| Semester 1, 2021 On-campus Springfield | |
| Short Description: | Problem Solving in Eng&BltEnv |
| Units : | 1 |
| Faculty or Section : | Faculty of Health, Engineering and Sciences |
| School or Department : | Faculty of Health, Engineering and Sciences |
| Student contribution band : | Band 2 |
| ASCED code : | 039999 - EnginTech not classified |
| Grading basis : | Graded |
Staffing
Examiner:
Other requisites
Students who have completed ENG1004, ENG1101 or ENG2102 cannot enrol in ENG1003
Rationale
Problem solving skills are essential to practicing engineers, construction managers and spatial scientists. This course enables students to acquire and practice the basic problem solving skills necessary for their chosen program of study. The skills developed through the successful completion of this course can then be applied to problems encountered in subsequent courses and throughout their career.
Synopsis
This course provides students with a foundation for solving problems in Engineering, Construction Management and Spatial Science. The course emphasises the development of critical thinking skills, information literacy, communications, time and resource management, and teamwork. In this course, students are introduced to the problem solving process and to a number of problem solving strategies and approaches.
Objectives
On completion of this course students should be able to:
- Discuss the nature of engineering, construction management and spatial science problems and characterised them on the basis of their complexity, time constraints, open-endedness, the quality of their definition and their acceptable solution space;
- Demonstrate information literacy skills;
- Use a computer spreadsheet for analysing, summarising and graphical representation of both numerical and categorical data;
- Produce and interpret graphical representations such as flow-charts, engineering schematics and flow diagrams;
- Explain the roles of brain-storming, conceptual design, proof-of-concept, problem dissection, analogy, reverse engineering, physical modelling, trial and error, physical modelling and project management within the problem solving cycle;
- Explain the basic personal skills needed to work effectively within a problem solving team and produce problem solving reports in a professional manner with appropriate referencing
Topics
| Description | Weighting(%) | |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | Characteristics and types of engineering, construction management and spatial science problems | 5.00 |
| 2. | Elementary Statistics | 35.00 |
| 3. | Acquisition of information and knowledge for Problem Solving | 10.00 |
| 4. | Approaches to Problem Solving and the Problem Solving Cycle | 15.00 |
| 5. | Managing time and Resources | 5.00 |
| 6. | Team dynamics and Conflict Resolution | 10.00 |
| 7. | Project documentation and reporting | 20.00 |
Text and materials required to be purchased or accessed
ALL textbooks and materials available to be purchased can be sourced from (unless otherwise stated). (https://omnia.usq.edu.au/textbooks/?year=2021&sem=01&subject1=ENG1003)
Please for alternative purchase options from USQ Bookshop. (https://omnia.usq.edu.au/info/contact/)
Reference materials
Student workload expectations
| Activity | Hours |
|---|---|
| Assessments | 80.00 |
| Lectures | 26.00 |
| Private Study | 36.00 |
| Tutorials | 13.00 |
Assessment details
| Description | Marks out of | Wtg (%) | Due Date | Objectives Assessed | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ASSIGNMENT 1 - QUIZ | 200 | 20 | 29 Mar 2021 | 3 | |
| ASSIGNMENT 2 | 200 | 20 | 19 Apr 2021 | 1,2,3,4 | |
| ASSIGNMENT 3 | 300 | 30 | 14 May 2021 | 1,2,5,6 | |
| ASSIGNMENT 4 | 300 | 30 | 04 Jun 2021 | 1,2,5,6 |
Important assessment information
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Attendance requirements:
It is the students' responsibility to attend and participate appropriately in all activities (such as lectures and tutorials) scheduled for them, and to study all material provided to them or required to be accessed by them to maximise their chance of meeting the objectives of the course and to be informed of course-related activities and administration. -
Requirements for students to complete each assessment item satisfactorily:
To satisfactorily complete an individual assessment item a student must achieve at least 50% of the marks for that item. To be eligible for a supplementary assessment a student must submit all assessment items, therefore it is highly recommended that all students submit and participate in all assessments. Refer to Statement 4 below for the requirements to receive a passing grade in this course. -
Penalties for late submission of required work:
Students should refer to the Assessment Procedure (point 4.2.4) -
Requirements for student to be awarded a passing grade in the course:
To be assured of receiving a passing grade a student must obtain at least 50% of the total weighted marks available for the course (i.e. the Primary Hurdle).
Supplementary assessment may be offered where a student has failed to achieve a passing Final Grade by 5% or less of the total weighted Marks.
To be awarded a passing grade for a supplementary assessment item (if applicable), a student must achieve at least 50% of the available marks for the supplementary assessment item as per the Assessment Procedure (point 4.4.2). -
Method used to combine assessment results to attain final grade:
The final grades for students will be assigned on the basis of the aggregate of the weighted marks obtained for each of the summative items for the course. -
Examination information:
There is no exam for this course. -
Examination period when Deferred/Supplementary examinations will be held:
There is no exam for this course. -
University Student Policies:
Students should read the USQ policies: Definitions, Assessment and Student Academic Misconduct to avoid actions which might contravene University policies and practices. These policies can be found at .
Assessment notes
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Students must familiarise themselves with the USQ Assessment Procedures (
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The time specified in Student Workloads allocated to tutorials/workshops should be dedicated to interaction/communication with other team members.
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Referencing in Assignments must comply with the Harvard (AGPS) referencing system. This system should be used by students to format details of the information sources they have cited in their work. The Harvard (APGS) style to be used is defined by the USQ library’s referencing guide. These policies can be found at
Evaluation and benchmarking
In meeting the University’s aims to establish quality learning and teaching for all programs, this course monitors and ensures quality assurance and improvements in at least two ways. This course:
• conforms to the USQ Policy on Evaluation of Teaching, Courses and Programs to ensure ongoing monitoring and systematic improvement.
• forms part of the Bachelor of Engineering Science, and the Associate Degree in Engineering and is benchmarked against the internal USQ accreditation/reaccreditation processes which include
(i) stringent standards in the independent accreditation of its academic programs
(ii) close integration between business and academic planning, and
(iii) regular and rigorous review.;
(iv) professional accreditation standards of Engineers Australia, Surveyors Board of Queensland and Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors
Other requirements
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Computer, e-mail and Internet access:
Students are required to have access to a personal computer, e-mail capabilities and Internet access to UConnect. Current details of computer requirements can be found at . -
Students will require reliable and regular access to email and Internet for communication, (desirable) video conferencing, and for access to UConnect for this course. Incarcerated students need to enquire with the course examiners regarding facilities to study this course.
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Students can expect that questions in assessment items in this course may draw upon knowledge and skills that they can reasonably be expected to have acquired before enrolling in this course. This includes knowledge contained in pre-requisite courses and appropriate communication, information literacy, analytical, critical thinking, problem solving or numeracy skills. Students who do not possess such knowledge and skills should not expect the same grades as those students who do possess them.