Architectural Engineering Starts with Design from Day 1

Richard Hanson Mui; Soo Jung Woo; Spencer Arbuckle; Rania Al-Hammoud; Scott Walbridge

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Conference: 2019 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition
Location: Tampa, Florida
Publication Date: June 15, 2019
Start Date: June 15, 2019
End Date: June 19, 2019
Conference Session: Architectural Engineering Division Technical Session 1
Tagged Division: Architectural Engineering
Page Count: 12
DOI: 10.18260/1-2--32102
Permanent URL: https://peer.asee.org/32102
Download Count: 462

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Dr. Al-Hammoud is a Faculty lecturer (Graduate Attributes) in the department of civil and environmental engineering at the University of Waterloo. Dr. Al-Hammoud has a passion for teaching where she continuously seeks new technologies to involve students in their learning process. She is actively involved in the Ideas Clinic, a major experiential learning initiative at the University of Waterloo. She is also responsible for developing a process and assessing graduate attributes at the department to target areas for improvement in the curriculum. This resulted in several publications in this educational research areas.
Dr. Al-Hammoud won the "Ameet and Meena Chakma award for exceptional teaching by a student” in 2014 and the "Engineering Society Teaching Award" in 2016 and the "Outstanding Performance Award" in 2018 from University of Waterloo. Her students regard her as an innovative teacher who continuously introduces new ideas to the classroom that increases their engagement.

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Scott Walbridge P.E. University of Waterloo

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Scott Walbridge has been a faculty member at the University of Waterloo since 2006. Prior to that, he conducted his doctoral studies at the EPFL in Lausanne, Switzerland and his master’s degree at the University of Alberta, and he worked for several years in a structural consulting firm in Edmonton specializing primarily in institutional building design. His research focuses on various issues related to steel and aluminum structures, including fatigue performance, connection design, and pedestrian-induced vibration design. His research employs a broad range of tools, including: fracture mechanics, structural reliability, and life-cycle cost analysis and laboratory testing. He is currently the Director of Waterloo's new Architectural Engineering program.

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Abstract

The University of X (UX) has implemented an Architectural Engineering (AE) program, which is the first program in Canada to integrate core engineering education with open ended design studio courses throughout the program’s entirety. An event called AE Design Days was held during the first two days of classes for the incoming AE students. In groups of four, students were tasked with designing, building, and testing a furniture piece. The projects were evaluated by core course instructors and teaching assistants against the following criteria: identifying and proposing a solution for a problem specific to the given site, choosing an appropriate match between design, material and construction technique, and efficiently resisting service loads. The final task of the event was a simultaneous slideshow presentation and load test where students explained their group’s design rationale, and tested designs with estimated service loads and to failure. Both a ‘people’s choice’ winner and overall winner were awarded, with no grade being assigned to the students. The event had several objectives: - providing an opportunity to build working relationships with classmates, faculty, and staff, - introducing the students to core course content in a practical situation before the theory is introduced in class, - allowing the students to gain experience working with their hands, - introducing the students to the iterative design process and breeding a culture of open-ended problem solving confidence, - allowing the instructors to gauge the skill sets of incoming students and get a feel for how each cohort of students is different over the years (note: instructors can use this experience to calibrate course material, taking into account what skills each cohort has already built before entry), and - introducing the students to induction and experiential learning pedagogies. which will be echoed throughout their future studio courses. According to the student survey conducted after the event, ninety percent of the participants felt that AE Design Days was a positive experience and wish to have a similar event in future academic terms. Prior skill set data obtained through Design Days can be used in order to evaluate the effectiveness of emphasis on certain criteria for admission to the program. The paper will discuss the details of the AE design days and its effects on the students by comparing their results with other cohorts who have not been yet exposed to design days and through the analysis of the survey questions.

Citation
Format

Mui, R. H., & Woo, S. J., & Arbuckle, S., & Al-Hammoud, R., & Walbridge, S. (2019, June), Architectural Engineering Starts with Design from Day 1 Paper presented at 2019 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition , Tampa, Florida. 10.18260/1-2--32102

TY  - CPAPER
AB  - The University of X (UX) has implemented an Architectural Engineering (AE) program, which is the first program in Canada to integrate core engineering education with open ended design studio courses throughout the program’s entirety. An event called AE Design Days was held during the first two days of classes for the incoming AE students. In groups of four,  students were tasked with designing, building, and testing a furniture piece. The projects were evaluated by core course instructors and teaching assistants against the following criteria: identifying and proposing a solution for a problem specific to the given site, choosing an appropriate match between design, material and construction technique, and efficiently resisting service loads. The final task of the event was a simultaneous slideshow presentation and load test where students explained their group’s design rationale, and tested designs with estimated service loads and to failure.  Both a ‘people’s choice’ winner and overall winner were awarded, with no grade being assigned to the students. 
The event had several objectives:
- providing an opportunity to build working relationships with classmates, faculty, and staff,
- introducing the students to core course content in a practical situation before the theory is introduced in class,
- allowing the students to gain experience working with their hands,
- introducing the students to the iterative design process and breeding a culture of open-ended problem solving confidence,
- allowing the instructors to gauge the skill sets of incoming students and get a feel for how each cohort of students is different over the years (note: instructors can use this experience to calibrate course material, taking into account what skills each cohort has already built before entry), and
- introducing the students to induction and experiential learning pedagogies. which will be echoed throughout their future studio courses.
According to the student survey conducted after the event, ninety percent of the participants felt that  AE Design Days was a positive experience and wish to have a similar event in future academic terms. Prior skill set data obtained through Design Days can be used in order to evaluate the effectiveness of emphasis on certain criteria for admission to the program. The paper will discuss the details of the AE design days and its effects on the students by comparing their results with other cohorts who have not been yet exposed to design days and through the analysis of the survey questions.

AU  - Richard Hanson Mui
AU  - Soo Jung Woo
AU  - Spencer Arbuckle
AU  - Rania Al-Hammoud P.Eng.
AU  - Scott Walbridge P.E.
CY  - Tampa, Florida
DA  - 2019/06/15
PB  - ASEE Conferences
TI  - Architectural Engineering Starts with Design from Day 1
UR  - https://peer.asee.org/32102
DO  - 10.18260/1-2--32102
ER  -