Conference proceeding
Happy Little Trees
34th Australasian Association for Engineering Education Conference (AAEE2023): Adapting to the Changing Expectations of Students and Industry, pp.459-467
Australasian Association for Engineering Education Conference (AAEE2023), 34th (Gold Coast, Queensland, 03/12/2023–06/12/2023)
01/12/2023
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Abstract
CONTEXT: What do landscape paintings with significant amounts of phthalo blue have in common with engineering education? Quite a bit it seems. Despite being a core tenant of the modern engineer, individuals' creativity May still be held back by both education design (Cropley, 2014), and student expectations. The continued move towards "T" shaped graduates create questions about effective ways to develop deliberate creativity in engineering education.
PURPOSE OR GOAL: The goal of this practice was to provide an educational intervention that deliberately embedded creativity, allowing students the opportunity for creative synthesis of key concepts presented in workshops, with a low barrier to participation. The collaborative approach also served to deliver opportunity for low stake teamwork, and to identify gaps in cohort knowledge. Ultimately it allowed an exploration of simple means of directing students towards informal learning and creative endeavours as compared to traditional delivery.
APPROACH OR METHODOLOGY/METHODS: An approach was trailed bringing together landscape paintings with course curriculum in advanced level electronics courses. This was achieved by reserving time at the end of workshops for a 10-minute live group painting using Zoom drawing tools in the format of a Bob Ross landscape painting. He is known particularly for using a "Wet on Wet" technique to develop paintings within 30 minutes, and this aligned with the format of the session, as well as the tools available to students. The only requirement was to project the core concept that was discussed in the workshop into the painting. Participants were completely free to develop their own style of drawing, whilst following a basic scaffold to guide the sessions.
ACTUAL OR ANTICIPATED OUTCOMES: The creativity of this intervention activity was used to establish higher level synthesis through constructivism (Ackermann, 2001). It also provided opportunity for collaborative learning and teamwork, and established student skills in use of analogy and creative expression to consolidate key concepts and reaffirm that creativity is a core component of engineering education. CONCLUSIONS/RECOMMENDATIONS/SUMMARY: Based on the current evaluation, the key strengths of this creative approach have been immediate key concept reinforcement, informal development of collaborative skills and teamwork, and a student appreciation for creative learning activities beyond traditional methods. All these strengths support the move toward the "T" shaped graduate under the 2035 Deans' plan.
Details
- Title
- Happy Little Trees
- Creators
- Andrew Maxwell (Author) - University of Southern QueenslandChris McAlister (Contributor) - University of Southern QueenslandZachery Quince (Author) - University of Southern Queensland
- Publication Details
- 34th Australasian Association for Engineering Education Conference (AAEE2023): Adapting to the Changing Expectations of Students and Industry, pp.459-467
- Conference
- Australasian Association for Engineering Education Conference (AAEE2023), 34th (Gold Coast, Queensland, 03/12/2023–06/12/2023)
- Publisher
- Engineers Australia
- Identifiers
- 9781925627916; 991013268610902368
- Copyright
- © Engineers Australia 2023
- Academic Unit
- Centre for Teaching and Learning
- Language
- English
- Resource Type
- Conference proceeding