Flipping the assessment model: Teaching and assessing ‘things that matter’

Abstract

At The University of Queensland’s (UQ) School of Chemical Engineering we are developing and delivering courses about operational risk concepts and practices for undergraduate engineers with a view to preparing them for work in the ‘real world.’ The courses on offer begin with the foundations of risk management (based on ISO31000) and professional engineering practice (based on guidance from professional bodies such as the IChemE, Engineers Australia and relevant legislation). We then challenge the students to move from knowing the concepts towards acting as and being professional engineers by conducting a number of immersive learning experiences across a variety of risk areas: personal safety, process safety, environmental, social, supply chains, projects and contractors. Effective assessment of student’s acting and being has proven a challenge using traditional methods such as exams and assignments. Until recently, assessment has been a combination of group assignments, online quizzes, a final exam and an individual end-of-semester interview. Our observation has been that aside from the individual interview, students have little opportunity to demonstrate their individual understanding of the course concepts beyond simple recall of definitions and case studies. This paper is a review of the 2018 iteration of the final year undergraduate course that is on offer at the University. Significant changes were made to how content was delivered and how students were assessed.