The Study of Management Subjects in Building Engineering Courses

In building engineering education throughout Europe the emphasis has been on ensuring the highest levels of theory and practice in structural analysis and design. The graduates from course' have entered practice with construction contractors or design practices. In both cases there is now a need to provide clients with a cost effective and ‘buildable’ building. The building engineer needs to be aware of the cost and organizational issues in achieving a quality structure working within a team of client, architect, building engineer and/or contractor. This paper proposes some ideas for the development of construction management studies which will provide the building engineering graduate with knowledge and skills to enable them to contribute fully to the process of construction. This will put their theoretical and fundamental studies in the context of practice so that they can meet client needs for quality, cost-effectiveness and efficient buildings.     

The Introduction of Portfolios in Higher Education: a comparative study in the UK and the Netherlands

This article describes a comparative study of the introduction of student portfolios in two departments of the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam in the Netherlands and Nottingham Trent University in the UK. Portfolios are designed to facilitate effective management of lifelong learning, to provide a record of achievements and to encourage self-reflection by students.
The justifications for the portfolio initiative are different in the two countries. At the Vrije Universiteit, the initiative arose within the University but is being implemented by individual faculties. There is no standard model of implementation. At Nottingham Trent University, portfolios are being introduced as a response to a government directive, as part of a lifelong learning portfolio that each individual will carry forward into their working life. The University's response to this imperative is top-down and a University-wide model is being sought. The department model is one of several models that are being evaluated for this purpose.
This research project investigates whether these alternative starting points lead to differential responses from student users or not. Data are drawn from quantitative (questionnaires) and qualitative (interviews with managers, consultants and teachers) sources. Similarities and differences in students' responses to the portfolio exercise are identified and discussed in terms of factors such as the way the portfolios are introduced, the incentives offered to complete them, the role of the lecturer and peers in the monitoring of study progress, the quality of self-regulative skills, and students' learning expectations.