Content, Learning Methods and Assessment of Law on Undergraduate Courses in Construction Management and Surveying

Transcription

1 CEBE Transactions, Vol. 2, Issue 2, September 2005, pp (16) ISSN: (Online) Content, Learning Methods and Assessment of Law on Undergraduate Courses in Construction Management and Surveying Keith Hutchinson, Director of Undergraduate Courses and Lecturer in Economics School of Construction Management & Engineering, The University of Reading Abstract This Working Paper reports the results of a survey undertaken by the CEBE Teaching Enhancement Network (TEN) Building Law group into the aims, content, learning methods and assessment methods used for law subjects on undergraduate courses during 2002/03. The specific objectives of the survey were to Identify the legal content of courses in Building and Surveying in terms of subject topics in relation to the overall course content and compare the relative quantity of law content on different course disciplines and in different institutions; Establish the aims and objectives of the different law topics in relation to the overall course provision; Identify different teaching, learning and assessment methods used for law subjects; Identify any significant features and common trends in content and methods. Keywords: Construction Management, Surveying, Construction Law, Undergraduate Courses Acknowledgement: this article is also published as part of the CEBE Working Paper Series ISSN: ; ISBN ISBN

2 Introduction The subject of law forms a significant part of the syllabus content of all undergraduate courses in construction management and surveying, as it also does on similar, vocationally orientated courses such as accountancy, business, banking etc. The general reasons given (Byles and Soetendorp, 2002) for this inclusion of the subject of law on vocational courses, include the need for practitioners to be able to apply the law to their discipline and understand its effect on the operation of the work. Other advantages stated for the inclusion of law are that it provides an essential background to the practice of the discipline and creates the potential for practitioners to affect the shape and development of the law in the professional subject area. The precise law content of construction and surveying courses is generally a matter for the designers and developers of the individual courses, subject to approval of the professional bodies which accredit them, the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) for surveying courses and the Chartered Institution of Building (CIOB) for construction courses. Neither of these Institutions specifies detailed requirements, although the CIOB sets out a framework (CIOB, 2002) of required content covering all subjects. Thus course designers are free to determine the law syllabus content and its weight in the course. A general standard for the content, aims and methods of law on building and surveying courses (QAA, 2000a) cites specific branches of law, (land tenure, development of land, building control, planning, health and safety, project procurement, dispute resolution, employment, equal opportunities) as appropriate for inclusion in the curriculum of the courses and supports this by the overall requirement of these courses to give subject knowledge, understanding and skills in the context of the discipline. However, this statement does not define nor identify, beyond the list given above, the required specific content of law on building and surveying courses. Moreover, the subject of law, as a distinct discipline of study, is itself a very wide subject of study. It includes many specialised branches of law as well as the general principles, its creation and application, and legal techniques and skills (QAA, 2000b). Therefore, there is significant scope for a very great diversity in content and methods of the teaching of law on undergraduate courses in construction management and surveying. The appraisal of this content and the methods used for its teaching and learning is the subject matter of this paper. The purpose of the paper is to report the results of a survey undertaken by the CEBE TEN Building Law group (Table 1), into the aims, content, learning methods and assessment methods used for law subjects on undergraduate courses in construction management and surveying. The survey was undertaken of twenty-six undergraduate degree courses, delivered in seven Universities (Table 2), in the subjects of construction management, building surveying, quantity surveying and property management. It was undertaken by means of a questionnaire survey, which provided details of the content and methods of the courses are as they were delivered in the academic year 2002/3. 33

3 Aim and Objectives The aim of the survey was to produce a factual outline of the current content and methods of the legal subjects included in undergraduate courses in construction management and surveying and from this to identify any significant or common features occurring in the courses and establish a base for discussion and development of a full evaluation of the purpose and methods of the inclusion of legal subjects in such courses. For this aim, the specific objectives of the survey were, for the courses in the survey, to: Identify the legal content, in terms of subject topics. Quantify the identified topics in relation to the overall course content and compare the relative quantity of law content on different course disciplines and in different institutions. Establish the aims and objectives of the different law topics in relation to the overall course provision. Identify different teaching and learning methods used for law subjects. Establish the relative use of the different teaching and learning methods used. Identify the different assessment methods used for law subjects. Establish the relative usage of the different assessment methods. Identify any significant features and common trends in content and methods. 34

4 Law Content in Building Courses Proportion of Law The content of all law topics as a proportion of all course content, measured by credit value, is shown on Table 4. Considering the courses by vocational discipline, across all institutions, the proportion of law varies very widely, as shown below. Course Discipline Highest % Law Content Lowest % Law Content Average % Law Content Construction Management (8 courses) Quantity Surveying (8 Courses) Building Surveying (6 Courses) Property Management (4 Courses) All courses (26)

