Education: The challenge and how forensic engineering can help

Education of construction professionals for a dynamic and challenging industry requires a sea change in how we educate. The traditional didactic methods no longer engage the student who operates in a world of instant information, instant messaging and instant coffee! The student body are no longer prepared to be drip fed information in discrete modules on diverse civil engineering topics. Furthermore, at the end of a bachelors degree, these modules will not necessarily coalesce to produce a competent well rounded graduate ready for training in the practice of engineering. The traditional lecture based method is, at best, challenged to produce graduates with the skills needed in a 21^st century economy. Therefore, engineering education needs a unifying student led approach to direct their learning. Many professional bodies have recognised the need for change and accordingly commissioned vision reports to chart the skills demanded by the environment in which we now operate. To this end, the following paper summarises how forensic engineering can be used as a means of promoting problem solving skills in undergraduate students. I argue that forensic engineering case histories provide the means of developing these skills and others without impacting on the technical rigour demanded of an accredited engineering programme.