Using phenomenography to understand student learning in civil engineering

Abstract

Phenomenography is an area of research which focuses on identifying and describing the qualitatively different ways in which people understand phenomena in the world around them. Two units, structural analysis and traffic engineering, were selected for the purpose of understanding the various ways students relate to significant aspects of Civil Engineering. Integral to the study was the use of student group discussions which were recorded and analysed. The findings comprise descriptions of the different conceptions of learning held by students and lecturers in relation to specific engineering phenomena and their implications for teaching enhancement and curriculum development in Civil Engineering.