| Semester 1, 2020 On-campus Springfield | |
| Short Description: | Eng Problem Solving Principles |
| 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 ENG1101 or ENG2102 cannot enrol in this course
Rationale
Problem solving skills are essential to practicing engineers. Students need to develop, early in their program of studies, the personal attributes, the basic technical knowledge, information literacy, communication skills, team skills, critical and analytical skills, and reflective skills they will rely on as engineering problem solvers. This course prepares students to address the problems that they will encounter in subsequent courses and throughout their career.
Synopsis
The course covers the fundamental principles of engineering problem solving. It emphasises the development of skills in problem solving, critical and analytical thinking, reflective thinking, data analysis, information literacy, communication, time and resource management, and teamwork. It introduces students to the problem solving cycle and to a number of analytical tools and approaches for solving problems. Completion of a team-based project allows students to demonstrate and reinforce the skills and knowledge acquired during the course.
Objectives
Upon completion of this course, students will have:
- Explained the nature of engineering problems and characterised them on the basis of their complexity, time constraints, ambiguity, open-endedness, the quality of their definition, analysis and their acceptable solution space;
- Used a computer spreadsheet and written computer scripts for analysing, summarising and graphical representation of numerical and categorical data;
- Carried out hypothesis testing and determined confidence intervals;
- Discussed the errors that can result from interpolation, extrapolation or regression and performed a sensitivity analysis on the proposed solution(s) to a given problem;
- Demonstrated critiquing skills, reflective writing skills, information literacy skills and communication skills;
- Produced and interpreted graphical representations such as flow-charts, engineering schematics and flow diagrams;
- Explained the roles of brain-storming, conceptual design, proof-of-concept, systems thinking, analogy, reverse engineering, modelling and simulation trial and error, and project management within the problem solving cycle;
- Acquired the basic skills needed to work effectively within a problem solving team and produced problem solving interim and final reports in a professional manner with appropriate referencing.
Topics
| Description | Weighting(%) | |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | Characteristics and types of engineering and spatial science problems | 5.00 |
| 2. | Acquisition of information and knowledge for problem solving | 10.00 |
| 3. | Mathematical approaches to problem solving | 35.00 |
| 4. | Approaches to problem solving and the problem solving cycle | 20.00 |
| 5. | Managing time and resources | 5.00 |
| 6. | Team dynamics and conflict resolution | 10.00 |
| 7. | Project documentation and reporting | 15.00 |
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=2020&sem=01&subject1=ENG1004)
Please for alternative purchase options from USQ Bookshop. (https://omnia.usq.edu.au/info/contact/)
Dowling, D. Carew, A & Hadgraft, R 2016, Engineering your future: an Australasian guide, 3rd edn, John Wiley & Sons, Milton, QLD.
(OPTIONAL.)
(OPTIONAL.)
Moaveni, S 2019, Engineering Fundamentals: An Introduction to Engineering, 6th SI edn, Cengage Learning, Stamford, CT.
(OPTIONAL.)
(OPTIONAL.)
(REQUIRED) Students will need access to a computer for this course with the following facilities: reliable access to the Internet , email, and (desirable) videoconferencing on at least a weekly basis; and Office authoring software (word processor, spreadsheet, etc) or similar. Course ¾«¶«´«Ã½appDesk page on UConnect.
(INFORMATION) Incarcerated students need to enquire with the course examiners regarding facilities to study this course.
(INFORMATION) Incarcerated students need to enquire with the course examiners regarding facilities to study this course.
Reference materials
Reference materials are materials that, if accessed by students, may improve their knowledge and understanding of the material in the course and enrich their learning experience.
Berk, KN & Carey, PM 2010, Data analysis with Microsoft® Excel, 3rd edn, Brooks/Cole, Boston, MA.
Eide, AR, Jenison, RD, Mashaw, LH & Northup, LL 2002, Introduction to engineering design and problem solving, 2nd edn, McGraw Hill, Boston, MA.
Gottfried, BS 2007, Spreadsheet tools for engineers using Excel, 3rd edn, McGraw Hill, Dubuque, IA.
