Deakin University
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International and culturally inclusive curricula-an engineering management unit audit case study

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conference contribution
posted on 2006-01-01, 00:00 authored by Stuart Palmer
SEB421 Strategic Issues in Engineering is a final-year engineering management study unit at Deakin University in which the enrolled student population has grown to include significant numbers of international students. Given this change, it was considered timely to conduct a review of the unit, with regard to principles of international and culturally inclusive curricula. Despite the historically white Anglo-Saxon male culture of engineering education in Australia, there are a wide range of international and cultural aspects related to engineering education. A review of the literature reveals a diversity of interpretations of 'internationalisation' and 'cultural inclusiveness'. From a pragmatic perspective, it is noted that organisational policy can provide guidance for academic staff seeking to make courses more inclusive. From a review of the literature and relevant university policies, a list of 'international and culturally inclusive curricula' guidelines for engineering management education was developed. Comparing a prior audit of SEB421 with these guidelines revealed progress on international and culturally inclusive curricula, but identified opportunities for improvement. The guidelines were applied to the curriculum/syllabus, content/study materials, conduct and assessment of the unit, to identify further opportunities for improvement. A plan for improvement of the unit and an associated timetable for this work were developed. It was noted that some changes can be made immediately, while others are contingent upon the timetable imposed by university systems. It was further noted that issues of change within a single study unit intersect with wider issues of program curriculum, and, while pilot activities can provide a start, eventually the wider issue of international and culturally inclusive curricula across the entire undergraduate engineering program needs to be considered.

History

Pagination

1 - 9

Location

Auckland, New Zealand

Open access

  • Yes

Start date

2006-12-10

End date

2006-12-13

ISBN-13

9780473118815

ISBN-10

0473118815

Language

eng

Notes

Reproduced with the specific permission of the copyright owner.

Publication classification

E1 Full written paper - refereed

Copyright notice

2006, Australasian Association for Engineering Education

Editor/Contributor(s)

G Rowe, G Reid

Title of proceedings

Creativity, Challenge, Change Partnerships in Engineering Education: Proceedings of the 17th Annual Conference of the Australasian Association for Engineering Education

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