5 Considering the courses by the institution that offers them, across all disciplines, the proportion of law is as show below. Institution (See Table 2) Highest % Law Content Lowest % Law Content Average % Law Content 1 (7 Courses) (4 Courses) (3 Courses) ( 4 Courses) (4 Courses) (1 Course) 14 7 (3 courses) Thus, of discipline and institution, it is the institution which has the greatest effect on the proportion of quantity of law content on courses. This factor produces significantly less variation between highest and lowest. Classification and Definitions of Law Topics From the law content detailed in the questionnaires for the courses in the survey, a classification and brief definition was made of the different law topics included in the courses (Table 3). The brief definitions of the topics given in this table are intended as clarification only of the content and neither as inclusionary nor exclusionary of any material in the content of the topic. This classification required some changes in the terminology to that used for topics in the courses themselves, but the list is agreed to represent an accurate, meaningful and comprehensible taxonomy of law content in the surveyed courses. Not all of these identified and classified topics appear under this title or separately in the courses in the survey. The majority do appear in identifiable blocks in the courses, although some varied grouping does occur. However, a distinct, noticeable feature of almost all the courses surveyed is that law topics are included, in the great majority of cases, as identifiable, discreet subjects, most often as individual modules. Thus, generally, law topics are not taught in combination in the same modules with other subjects, for example with management, economics etc. The situations where this combination of law with other disciplines in the same module does occur are those of 36

6 the more directly applied legal topics, such as Contract Administration/Procurement, Construction Contract Law, Dispute Resolution or Professional Practice (Table 3, Topics E, F, G, & N.), where in approximately two thirds of the courses at least one of these subjects is combined with management related subjects. Aims of Law Topics From an evaluation of the outline aims and objectives that were supplied for the modules of the courses surveyed, modules can be broadly classified, in terms of their function and purpose in relation to the overall aims of the whole course as one of the following: Modules to prepare students for study of later legal modules on the course; that is, as a pre-requisite study for later modules. Modules with legal content required directly for the overall aims of the course; that is, law related directly to the vocational discipline subject of the course. Modules with a legal content offered as an optional elective study; that is, modules with a, usually, vocational content, but not considered to be directly related to the direct vocational aim of the course discipline but as a context to practice or as a niche, specialist area of practice. Each of these three functions of types of module function is considered below Modules to prepare students for study of later legal modules (Pre-requisites) Modules with aims of this type are: Legal System (Table 3, Topic A) Contract and Torts (Table 3, Topic B) These module topics are included in courses of all disciplines as identifiable discreet blocks. In some courses they are combined in one module. In the majority of courses they are taught by lawyers and provided to Construction Departments by the Law Department of the institution. 37

7 Modules with legal content required directly by the overall aims of the course (Vocational subject) Modules with aims of this type and the discipline of course on which they are compulsory content are as follows: Table 3, topic Course type C. Property Property D. Landlord & Tenant Building Surveying and Property E. Contract Administration/Procurement Quantity Surveying F. Construction Contracts Construction Management, Quantity Surveying and Building Surveying G. Dispute Resolution Quantity Surveying and Building Surveying H. Employment Law Construction Management J. Health & Safety Construction Management K. Building Conservation Building Surveying M. Environment Building Surveying N. Professional Practice Building Surveying The modules listed above are compulsory on all of the courses for which they are indicated except for Employment (H) and Health and Safety (J), which are not compulsory on all Construction Management courses, and Building Conservation (K), Environment (M) and Professional Practice (N), which are not compulsory on all Building Surveying courses. Thus there is a significantly consistent content across course disciplines, with the same compulsory law topics on all Quantity Surveying courses and all Property Management courses. There are small changes in compulsory law modules on Construction Management courses and Building Surveying courses. Modules offered as elective subject Modules of this type are: Dispute Resolution (Table 3 Topic G) Employment (Topic H) Business Organisation (Topic L) 38

