Communication Skill
Edith Cowan University
Research Online
EDU-COM International Conference Conferences, Symposia and Campus Events
2006
The Integration of Professional Communication Skills into Engineering Education
Dorthy Missingham
University of Adelaide
Originally published in the Proceedings of the EDU-COM 2006 International Conference. Engagement and Empowerment: New Opportunities for Growth in Higher Education, Edith Cowan University, Perth Western Australia, 22-24 November 2006. This Conference Proceeding is posted at Research Online. http://ro.ecu.edu.au/ceducom/91
Missingham, D. The Universtiy of Adelaide, Australia. The Integration of Professional Communication Skills into Engineering Education
Dr Dorthy Missingham School of Mechanical Engineering The University of Adelaide. Australia dorothy.missingham@adelaide.edu.au
ABSTRACT Conventional Engineering curriculum is strongly focused on the development in students of technical knowledge and skills. However, in recent years, employers have increasingly acknowledged that this traditional preparation of Engineering students‘ is inadequate, as graduates lack the wide range of written and spoken communication skills required to engage with members of other professional groups and with the broader community. Recognition of the important role that communicative competence plays in professional success within the engineering industry has, as a result, led to a number of tertiary institutions developing curricula to address these needs. This paper presents a successful integrative Engineering Communication curriculum, developed for both local and international Engineering students in an Australian university, which aims to develop both communicative ability and community engagement. The courses that form the Engineering Communication Program provide for critical awareness-raising of community issues such as ethics, sustainability and gender, English for academic and professional Engineering purposes for both
Research Online
EDU-COM International Conference Conferences, Symposia and Campus Events
2006
The Integration of Professional Communication Skills into Engineering Education
Dorthy Missingham
University of Adelaide
Originally published in the Proceedings of the EDU-COM 2006 International Conference. Engagement and Empowerment: New Opportunities for Growth in Higher Education, Edith Cowan University, Perth Western Australia, 22-24 November 2006. This Conference Proceeding is posted at Research Online. http://ro.ecu.edu.au/ceducom/91
Missingham, D. The Universtiy of Adelaide, Australia. The Integration of Professional Communication Skills into Engineering Education
Dr Dorthy Missingham School of Mechanical Engineering The University of Adelaide. Australia dorothy.missingham@adelaide.edu.au
ABSTRACT Conventional Engineering curriculum is strongly focused on the development in students of technical knowledge and skills. However, in recent years, employers have increasingly acknowledged that this traditional preparation of Engineering students‘ is inadequate, as graduates lack the wide range of written and spoken communication skills required to engage with members of other professional groups and with the broader community. Recognition of the important role that communicative competence plays in professional success within the engineering industry has, as a result, led to a number of tertiary institutions developing curricula to address these needs. This paper presents a successful integrative Engineering Communication curriculum, developed for both local and international Engineering students in an Australian university, which aims to develop both communicative ability and community engagement. The courses that form the Engineering Communication Program provide for critical awareness-raising of community issues such as ethics, sustainability and gender, English for academic and professional Engineering purposes for both