News

Feedback is questionable in the intercultural context

In 2012, Eindhoven University of Technology launched the Bachelor College reform. As part of this reform, interim testing was introduced for (almost) all bachelor courses. Courses were obligated to provide interim assessments during the course, such as exams or assignments that counted for at least 30% of the final grade. These interim tests would provide early feedback to students about their academic progress and encourage them to engage with their learning at an early stage in each course, and were expected to provide immediate benefits to students’ learning achievements in courses, as well as teach them ‘healthy’ study habits in the long run (i.e. not always cramming at the last possible moment).

End of January 2019, 4TU.Centre for Engineering Education had the privilege to visit the Amsterdam Metropolitan Institute. 30 participants from the 4 Technical Universities in the Netherlands participated in this first stop of the 4TU learning spaces tour. The programme consisted of two site visits to two living labs: HOOD and DIGITAL, where students of the master Metropolitan Analysis, Design and Engineering (MSc MADE) in action contexts and stakeholders were interviewed on their experiences and the pedagogical framework in which they were working. Read the blog written by 4TU.CEE programme coordinators Renate Klaassen (TUD) and Chris Rouwenhorst (UT) and view the presentations.

End of November a group of some 40 4TU staff gathered for a two-day workshop to discuss and work on interdisciplinary education. It was guided by Prof. Siddhartan Govindasamy and Prof. John Geddes from Olin College, where almost all education is interdisciplinary. It is considered as one of the leading institutes in engineering education by Ruth Graham. Learn more by reading the blog of 4TU.CEE programme coordinators Renate Klaassen (TUD), Chantal Brans (TU/e) and Chris Rouwenhorst (UT).

Thomas Reeves (University of Georgia Athens) and Susan McKenney (UT) delivered a workshop on 12 December. A group of twenty-four teachers, academic staff and doctoral students was introduced in how to perform educational design research. This approach is strong when pursuing empirical inquiry in real learning settings. It offers strong feedback for educational developers who can then readjust their designs in an evidence informed way. At the same time it strives towards lessons learned beyond the individual case studies.

Teachers often arrange yearly field trips for students to a company or factory to get practical insights on a specific topic. However this can be a hassle due to organisational reasons and often only a couple of students are allowed to join due to, for instance, safety reasons. A field trip is however an engaging activity and can make deeper connections with the subject than book alone. A virtual tour could be an alternative for students who cannot join in the field trip. Furthermore it allows students to go on a field trip at any time, place and pace. Last year TU Delft developed a virtual tour in a wastewater treatment plant for bachelor students in Civil Engineering to explore its usability. ‘Last year a lot has been learned about challenges in the design and execution of the virtual tour’ says Danielle Ceulemans, educational researcher/designer at 4TU.CEE and involved in this project. Design guidelines for developing a virtual tour are now available.

Ruth Graham visited the University of Twente on 28 November for a workshop on rewarding teaching excellence and a keynote lecture on the future of engineering education. The presentations are included in this article.

At the start of this academic year a first pilot of the Joint Interdisciplinary Master Project (JIP) ran at TU Delft under the auspices of 4TU.CEE. A group of 13 students coming from different faculties and countries worked on real-life interdisciplinary projects brought in and supervised by Royal Haskoning DHV, Huisman Equipment and Feadship Royal Dutch Shipyards. ‘It was an interesting and challenging roller coaster ride getting it all up and running in which all participants learned along the way,’ says Birgit de Bruin, JIP project coordinator.

Universities play an important role, preparing students for a labour market that is undeniably moving towards the use of new emerging technologies. These technologies though are recognized only to a very limited extend in tertiary education as essential and helpful to improve the connection with the demands on the labour market. Therefore 4TU.CEE initiated an explorative research into emerging technologies in 2015-2017: ‘Emerging technologies; do we need them and can we make them work’. The report is now available online.

The University of Twente invites you to the Seminars: 'The ins and outs of TOM'. The Seminar is a 1 or 1.5 day event for (international) educational professionals and teachers who are interested in our innovative education model.

On Thursday 13 December the first 4TU.CEE PhD candidate, Inken Gast, is defending her dissertation titled “Team-Based Professional Development – Possibilities and challenges of collaborative curriculum design in higher education”. The past years Inken has studied the professional development of teachers at the UT during the implementation of the Twente Educational Model (TEM).

Inaugural lecture prof. dr. Perry den Brok

As per 15 September Perry den Brok has been appointed as new chairman for the 4TU.Centre for Engineering Education. He succeeds Jan van der Veen who held this position for the last four years. The 4TU.CEE board would like to thank Jan for his contribution and commitment to 4TU.CEE in his role of chairman. Jan will remain active as local 4TU.CEE leader for the University of Twente.

Evidence based educational innovation at Wageningen University