A FRAMEWORK FOR SECOND LANGUAGE, COMMUNICATION AND ENGINEERING LEARNING OUTCOMES

Abstract

Teaching and learning of engineering courses and programmes in a second language (L2) or for non-native speakers (NNS) has become increasingly common in recent years as international connections between institutions grow, industries globalise, and markets and the workforce become more fluid. The role that a L2 plays in engineering education varies depending on context, but there is no doubt that L2 and NNS involvement add an additional level of complexity to the teaching and learning environment. Study abroad students are tasked with developing technical engineering, communication and language skills simultaneously. Research suggests that providing additional instruction in the L2 aimed at the specific needs of a course, programme, or professional trade is beneficial. However, this instruction has seldom been taught in tandem with, much less integrated into a project-based engineering programme that focuses on both oral and written communication skills. To integrate second language, communication and engineering content outcomes into a project, we need to develop assessments that meet multiple learning outcomes across these areas, and to monitor the degree to which L2 impacts on the ability of NNS to perform engineering and communication outcomes. In this paper, we report on how a L2 (in our case English) is being integrated into projects, and how communication and language progress and learning outcomes can be assessed within the engineering project framework. Ultimately, we attempt to provide a new project framework that can help coordinate the engineering, communication and language learning outcomes with engineering graduate attributes in a project-based, study abroad programme.