scholarly journals An Exploratory Study of Engineering Students’ Misconceptions about Technical Communication

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cheryl Li ◽  
Judy Randi ◽  
Jenna Sheffield
Author(s):  
Anne Parker ◽  
Aidan Topping

This paper will focus on the rubrics that we have developed for the technical communication course and the senior (capstone) design projects. As part of the C.E.A.B.’s and our own Faculty of Engineering’s mandate to more clearly define the goals of each course, the learning attributes associated with course content, and how these are assessed, we first developed rubrics that would help us track and assess students’ communicative competence. However, we soon learned that our presentation of the information impacts how well students assimilate it. Consequently, in our rubrics for the senior (capstone) design courses, we began to phrase the assignment requirements as action items, as something that must be done; for example, a document’s “layout and document design” must use “clear markers to create a visually appealing document,” and the illustrations must “communicate design elements and results.” In this way, students are encouraged to reflect on their individual performance, and one outcome for them is the opportunity to engage in a meaningful dialogue with the professor. One outcome for the professor is having the means to indicate a student’s position on a spectrum of performance. Finally, although linking attributes to learning objectives and determining “competency levels” can be very challenging, we hope to show how the rubrics we have designed may indeed make the task less daunting and more manageable for all stakeholders in the education of our engineering students.


2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (4) ◽  
pp. 136-147
Author(s):  
Roza Bogoudinova ◽  
◽  
Ekaterina Tsareva ◽  

The paper discusses the socio-communicative function of the engineer’s foreign language training in which content is based on materials relating to the latest global technological advances and understanding of the essence of production culture in different countries. It discusses the structure and content of foreign language training taking into account the potential of multilingualism, technical communication and metalinguistic competence. Foreign language training contributes to the formation of linguistic, communicative and metacognitive skills. It sets out the modern international requirements in an engineering university, identifies the contradictions and features of pedagogical forms, methods and tools, and sets out the content and structure of multilingualism, technical communication and metalinguistic competence. A methodology for the implementation of foreign language training in combination with multilingualism, technical communication and metalinguistic competence is proposed and proved through the realization of group international study trips. Here, the students showed an understanding of technologies in foreign languages and a metalinguistic awareness focusing on the cultural traditions of the region and local features of production. The article argues for a conscious approach to deeper linguistic knowledge, cultures of different countries and technologies with advanced language and communications requirements in the field of science and technology, combining linguistic and engineering thinking in the human mind for a more complete understanding of the essence and content of engineering education.


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