Kate Roach

University College London | UCL · Faculty of Engineering

This article illustrates the need for an engineering‐specific approach to student leadership development by exploring two contrasting case studies and the unique issues inherent to leading as engineers.

2020 introduced many challenges for those teaching in Higher Education. For the academic year 2020/21, UCL moved to online delivery of all core teaching and UCL Engineering increased its student intake by nearly 50%. This has had a significant impact on the Integrated Engineering Programme (IEP), particularly its three first year core modules. (Mit...

As modern STEM programmes move to focus on a more skills based curriculum, a different approach to conceptualising learning is required. Learning skills is a very different process to learning a list of technical information. In the same way that becoming fluent in a language requires more than learning a list of vocabulary. Curricula are addressin...

As modern STEM programmes move to focus on a more skills based curriculum, a different approach to conceptualising learning is required. Learning skills is a very different process to learning a list of technical information. In the same way that becoming fluent in a language requires more than learning a list of vocabulary. Curricula are addressin...

Accredited engineering degrees call upon students to develop a wide range of knowledge and skills. These range from technical, scientific and mathematical knowledge, through to transferable skills such as communications, teamwork, business acumen and critical analysis. Through a faculty-wide curriculum development programme we have sought to implem...

Project-based Learning (PjBL) utilises a series of authentic projects which reflect the 'unit of work' as experienced in the engineering workplace; is understood to be closer to professional realities and involves the collaborative application of knowledge, understanding and skills. Moreover, it offers curriculum designers a pedagogical approach wh...

Engineering education is rapidly changing. The adoption of active learning in all its forms requires educators to keep abreast of the pedagogical changes whilst at the same time supporting staff and students in moving away from stereotypical behaviours and encouraging inclusive approaches to interactions in order to ensure an equitable education fo...

Many traditional engineering schools are struggling to balance the calls to provide an innovative engineering education that meet the demands of graduates and their employers with the constraints and momentum of their existing curriculum. In this paper we present the conceptual design behind a framework that integrates existing discipline-specific...

This paper presents a discussion of findings in relation to the pedagogy of Project Based Learning (PjBL) from a collaborative learning and teaching research project at UCL Engineering. It highlights the importance of adopting a) an understanding learning as a social practice in PjBL, and b) developing valid methodological approaches when capturing...

In response to evolving work practices in engineering (Royal Academy of Engineering 2010) and the ever-changing nature of vocational and professional knowledge (Broad, 2016), attention has rightly turned to the development of innovative pedagogies to facilitate the entry of graduates to the employment market. Project-based Learning (PjBL) is an exa...

Despite a greater emphasis on the quality of the taught provision in HE; the nature of the student experience and in Engineering Education, the need to develop innovative curricula, preparing future Engineering Educators for their role is often overlooked. Where attention exists, it often focuses on individual activities such as reflection and port...

This study presents an analysis of self-reported student perceptions and experiences of authenticity during an undergraduate first-year problem-based learning (PBL) engineering module at UCL. The aim is to further understand how students perceive authentic learning experiences in order to support and maximise this kind of learning throughout their...

Student generated rubrics that were designed to peer assess contribution to teamwork mainly use terms that conform to Krathwohl’s (1964) affective domain. We have used the affective domain to map the criteria that students use in order to find opportunities to further guide our development and scaffolding of teamwork skills. We are confident that o...

University College London (UCL) has recently implemented a distinctive programme that connects curricula across seven engineering disciplines. The Integrated Engineering Programme (IEP) contributes interdisciplinary, experiential and authentic learning opportunities for students, aimed at developing professional and design skills. Here we investiga...