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Refereed/Peer-reviewed

Refereed/Peer-reviewed

Refereed/Peer-reviewed

Over the past 10 years in the School of Advanced Manufacturing and Mechanical Engineering (AME) at the University of South Australia, fewer than five students studying in AME’s undergraduate programs have gone on to undertake a higher degree study by research. To find out why this is the case, a survey of all AME undergraduate students was performed to gauge their interest, understanding and attitude toward postgraduate study and research as a future career. The survey results indicated that the current undergraduate program did not expose the students to the possibilities of research as a future career or the viability of postgraduate study. The results from this survey have been used to develop a first step strategy to expose undergraduate students to research at the School of AME. This paper proposes possible solutions and discusses the development of a nurturing program which has been implemented as a major strategy to address this issue. To gauge the success of this strategic program an additional survey will be performed at the completion of the strategy’s first year. Refereed/Peer-reviewed

Refereed/Peer-reviewed

Refereed/Peer-reviewed

PurposeThis paper aims to examine some of the strengths and weaknesses of the use of online tools such as wikis and blogs for assessment purposes, with the aim of proposing future developments and improvements.Design/methodology/approachThe paper utilises a case study approach by examining the outcomes of a new first‐year course for all engineering students at the Institution Name that was introduced in 2008. The course, Sustainable Engineering Practice (SEP), gives students an insight into the disciplines of engineering and emphasises the skills required for working in multi‐disciplinary teams. It introduces students to the profession of engineering and how it is practised within a sustainable context.FindingsThe major assessment task for the course is the Engineers Without Borders (EWB) challenge and, for the first time in the engineering program at the university, wikis and blogs were used as assessment tools to evaluate student progress in meeting the course objectives.Originality/valueThe evidence of student reflections in their course blogs, and the discussions of the staff teaching team in course meetings, have been utilised to consider the strengths and weaknesses of the pedagogy adopted. These sources indicated that the use of these tools for assessment was effective, but that some modifications were required to improve outcomes for both staff and students.