Messler, W R 2012, Engineering Problem-Solving 101: Time-Tested and Timeless Techniques, McGraw Hill, New York.
Smith, KA & Imbrie, PK 2013, Teamwork and project management, 4th edn, McGraw Hill, Boston.
Student workload expectations
| Activity | Hours |
|---|---|
| Assessments | 80.00 |
| Lectures | 26.00 |
| Online Discussion Board | 13.00 |
| Private ¾«¶«´«Ã½app | 23.00 |
| Tutorials | 13.00 |
Assessment details
| Description | Marks out of | Wtg (%) | Due Date | Objectives Assessed | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Assignment 1 - Quiz | 100 | 10 | 06 Apr 2020 | 2,3 | |
| Interim Report | 300 | 30 | 27 Apr 2020 | 1,2,3,4,5,6,7 | |
| Final Report | 300 | 30 | 22 May 2020 | 3,4,5,6,7 | |
| Online Exam | 300 | 30 | End S1 | 1,2,3,4,5,6,7 | (see note 1) |
Notes
- This will be an open examination. Students will be provided further instruction regarding the exam by their course examiner via ¾«¶«´«Ã½appDesk. The examination date will be available via UConnect when the official examination timetable has been released.
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 grade students 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:
Due to COVID-19 the requirements for S1 2020 are: To be assured of receiving a passing grade a student must achieve at least 50% of the total weighted marks available for the course.
Requirements after S1 2020:
To be assured of receiving a passing grade a student must achieve obtain at least 50% of the total weighted marks available for the course. course (i.e. the Primary Hurdle), and have satisfied the Secondary Hurdle (Supervised), i.e. the end of semester examination Parts A and B by achieving at least 40% of the marks available in total for Parts A and B.
Supplementary assessment may be offered where a student has undertaken all of the required summative assessment items and has passed the Primary Hurdle but failed to satisfy the Secondary Hurdle (Supervised), or has satisfied the Secondary Hurdle (Supervised) but 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:
Due to COVID-19 the requirements for S1 2020 are: An Open Examination is one in which candidates may have access to any printed or written material and a calculator during the examination.
Requirements after S1 2020:
RESTRICTED Candidates are allowed access only to specific materials during a Restricted Examination. The only materials that candidates may use in the restricted examination for this course are:
• Writing materials (non-electronic and free from material which could give the student an unfair advantage in the examination);
• Scientific or graphics calculator(s) which cannot communicate with any other devices (students must indicate on their examination paper the make and model of any calculator(s) they use during the examination).
• One A4 sheet of paper, written or typed on one or both sides with any material the student wishes to include (students are required to submit this sheet of paper with the examination paper, but it will not contribute to marks for the course).
• Students whose first language is not English, may take an appropriate unmarked non-electronic translation dictionary (but not technical dictionary) into the examination. Dictionaries with any handwritten notes will not be permitted. Translation dictionaries will be subject to perusal and may be removed from the candidate's possession until appropriate disciplinary action is completed if found to contain material that could give the candidate an unfair advantage. -
Examination period when Deferred/Supplementary examinations will be held:
Due to COVID-19 the requirements for S1 2020 are: The details regarding deferred/supplementary examinations will be communicated at a later date.
Requirements after S1 2020:
Any Deferred or Supplementary examinations for this course will be held during the next examination period -
¾«¶«´«Ã½app Student Policies:
Students should read the USQ policies: Definitions, Assessment and Student Academic Misconduct to avoid actions which might contravene ¾«¶«´«Ã½app 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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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 ¾«¶«´«Ã½app'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:
1.conforms to the USQ Policy on Evaluation of Teaching, Courses and Programs to ensure ongoing monitoring and systematic improvement.
2.forms part of the Bachelor of Engineering(Honours) and is benchmarked against the :
o internal USQ accreditation/reaccreditation processes which include (i) stringent standards in the independent t accreditation of its academic programs, (ii) close integration between business and academic planning, and (ii i) regular and rigorous review.; and
o professional accreditation standards of Engineers Australia.
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, video conferencing (desirable), and for access to UConnect for 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.