A NOVEL ASSESSMENT APPROACH TO ENHANCE MANAGEMENT, TEAM WORKING AND COMMUNICATION SKILLS FOR ENGINEERING STUDENTS THROUGH EMPLOYMENT EXPERIENCE
Year: 2024
Editor: Grierson, Hilary; Bohemia, Erik; Buck, Lyndon
Author: Monahan, Peter; O Callaghan, Lynette
Series: E&PDE
Institution: TU Dublin, Ireland
Page(s): 669 - 674
DOI number: 10.35199/EPDE.2024.113
ISBN: 978-1-912254-200
ISSN: 3005-4753
Abstract
A novel “employment experience” module is presented that utilises a students’ existing employment arrangements to further develop the key skills of communication, self-management and organisation. There is no requirement for the job to be in an engineering company, or to involve technical engineering tasks. The students report on their achievement of learning outcomes relating to ethical considerations such as health and safety, codes of practice, quality assurance and environmental considerations with evidence of their self-directed work within teams. The Employment Experience module aims to improve students’ learning experience in mechanical engineering by enhancing skills required by accrediting bodies, such as Engineers Ireland, through work-based experience. The process aims to develop key competences of an engineering technician: effective communication and interpersonal skills, self-management, professional responsibility, and creating and applying safe working practices [1]. Education in engineering must focus on behaviors and interactions between people rather than technical skills alone [2]. Successful students are awarded a module exemption in professional development in the next academic year. Employment is sourced by the student independently and a defined period of work experience is completed within an organisation. The employer’s permission is sought by the student to partake in the review the company’s organisational structures. Confidentiality is agreed where necessary. Presentations of the learning outcomes, case studies of previous students’ reports, and support from the careers team in terms of CV writing, employer and alumni connections are provided. The students partake in mentoring meetings during stage 2, the final assessment is an oral presentation on the employment experience and a written structured report giving evidence of the achievement of each learning outcome. Feedback from the employer is also collected. This paper presents a review of the novel assessment procedure for an employment experience process that has been implemented for four years. The literature reviews other established work placement and pedagogical approaches and highlights this approach’s novel elements. A reflection of the success of the approach to enhance management, team working and communication skills for engineering students is presented in terms of: i) quality of the alignment of student’s evidence of their individual employment experience with the module learning outcomes, ii) an evaluation of the pass /fail assessment procedure and assessment panel comments and conclusions, iii) how the learning outcomes met by participating students compares to the traditional professional development module that students can be exempt from if successful, iv) participation statistics of students and companies, not limited to the areas of the engineering, business, financial, service, and agricultural sectors, v) the importance of the 3-way equal partnership and responsibilities between the student, lecturer and the employer. [1] Una Beagon, Brian Bowe, “Understanding professional skills in engineering education: A phenomenographic study of faculty conceptions,” The Research Journal For Engineering Education, vol. 112, no. 4, pp. 1109-1144, 2023. [2] Engineers Ireland, “Engineering Technician - Regulations for the Title of Engineering Technician,” Engineers Ireland, Dublin, 2005.
Keywords: engineering, employment experience, authentic assessment, self-management, reflective, evidence