engineering Basics (Resources) from the ALTC projects and elsewhere, and Graduate Certificate Resources. Our Wiki is now interactive. Either request access via the link on the Wiki or contact us at bibliography@aaee.com.au.
Roger Hadgraft, Past President
CDIO Special Interest Group
The "Fall" CDIO Collaborator's meeting was held early in November in Turku, Finland. I attended this meeting to represent the ANZ Regional Group, AAEE (as a CDIO Affiliated organisation), to deliver an invited plenary talk on the new QUT engineering first year (integrated curriculum and management aspects), and to lead the debate for the introduction of an additional CDIO Standard on Internationalisation and Mobility. I am now leading an international working party to refine how internationalisation and mobility best practice may be encapsulated within the CDIO framework.
The Call for Papers for the 2010 CDIO Conference in Montreal has been released. Conference details including the CFP is at http://cdio.polymtl.ca/. For those wishing to know more about CDIO, you can visit http://www.cdio.org. There is also the fledgling AAEE CDIO SIG website with some local activities listed - http://aaee-scholar.pbworks.com/CDIO-PBL.
Duncan Campbell, AaeE Executive (CDIO Special Interest Group), da.campbell@qut.edu.au
Job Opportunities
Lecturer/Senior Lecturer/Associate Professor in Sports Engineering
School of Mechanical Engineering, The University of Adelaide, Australia. Job reference number: 1440.
We are seeking a new academic staff member to further develop the new Sports Engineering program in the University of Adelaide's School of Mechanical Engineering. You will be expected to play a key role in the Sports Engineering undergraduate teaching and research activities. In addition to undertaking research, and lecturing in sports engineering subjects, you will supervise undergraduate and postgraduate student projects.
You should have an undergraduate degree in Mechanical, Sports, Biomedical, Biomechanical, Mechatronic, Aeronautical, Automotive or Aerospace Engineering and a PhD (or equivalent experience) in one or more aspects of sports engineering, experience in teaching engineering-related subjects, and a passionate interest in sport.
The salary will be: (Level B) $73,228 - $86,960 per annum; (Level C) $89,700 - $103,436 per annum; (Level D) $108,009 - $118,992 per annum. An employer superannuation contribution of 17% also applies and this tenurable position is available from 1 January 2010. Please contact Ms Victoria Samra, telephone (08) 8303 5460, email victoria.samra@adelaide.edu.au, or Paul Grimshaw at paul.grimshaw@adelaide.edu.au. The deadline is 31st December 2009; please email applications to colin.hansen@adelaide.edu.au or forward in duplicate to Professor Colin Hansen, Head of School, School of Mechanical Engineering, The University of Adelaide, South Australia 5005.
AaeE Conference 2010 - Advance Notice
The Faculty of Engineering and Information Technology at the University of Technology, Sydney is pleased to host the 2010 AaeE conference from 5-8th December. As this will be the 21st AaeE conference it is an opportune time for the community to reflect on how engineering education has changed in the last 21 years and to look ahead. The tentative theme is "Past, Present, Future - the keys to engineering education research and practice." Note it in your diary now: AaeE Sydney 5-8 December, 2010. If you have any questions please contact Anne Gardner, AaeE Executive (2011 Conference Chair), anne.gardner@uts.edu.au.
Draft Listing of Engineering Education Journals and Conferences for ERA Rankings
Many thanks to the over 100 AAEE members who contributed to the survey. The panel preparing the submission has taken note of the survey results and the individual emails sent to me. Amendments and some additions to the current ARC lists will be provided to ACED for those journals which fall within our engineering education sphere of influence. We are also compiling a list of conferences which fulfil similar criteria for inclusion on the rankings list.
Engineering, Social Justice and Peace 6th Annual Conference
The Engineering, Social Justice and Peace (ESJP) network (http://esjp.org/) are delighted to announce their Sixth Annual International Conference, to be co-hosted with the Royal Society of Arts and Manufacture in London (http://www.thersa.org) from August 4th to 6th 2010 in collaboration with the Higher Education Academy Engineering Subject Centre (http://www.engsc.ac.uk/) and Engineers Against Poverty (http://www.engineersagainstpoverty.org/). Abstracts for presentations are welcome which critique existing or past practices and present just alternatives, critique or offer alternative forms of equitable engineering organization and management, or give examples of pedagogies, curriculum or community service learning which promote socially just engineering practice. We also welcome newcomers and students.
Elizabeth Godfrey, President AAEE