8 The small number of modules in this classification indicates a low level of purely elective law offered on the courses. Only one of the thirteen subject topics identified in Table 3, Business Organisation (L), is not compulsory on any course. Dispute Resolution (G) and Employment (H) which are offered as elective study on some courses are compulsory on others. Teaching Methods Lectures are overwhelmingly the usual teaching method used for all courses of all disciplines (Table 6), being used for 48 of the 50 topics in the survey, but on only four of them are lectures the only assessment method used. Tutorials are the second highest teaching technique used, 35 out of 50, but for only one topic on one course are they used not in conjunction with lectures. Seminars are used on 15 of the 50 courses. All other methods, that is, Workshops, Debates and Online provision, are minority methods. Assessment Methods The situation of the dominance of lectures and tutorials as the teaching method for law is repeated for the technique of examinations and coursework as its method of assessment. 45 out of the 50 subjects are assessed by examination, but on only three of them exclusively so. Coursework is the second highest used assessment method, 30 out of 50 topics, but for only four topics are they used not in conjunction with examinations. All other methods, that is, Multi-choice test, Presentation and Report are used in only a small minority of topics and they are all used in conjunction with examinations. Conclusions Basis of Conclusions The survey was made of 26 courses in 7 institutions. For the academic year 2002/3, there were 98 RICS accredited undergraduate surveying courses (RICS, 2002), and 28 CIOB accredited, undergraduate, construction management courses (CIOB, 2002), offered in a total of 35 institutions. Therefore, the sample of the survey is considered sufficient to provide a meaningful representation of the content and methods of the subjects of law on surveying and construction management courses. The conclusions below, drawn from and based on this picture presented by the survey, are the judgements and opinions of the author of the paper and intended to stimulate debate, evaluation and development of its subject matter. 39

9 Content Quantitative Content The wide variation in the proportion of law as a content of the courses is a surprise and no real explanation can be offered other than to suggest that it is a choice of course designers made specific to the circumstances of individual institutions. There is no significant difference in the stated aims of the various topics that can explain the difference in relative weight given to individual modules. More investigation of the detailed content of topics in different courses would need to be undertaken for this. Substantive Content. The wide variation in quantity of content is not repeated with respect to its substance. There is a marked similarity in content on courses of the same discipline in all institutions. It can be speculated with some confidence that the vast majority of the legal topics in the courses would have existed under similarly identifiable headings when these types of courses were in their pre-natal form as the syllabi of the external examinations of the professional bodies. The substantive detailed content of the topics, which was not a subject of this survey, will presumable have changed in line with contemporary legal and professional development. Topics that might be considered as contemporary, new or developments since the conception age of external examinations syllabi, such as Health and Safety, Employment, Conservation, Business and Environment, are distinctly minority subjects. From this, it may be considered reasonable to say that the content of law on building and surveying courses is traditional. (Traditional is used here in the dictionary definition sense of a practice that has been handed down and it is not intended pejoratively or critically.) This traditional nature of the courses is emphasised (or may in fact be a factor in the cause of it?) by the feature of the very substantial similarity in the overall content of law on the courses, through all the types of individual disciplines. A distinct feature of law on construction and surveying courses which may also be said to add to their traditional nature is that law subjects are very largely delivered in exclusively, wholly legal, modular boxes. Teaching Methods and Assessment Methods The methods used to deliver the content and assess the students can, justifiably, also be described as traditional. Lectures and tutorials are the overwhelmingly used methods for delivery of material and examination and coursework for assessment. 40

10 This clearly is traditional for law subjects in general law courses and it is to be expected to have followed through onto the subject when delivered in a construction or surveying departments particularly as the majority of law content is provided by lawyers and/or by Law Departments. The area where significant developments and radical changes in teaching and learning technique are taking place or can be expected to do so in the near future (Maharg and Paliwala, 2002), is in the delivery by on-line techniques. This method occurs on two topics in two institutions in the survey. References Byles L., Soetendorp R. (2002) Law Teaching on other Programmes, in Effective Learning & Teaching in Law. Eds Burridge R., Hinnett K., Paliwala A., Varnava T. The Institute for Teaching & Learning in Higher Education. CIOB. (2002) CIOB Accreditation Process. (ROAD) Chartered Institute of Building. Maharg P., Paliwala A. (2002) Negotiating the Learning Process with Electronic Resources, in Effective Learning & Teaching in Law. Eds. Burridge R., Hinnet K., Paliwala A., Varnava T. The Institute for Teaching & Learning in Higher Education. QAA. (2000a) Academic Standards Law. Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education. QAA. (2000b) Academic Standards Building and Surveying. Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education. RICS. (2002) Prospectus of Surveying Education. 6 th Edition. Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors. 41

11 Appendix: Table 1 Participants - Tens Building Law Allan Ashworth QAA Academic Advisor Keith Hutchinson The University of Reading Moderator John Adriansee Stephen Allen Edith Bowman Martin Green Phil Hawkins Kevin Johnson Mel Lees James Mason Isaki Ngekugri Alan Tyler Tim Whitworth London South Bank University UMIST Heriot-Watt University Leeds Metropolitan University The Nottingham Trent University The University of Greenwich University of Salford University of West of England University of Wolverhampton Loughborough University Glasgow Caledonian University << Back 42

