Introducing and stimulating sustainable engineering in first year civil engineering students

Abstract

To support a sustainable engineering agenda, three years ago Newcastle University (UK) introduced a new first year study module titled Sustainable Solutions in Civil Engineering. There were several original aims for the module: introduce sustainability in the context of civil engineering; act as a catalyst for sustainable thinking in studies beyond first year; and present an enthusiastic, "big picture" of civil engineering that would complement the technically intense first year modules. While the original aims of the module have remained, the mechanism of delivery and assessment has been refined each year and the module's content has been extended to adopt various sustainability literature including papers from professional bodies and learned societies. In the module's current form, engineering, academic and transferable skills are all introduced, practiced and assessed, four different forms of assessment are used, three different teaching environments attended, and the module leader is supported by a variety of staff including academics, guest lecturers from industry and construction site managers and operatives. Senior Academic staff have shown considerable support for the module and it was complimented by a professional accreditation visit that took place in the year of the module's first outing. The students have found the module interesting, enjoyable and well delivered although they have also found its workload light compared to other first year study modules. This paper presents the module as an example of how to engage first year Civil Engineering students in thinking sustainably. It will describe the successes and deficiencies of the module, how the module is being incorporated into the students' education within and beyond the first year of study and, finally, what the future of first year sustainable engineering is following a rebuilding of Newcastle's Civil Engineering programmes. © American Society for Engineering Education, 2009.