The Communication module will provide various basic communication skills essential for professional work. An in-depth understanding of how professional reflection works and how this can be further developed through Personal and Professional Development methods. You will undertake team/group activities to identify why projects failed and present your findings to the class. This will give you confidence and improve your presentation skills. Familiarisation with VLE will be demonstrated, and in particular, Blackboard, you will be introduced to the library to understand how to conduct research whilst carrying out literature reviews. The concept of references is explained, and you are given an opportunity during tutorials to conduct research. This will ensure you understand plagiarism and how to ensure references are used correctly to avoid plagiarism. You will learn presentation skills, including PowerPoint. Academic and technical report writing skills are taught, and how to use MS Word effectively to produce professional reports will be explained. The world of teamwork will be introduced to you, including the different dynamics of a team and how group dynamics affect team performance. The notion of different roles and responsibilities of a team is researched, as well as how leading a group and documenting progress can be incorporated into team development. For each engineering design challenge, different roles will be assigned to students where you will identify issues in past failed projects and present solutions by reflecting on these team activities. You should be able to develop an understanding of the advantages of communication.

A 4000 words individual report on team dynamics and a reflection on team activities weighted at 100%, assessing learning outcomes 1, 2, 3, and 4.¿Meeting AHEP 4 Outcomes: F16, F17, F18

The module is delivered using a mixture of taught lectures and group activities.

This is achieved by:

Independent student learning, research, information gathering, guided reading, classroom-based lectures and tutorials.¿

Problem-solving and student-centred learning.¿

1. Identify key theories in communication and the challenges in communications during team activities and draw lessons from these. (AHEP 4: F16)

Learning

Knowledge and Understanding,

Analysis

Application

2. Research and understand different reflective theories and demonstrate how the concept of professional reflection contributes to professional development. (AHEP 4: F18)

Learning

Knowledge and Understanding,

Analysis

Enquiry

3. Research, analyse and identify a strategy that could be used for communication within team environment in the future. (AHEP 4: F17)

Problem Solving

Analysis

Knowledge and Understanding,

Learning

4. Communicate and reflect on your personal achievements and that of other team members whilst working in a team and to demonstrate an understanding of a successful group dynamic. (AHEP 4: F16)

Knowledge and Understanding,

Learning

Application

Communication

Reflection

PCs/Laptops with internet access to carry out research during tutorials

Tolar, T. (2023) ‘Value of reflective learning for nursing students: case studies of critical reflection within applied Gibbs’ model of reflection’,¿Journal of learning development in higher education[Preprint], (29). Available at: https://doi.org/10.47408/jldhe.vi29.1082.

Straube, J. and Kauffeld, S. (2021) ‘Working across faultlines - Assessing intersubgroup communication in teams’,¿Frontiers in communication, 6. Available at: https://doi.org/10.3389/fcomm.2021.582937

Arnold, M.C., Hannan, R.L. and Tafkov, I.D. (2020) ‘Mutual monitoring and team member communication in Teams’,¿The Accounting review, 95(5), pp. 1–21. Available at: https://doi.org/10.2308/ACCR-52659.

Tucker, C., Olsen, B. and Hale, R.T. (2023) ‘Trust and commitment: a comparative study of virtual team communication across industries’,¿Team performance management, 29(1/2), pp. 152–165. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1108/TPM-04-2022-0032.

Gambrill, E.D. and Gibbs, L.E. (2017)¿Critical thinking for helping professionals a skills-based workbook. Fourth edition.

Fook, J. (ed.) (2022)¿Practicing critical reflection in social care organisations. Milton: Taylor & Francis Group.

Oosthuizen, R. and Benade, S.J. (2021) ‘Systems engineering and project management — Crossing the great divide’,¿South African journal of industrial engineering, 32(3), pp. 201–210. Available at: https://doi.org/10.7166/32-3-2628.

Bonebright, D.A. (2010) ‘40 years of storming: a historical review of Tuckman’s model of small group development’,¿Human resource development international, 13(1), pp. 111–120. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1080/13678861003589099.

Bentley, C. (2020)¿Adaptable Project Management – A combination of Agile and Project Management for All (PM4A). Ely: IT Governance Publishing. Available at: https://doi.org/10.2307/j.ctv143mds3.

Van Emden, J. and Becker, L.M. (2022)¿Presentation skills for students. 3rd edition. London: Bloomsbury Academic.

This module aims to equip you with the professional world of communication and reflection. The focus here will be on teamwork, reflection and communication skills. You will gain the ability to follow professional team forming theories in order to firstly, understand the strengths of your team and how best to utilise them for your organisation’ requirements.

Topics covered include, teamwork, communication, reflection, presentation skills, report writing skills and group dynamics.