Using management students as markers in engineering project papers

Abstract

This presentation reports on the value of a new assessment strategy in a final year project-based engineering paper. This assessment strategy is aimed to enhance students learning more efficient and effective selfmanagement skills as part of developing and completing their individual project-based work in the paper. The strategy requires students to regularly report their project’s progress and receive feedback from a manager/tutor (with Management background). As the manager does not have any detailed technical understanding, students need to communicate their technical concepts akin to how they would do so when working on real-life work projects involving interactions with potential clients from diverse backgrounds. The study makes more explicit the ways project-based work can be supported by enhancing students’ non-technical skills alongside their technical project work. The findings will be useful to inform further refinements to the teaching, learning and assessment in the paper to enhance students’ developing technical and non-technical skills useful in navigating their professional careers.