43029 Introduction to Humanitarian Engineering
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Credit points: 6 cp
Result type: Grade and marks
Requisite(s): (48 credit points of completed study in Bachelor's Degree owned by FEIT OR 48 credit points of completed study in Bachelor's Honours Embedded Degree owned by FEIT OR 48 credit points of completed study in Bachelor's Combined Degree owned by FEIT OR 48 credit points of completed study in Bachelor's Combined Honours Degree owned by FEIT OR 48 credit points of completed study in Bachelor's Combined Degree co-owned by FEIT OR 48 credit points of completed study in Bachelor's Combined Honours Degree co-owned by FEIT) AND (48230 Introduction to Engineering Projects OR 31265 Communication for IT Professionals)
These requisites may not apply to students in certain courses. See access conditions.
Description
Humanitarian engineering is the application of engineering skills and approaches to enable basic needs and contribute to social justice, with contexts ranging from community and technology development to emergency disaster response, both domestically and internationally. Although humanitarian engineering is focused on working with vulnerable and marginalised communities, the skills developed in humanitarian engineering are applicable to all engineering practice. These include community and stakeholder engagement, working cross-culturally, human-centred design, multi-disciplinary collaboration, environmental stewardship, socio-technical thinking, and more.
In this subject, the fundamental skills and knowledge of humanitarian engineering are introduced, building on the experiences developed in the Engineers without Borders (EWB) Challenge undertaken in 48230 Introduction to Engineering Projects or 31265 Communication for IT Professionals. Students learn about international development, the contexts of humanitarian engineering (and the skills to work effectively therein), essential approaches in humanitarian engineering (such as strengths-based approaches and socio-technical thinking), the key agencies in humanitarian engineering, and more. Beyond engaging with this content, students also have opportunities to reflect on their own learning about humanitarian engineering and its significance for their personal and professional development, and to explore a humanitarian engineering topic of personal interest (such as a particular case study, approach, context, or how engineering relates to a particular Sustainable Development Goal) in more detail.
Subject learning objectives (SLOs)
Upon successful completion of this subject students should be able to:
| 1. | Apply the values and principles of humanitarian engineering in the evaluation of a case study, concept, or approach. (B.1) |
|---|---|
| 2. | Communicate research about humanitarian engineering to inform a multi-disciplinary audience. (E.1) |
| 3. | Reflect on the value of humanitarian engineering and, in particular, on perspectives on socio-technical thinking and co-design. (F.1) |
Course intended learning outcomes (CILOs)
This subject also contributes specifically to the development of the following Course Intended Learning Outcomes (CILOs):
- Socially Responsible: FEIT graduates identify, engage, interpret and analyse stakeholder needs and cultural perspectives, establish priorities and goals, and identify constraints, uncertainties and risks (social, ethical, cultural, legislative, environmental, economics etc.) to define the system requirements. (B.1)
- Collaborative and Communicative: FEIT graduates work as an effective member or leader of diverse teams, communicating effectively and operating within cross-disciplinary and cross-cultural contexts in the workplace. (E.1)
- Reflective: FEIT graduates critically self-review their performance to improve themselves, their teams, and the broader community and society. (F.1)
Teaching and learning strategies
Students have the valuable opportunity to engage in weekly three-hour interactive workshops.
Complementing workshops are interactive online content for students to work through out-of-class and in preparation for in-class collaborative activities.
Analog and digital collaboration tools in Canvas support all learning.
Engagement in this interactive learning approach is critical to contributing to successful progress and can be applied to developing professional skills and knowledge to further studies and/or the professional workplace.
Guest speakers with industry experience bring their specialist expertise and share these with classes to inform and enrich classroom discussion.
Such design of workshops provide weekly formative feedback that is pertinent to summative assessment tasks.
Content (topics)
- Defining humanitarian engineering
- International Development and the Sustainable Development Goals
- Working cross-culturally
- Humanitarian engineering contexts
- Approaches in humanitarian engineering (e.g. strengths-based approaches, human-centred design, socio-technical thinking)
- Humanitarian-Development Nexus
- Case studies of humanitarian engineering
- Disaster risk reduction
- Emergency management
- Water Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH)
- Humanitarian engineering organisation
Assessment
Assessment task 1: Learning portfolio
| Intent: | To synthesise how humanitarian engineering relates to and can inform other aspects of engineering practice through engagement with readings and related content. |
|---|---|
| Objective(s): | This assessment task addresses the following subject learning objectives (SLOs): 1 This assessment task contributes to the development of the following Course Intended Learning Outcomes (CILOs): B.1 |
| Type: | Exercises |
| Groupwork: | Group, group assessed |
| Weight: | 30% |
| Length: | ~2000 words excluding references |
Assessment task 2: Humanitarian engineering project
| Intent: | To communicate findings related to a humanitarian engineering topic of personal interest in more depth via written and oral modalities. |
|---|---|
| Objective(s): | This assessment task addresses the following subject learning objectives (SLOs): 1 and 2 This assessment task contributes to the development of the following Course Intended Learning Outcomes (CILOs): B.1 and E.1 |
| Type: | Project |
| Groupwork: | Individual |
| Weight: | 45% |
| Length: | Approximately 7 minutes per student for presentation and Q&A. 1500 words for the report |
Assessment task 3: Learning reflection
| Intent: | To have a heightened awareness of how their perspectives on socio-technical thinking, co-design, and humanitarian engineering more generally, have shifted over time. |
|---|---|
| Objective(s): | This assessment task addresses the following subject learning objectives (SLOs): 3 This assessment task contributes to the development of the following Course Intended Learning Outcomes (CILOs): F.1 |
| Type: | Reflection |
| Groupwork: | Individual |
| Weight: | 25% |
| Length: | 1500 words |
Minimum requirements
In order to pass the subject, a student must achieve an overall mark of 50% or more.