12 Table 2 Courses in Survey 1. HERIOT WATT UNIVERSITY 1.Building Economics & Quantity Surveying 2. Building Services Construction Management 3. Building Services Quantity Surveying 4. Building Surveying 5. Construction Management 6. Construction Project Management 7. Estate Management 2. THE NOTTINGHAM TRENT UNIVERSITY 1. Building Surveying 2. Construction Management 3. Quantity Surveying & Construction Management 4. Real Estate Management 3. THE UNIVERSITY OF READING 1. Building Construction Management 2. Building Surveying 3. Quantity Surveying 4. SALFORD UNIVERSITY 1. Building Surveying 2. Construction Project Management 3. Property Management & Investment 4. Quantity Surveying 5. SOUTH BANK UNIVERSITY 1. Architecture 2. Building Surveying 3. Construction Management 4. Quantity Surveying 6. UMIST 1. Commercial Management & Quantity Surveying 7. UNIVERSITY OF WEST OF ENGLAND 1. Building Surveying 2. Quantity Surveying & Commercial Management 3. Commercial Management << Back 43

13 Table 3 Law Topics A. LEGAL SYSTEM, CONSTITUTION Court systems and procedures. Types of laws and law making systems. B. CONTRACT & TORTS Obligations of private parties by agreement and duty. C. PROPERTY Real property. Land and built facilities. Forms, rights and obligations of ownership and possession. D. LANDLORD & TENANT Nature of leasehold possession. Rights and duties of ownership and possession of real property for a term of years. E. CONTRACT ADMINISTRATION/PROCUREMENT Legal relationships and of parties to contracts for the procurement of the design and construction of built facilities and procedures for formation and settlement of their contracts. F. CONSTRUCTION CONTRACTS Conditions and legal interpretation of typical/standard form provisions made between parties to construction contracts. G. DISPUTE RESOLUTION Legal regulation of methods and procedures for settlement of disputes in construction contracts. H. EMPLOYMENT Legal regulation of the employment of labour. Nature of employment contracts and rights and obligations of parties. I. HEALTH & SAFETY Legal regulation of construction activity and the duties of parties to the process. J. BUILDING CONSERVATION The law relating to matters affecting the conservation, preservation, restoration and maintenance of built facilities. K. BUSINESS ORGANISATION Legal forms of business organisation. Company, partnership and sole trader, their status and powers. L. PLANNING/ENVIRONMENT The law relating to approval of development. Design and construction of built facilities with regard to matters of the utilisation and preservation of resources. M. PROFESSIONAL PRACTICE Liabilities and obligations of professional practitioners in contract and tort and the rights of their clients. << Back 44

14 Table 4 Law Content of Courses LAW SUBJECTS IN COURSES, CLASSIFIED BY DISCIPLINE, AS % OF TOTAL COURSE CONTENT MEASURED BY CREDIT VALUE. COURSE (See Table 2) CONSTRUCTION MANAGEMENT % LAW QUANTITY SURVEYING % LAW BUILDING SURVEYING % LAW ESTATE & PROPERTY MANAGEMENT % LAW << Back 45

15 Table 5 Law Topics in Courses LAW TOPICS IN COURSES, CLASSIFIED BY DISCIPLINE TOPICS (See Table 3) CONSTRUCT ION MANAGEMENT COURSES Total 8 QUANTITY SURVEYING COURSES Total 8 BUILDING SURVEYING COURSES Total 6 ESTATE & PROPERTY MANAGEMENT COURSES Total 4 A. Legal system B. Contract & Tort C. Property D. Landlord & 2 4 Tenant E. Contract Admin & Procurement F. Construction Contract G. Dispute Resolution H. Employment J. Health & Safety K. Conservation 1 1 L. Business 1 M. Planning 3 1 N. Professional Practice 1 << Back 46

16 Table 6 Teaching Methods UNIVERSITY (See Table 2) TOTAL LAW TOPICS LECTURE TUTORIAL WORK SHOP DEBATES SEMINARS ON- LINE TOTAL << Back Table 7 Assessment Methods UNIVERSITY TOTAL LAW TOPICS EXAM COURSE- WORK MULTI- CHOICE TEST PRESENTATION REPORT TOTAL << Back Footnote This article is also published as part of the CEBE Working Paper Series (ISSN: ; ISBN ); for further details and other titles under this series please see the CEBE website at 47