Publications

The human need or quest for comfort and convenience and lack or denial of awareness can contribute to energy wastage. This paper contains a written and video story of a research learning journey designed to develop the educational experience of Year 2 building services engineering students in developing a solution that can potentially be used to reduce the negative effect of human behaviour on energy consumption at Yishun Community Hospital, Singapore. The role of storytelling in developing the students’ critical and reflective thinking needed to induce learning to form an educational experience, i.e., knowledge, understanding, and practical and communication skills, was examined. Students went through classroom training to give them the background knowledge and understanding required to fulfill the energy efficiency innovation project requirements. The reported educational experience gained from the learning journey is documented in this paper. This paper reports a method of developing human capability for energy-efficiency agenda achievement. It also reports an approach for contributing to the educational experience needed to prepare undergraduate students to solve real-life problems and be job ready upon graduation.

Water wastage caused by human behaviour can be largely due to human need or quest for comfort and convenience and lack or denial of awareness. Year 2 building services engineering students were tasked to conduct research that will inform the development of a solution that can potentially be used to reduce the negative effect of human behaviour on water consumption at Mouth Elizabeth Hospital, Singapore. The students were also required to write a story and made of video story based on the research to document and demonstrate how the research learning journey has developed their educational experience. The role of storytelling in developing the students’ critical and reflective thinking needed to induce learning to form an educational experience, i.e., knowledge, understanding, and practical and communication skills, was examined. The students developed the background knowledge and understanding required to fulfill the water efficiency innovation project requirement. A method of developing human capability for water-efficiency agenda achievement and providing the educational experience undergraduate students need in their journey to being job ready upon graduation is reported in this paper.

This paper documents the effort to inspire Year 2 building services engineering students to develop critical thinking, reflection, technical and communication skills, and knowledge required to be self-learners. Students were required to learn what it takes to design, construct, and manage a high-rise building's mechanical, electrical, and plumbing (MEP) systems in Singapore and apply the knowledge to solve a design problem. Students interacted with industry professionals with design, construction, and facility management experience to aid their design of MEP systems for a high-rise building in Singapore. Students were equipped with design thinking skills in the design studio. Students got the opportunity to deepen their building information modelling (BIM) software (Revit) skills and used them to develop and present their designs. The students believed the design module learning journey, which emphasised the importance of conducting research for effective design, equipped them with fundamental knowledge and skillset sought after in fresh university graduates. They also believed that the module learning journey allowed them to effectively familiarise themselves with building MEP systems and the Singapore codes and standards for designing the MEP systems.

Interactive oral assessments demonstrate potential to develop graduate attributes such as critical thinking, professional communication and collaborative skills in students through authentic simulation of workplace scenarios. This study captured the design, delivery and evaluation of interactive oral assessments across three programmes – occupational therapy, nursing and air transport management – in one university. A four-step Model to Build Authentic Assessment was used to design the assessments. Quantitative and qualitative data collected from 158 students, five assessors and three module leaders were analysed for a basic evaluation of the fidelity of interactive oral assessment implementation across different contexts and to explore the experiences of faculty and students undertaking the assessments. Fidelity was considered in terms of: (i) whether students could express their individualised responses, (ii) if they perceived the assessment to be authentic, and (iii) if it helped them gain professional knowledge and skills. In all the developed assessments, each of the three aspects were somewhat evident, evident or clearly evident. Qualitative findings suggested the interactive oral assessments reflected real-world expectations, promoted deep learning and offered a quality learning experience. From these results, practical suggestions for how faculty can self-assess their readiness for implementing interactive oral assessments are offered.

The use of gamified tools to increase levels of student engagement has grown in the past decade. The present study examines the effects of a gamified intervention platform, known as AdventureLEARN, on three types of students' approaches to learning: (1) deep, (2) organised, and (3) unreflective approaches. After completing the Approaches to Learning and Studying Inventory (ALSI) on AdventureLEARN, students received a personalised list of learning resources to improve learning approaches, based on their responses on the ALSI. A total of 700 Year One students from Academic Years (AY) 2018 and 2019 participated in this study. Their approaches to learning were measured at the end of Year One. Students who accessed three or more learning resources in AdventureLEARN showed a significant decrease in unreflective approaches to learning after a year, with no significant changes in deep and organised approaches to learning observed. These findings indicate that AdventureLEARN could be a promising gamified platform for reducing students' unreflective approaches to learning. Lastly, the challenge of building a self-driven gamified intervention, rather than a classroom-based intervention, is briefly discussed. The inclusion of additional meaningful gamification techniques that address psychological and social needs are proposed for future research.

An exploratory study was conducted on the use of common English expressions in accountancy and business courses in a Singapore university. The aim of the study was to investigate the use of English expressions required by students to engage in effective communication at their workplace either during their internship period or upon graduation. Data garnered through a quiz, an online survey, semi-structured focus group interviews with students, and face-to face interviews with business professionals were analysed through descriptive statistics and qualitatively to gather the perceptions of students and business professionals on the use of English expressions such as common idioms, proverbs and catchphrases relevant for workplace communication. The study found that students’ interactional competence can be enhanced by increasing their learning engagement through relevant communicative activities that include English expressions in the physical and/or virtual classroom.