Units

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Sample subject outline - Semester 2 2012

Note: Subject outlines often change before the semester begins. Below is a sample outline.

Rationale

The knowledge and skills associated with site investigation and planning for sustainable development are essential for civil and environmental engineers, as is the ability to work within multidisciplinary teams to achieve balanced solutions on social, economic and environmental grounds. This sustainable development design project requires you to undertake typical site investigations, analyses and designs for a selected site covering sustainability issues in the following areas: Sustainable Transport, Land Planning including assessment of the surrounding suburbs, Water and Wastewater Management and Environmental Impact Assessment. This unit extends and applies the knowledge developed in first year design based engineering units to important issues such as site analysis, site investigation, development of site planning criteria, site planning, environmental management and quality, pollution prevention and control, and resource and waste management.

Aims

The aims of this unit are to provide you with an understanding of the principles of site analysis, site investigation and planning for sustainable development, and to provide you with training in laboratory and engineering investigation and reporting skills, both written and oral.

Objectives

On completion of this unit you should be able to:

1. Establish proficiency in site analysis and site investigation for environmental standards benchmarking and land development potential,
2. Analyse for environmental quality, including environmental sampling, analysis, quality assurance and control, and interpretation to inform an impact assessment,
3. Exemplify an appreciation of sustainable land use and sustainable transport planning concepts and ability to apply techniques,
4. Competence in engineering investigation and reporting with particular emphasis on literature searching and review and communicating the various aspects of project work in written, verbal and electronic forms,
5. Analyse and produce technically robust conceptual designs of sustainable developments by way of written documents and drawings,
6. Function effectively as a team member to work towards set objectives in order to achieve your activity goals; resolve somewhat defined tasks and manage time and a limited range of resources to achieve your activity goals.

Content

The major topics to be covered include:

• principles of sustainable development and site investigation for environmental standards;


• sustainable land use planning principles and site investigation and analysis


• sustainable transport planning principles, road hierarchy, sustainable land use planning principles


• water management and environmental impact assessment,


• water quality testing (practical),design office practice


• engineering investigation and reporting (research skills)


• engineering investigation and reporting (paper writing)


• engineering investigation and reporting (technical presentation skills)

Approaches to Teaching and Learning

Teaching Mode: 4 hours per week
Lecture: 2 hrs/wk
Studio: 1.5 hrs/wk
Lab exercise: In week 6

This unit is project based and carries the themes of site analysis, site investigation and planning for sustainable development. You will work in a team of 4 to develop elements that contribute to a development options study, including a thorough site investigation and analysis, and a site planning proposal along a sustainability theme taking into consideration environmental sensitivity, liveability, functionality and resources.

The unit also requires you to complete one activity on an individual basis; a technical conference paper, and one activity in pairs; presentation of the technical conference paper at the conclusion of the semester to assess your communication skills. These exercises will further develop your capabilities with emphasis on individual learning and application abilities.

Formal contact will consist of two sessions per week. Generally lecture material will be presented for 2hrs and Studio sessions will follow for 2 hours. Lectures will constitute between 25 and 50% of class contact time, with the remainder being focused on simulating the project environment. There will be some specialist lectures, with heavy emphasis on students further researching the in class lecture material to enhance your understanding of the relevant topic. The remainder is focused on design studios and practical classes. Completion of the project will further your professional development, with emphasis on teamwork, planning, decision making and communication skills.

Much of the material you'll need and tasks you will undertake will be found on the ENB274 BlackBoard; you must keep regularly visiting this site to keep informed of latest news and of weekly operation of the unit. Learning Approaches will include: problem based, team based learning, experiential learning.

Assessment

This unit will comprise a combination of both formative and summative approaches to assessment involving a mix of formats and a combination of group and individual work. Both the formative and a proportion of the summative assessment for this unit are centred upon the completion of three assessments to exemplify your knowledge and skills gained in the unit.

Assessment 1 (Group submission); Site Survey and Concept Report
Assessment 2 (Individual submission); Technical Paper
Assessment 3 (Individual submission); PresentationYou will receive feedback through group dialogue with teaching staff, written comments upon, and grading of your submission documentation, both of which will enable you to understand how your team is progressing and how your work may be improved.

Formative assessment in the form of feedback to you will be provided during studio sessions and following submission and grading of the summative assessment. Formative feedback will be offered during the semester at key times to assist you in development of your submissions. Grading will be made through the use of Criterion Referenced Assessment pro-forma, which will be discussed in class and published on Blackboard prior to the due dates.

Assessment name: Site Survey Report
Description: Team Submission: Site Survey (Week 6) and Concept Report (Week 9)
Relates to objectives: 1, 2, 3, 5, 6
Weight: 50%
Internal or external: Internal
Group or individual: Group
Due date: Week 6 & 9

Assessment name: Technical Paper
Description: Technical Paper
Relates to objectives: 4
Weight: 25%
Internal or external: Internal
Group or individual: Individual
Due date: Week 12

Assessment name: Presentation
Description: Technical Paper Presentation
Relates to objectives: 2, 3, 4
Weight: 25%
Internal or external: Internal
Group or individual: Individual
Due date: Week 14

Academic Honesty

QUT is committed to maintaining high academic standards to protect the value of its qualifications. To assist you in assuring the academic integrity of your assessment you are encouraged to make use of the support materials and services available to help you consider and check your assessment items. Important information about the university's approach to academic integrity of assessment is on your unit Blackboard site.

A breach of academic integrity is regarded as Student Misconduct and can lead to the imposition of penalties.

Resource materials

Materials will be made available via the unit's BLACKBOARD website on a week by week basis. Text books from other prerequisite units will be used as references as appropriate.

A package of basic background information that is relevant to each project (including Project Brief) will be issued to each team. You will be expected to identify any information further than that issued formally to the class, and where feasible, procure that information. Notwithstanding, you shall not approach members of the public nor public officers in relation to your project without authorisation of the unit coordinator.

A unit Blackboard site will provide a clearinghouse for electronic resources as well as documentation on unit housekeeping. You are expected to both review the unit Blackboard site and check your QUT student email account at least one day prior to each class.

You may incur incidental costs in printing lecture notes and web based manuals, and using electronic media for information storage.

Risk assessment statement

You will be required to undertake a field trip under the supervision of the lecturer and sessional staff of the School. The School's occupational health and safety policies and procedures will apply to these sessions. You will be informed of any requirements pertaining to a safe workplace. In lectures, tutorials and such, the information will include location of fire exits and meeting points in case of fire; in any laboratory practicals you will be advised of requirements of safe and responsible behaviour and will be required to wear appropriate protective items (e.g. steel capped shoes); on any field trips or site visits, you will progress through a safety induction session and where necessary obtain a safety induction card. Students who do not follow legitimate instructions or who endanger the safety of others or do not act in accordance with the requirements of the Workplace Health and Safety Act, will be required to leave the session/site. You will be responsible for your own health and safety, and that of other members of the community as a responsible citizen, should they elect in their own time to conduct any site visits related to the project.

You will also be required to undertake practical sessions in the laboratory under the supervision of the lecturer and technical staff of the School. In any laboratory practicals you will be advised of requirements of safe and responsible behaviour and will be required to wear appropriate protective items (e.g. closed shoes or steel capped shoes). If you do not have a safety induction card you will be denied access to laboratories.

Disclaimer - Offer of some units is subject to viability, and information in these Unit Outlines is subject to change prior to commencement of semester.

Last modified: 16-May-2012