Abstract
Collaboration skills are increasingly necessary in today’s construction workforce. However, classroom activities that incorporate collaboration skills, ones involving interactive work among individuals towards a common goal, are underrepresented in many construction classes. This research documents and illuminates implementation of a team activity where groups of interdisciplinary students were asked to build a structure using the provided (paper and tape) resources with the objectives to create a structure that stands at least 4″ tall and supports as much weight (under textbook loading) as possible. Two rounds of activities were performed with differing levels of role definition provided to the students. Team interactions and performance were recorded, along with student self-assessments, and reporter observation. The implementation of this collaboration activity continues to provide valuable lessons, which informs the integration and assessment of collaboration activities in construction education.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
References
Anvuur, A., & Kumaraswamy, M. (2007). Conceptual model of partnering and alliancing. Journal of Construction Engineering and Management, 133(3), 225–234.
Borden, L. M., & Perkins, D. F. (1999). Assessing your collaboration: A self-evaluation tool. Journal of Extension, 37(2), 67–72.
Borrego, M., & Henderson, C. (2014). Increasing the use of evidence-based teaching in STEM higher education: A comparison of eight change strategies. Journal of Engineering Education, 103(2), 220–252.
Dagenais, D. A. (2007). Introduction to good faith in construction contracts. Construction Management and Economics, 25(7), 715–721.
Duderstadt, J. J. (2009). Engineering for a changing road, a roadmap to the future of engineering practice, research, and education.
Emmitt, S., & Ruikar, K. (2013). Collaborative Design Management. Taylor and Francis Group: Routledge.
Felder, R. M., Felder, G. N., & Dietz, E. J. (1998). A longitudinal study of engineering student performance and retention. V. Comparisons with traditionally-taught students. Journal of Engineering Education, 87(4), 469–480.
Forsyth, D. R. (2010). Group Dynamics. Boston, MA: Cengage Learning.
Froyd, J. E., Wankat, P. C., & Smith, K. A. (2012). Five major shifts in 100 years of engineering education. Proceedings of the IEEE, 100 (Special Centennial Issue), 1344–1360.
Gransberg, D., Dillon, W., Reynolds, L., & Boyd, J. (1999). Quantitative analysis of partnered project performance. Journal of Construction Engineering and Management, 125(3), 161–166.
Kane, K., & Harms, J. (2005). Getting started: A guide to collaboration in the classroom. The President’s Educational Improvement Fund, University of Hawaii at Manoa. Retrieved 1 Sept 2013.
Krug, J. (1997). People skills: Teamwork. Journal of Management in Engineering, 13(2), 15–16.
Levi, D. (2013). Group dynamics for teams, SAGE Publications, Inc.
National Academy of Engineering (NAE). (2001). The Engineer of 2020: Visions of Engineering in the New Century. National Academies Press, http://books.nap.edu/openbook.php?record_id=10999&page=53. Accessed 15 Feb 2015.
National Academy of Engineering (NAE). (2005). Educating the Engineer of 2020: Adapting Engineering Education to the New Century. National Academies Press, http://books.nap.edu/catalog/11338.html. Accessed 15 Feb 2015.
Ohland, M. W., Loughry, M. L., Woehr, D. J., Bullard, L. G., Felder, R. M., Finelli, C. J., & Schmucker, D. G. (2012). The comprehensive assessment of team member effectiveness: development of a behaviorally anchored rating scale for self-and peer evaluation. Academy of Management Learning & Education, 11(4), 609–630.
Prince, M. (2004). Does active learning work? A review of the research. Journal of Engineering Education, 93(3), 223–231.
Salmons, J. (2011). Taxonomy for Online Collaboration: Theory and Practice in E-Learning. Hershey: IGI Global.
Springer, L., Stanne, M. E., & Donovan, S. S. (1999). Effects of small-group learning on undergraduates in science, mathematics, engineering, and technology: A meta-analysis. Review of Educational Research, 69(1), 21–51.
Valdes-Vasquez, R., & Clevenger, C. M. (2015). Piloting Collaborative Learning Activities in a Sustainable Construction Class. Journal of Construction Education and Research. doi:10.1080/15578771.2014.990122
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2016 Springer International Publishing Switzerland
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Clevenger, C.M., Valdes-Vasquez, R., Abdallah, M. (2016). Implementing a Collaboration Activity in Construction Engineering Education. In: Leal Filho, W., Nesbit, S. (eds) New Developments in Engineering Education for Sustainable Development. World Sustainability Series. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-32933-8_4
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-32933-8_4
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-319-32932-1
Online ISBN: 978-3-319-32933-8
eBook Packages: Earth and Environmental ScienceEarth and Environmental Science (R0)