Abstract:

In disciplines associated with the building industry, there is ongoing debate related to allocation of course hours to technical content that may be otherwise used for more broadly based theoretical content. However, the expectation among employers for graduates to enter the workforce with discipline-specific software skills places unique demands on curriculums of professional programs in the Architecture, Engineering and Construction (AEC) fields where accreditation requirements may limit flexibility in curriculum design. Therefore, assessing the relevance of technical course content is a high priority for AEC disciplines. The need for the assessment was driven by shifts in the AEC industry from 2D Computer Aided Drafting (CAD) to 3D model-centric design and Building Information Modeling (BIM). CAD was to a large extent and digital version of traditional design documentation adopted incrementally by AEC professionals. In contrast BIM is considered a more disruptive technology that has transformed processes associated with AEC project delivery and has been characterized by a highly relatively rapid rate of adoption. Employer perspectives related to these topics can provide insight into the relevance of course content to student preparation.

Given the impacts of the global pandemic on company operations, the architecture and construction management curriculums at a mid-western university in the US conducted a longitudinal study conducted over a four-year period to assess changes in perceptions of learning outcomes.

The initial study, conducted pre-pandemic was developed to assess the learning outcomes associated with a sequence of two architectural software-based courses. The first course covered content related to 2D computer-aided drafting. The second course covered content related to 3D modeling using a building information modeling application. A survey was developed to collect data related to learning objectives from companies and practitioners in both architecture and construction. Additional questions were used to collect information on perceived trends related to adoption of Building Information Modeling by both architecture and construction firms.

The second survey was structured with questions aligned with those in the initial survey to facilitate analysis of changes in perceptions. This paper documents the results of the longitudinal study and conclusions drawn from the data analysis and proposes strategies for utilizing the analysis in revising learning objectives.

Keywords:

Learning outcomes, industry assessment, architecture and construction.