A diverse team has won the James Goldston Faculty of Engineering and Physical Systems Dean's Award for Excellence in Teaching.

The winning team (pictured right, left to right) includes Michelle Hutchinson (DTLS), Dave Cardnell (JGFEPS); Jamie Meyer (DTLS), and Dr Elizabeth Tansley (InfoCom); and (pictured below David Qian (CQU Melbourne International).

This team has been involved in the development and teaching of the course Computer Hardware Fundamentals over a number of years.

The committee which reviewed the application felt that it exemplified innovative learning opportunities for students generated by collaborative teamwork across the University. In particular the members were impressed by the professional and systematic approach to the teaching development and the research relating to the teaching developed by the team.

This year's Dean's Award winning team was the first yet to include representation from one of CQU's international campuses, thanks to the significant input of David Qian.

Students of this course are required to understand the operation of electronic component diagrams (these are basically electronic circuit diagrams, with a bit less detail).

For example, students are required to understand the operation of a computer keyboard, as represented in an electronic component diagram. When the course first began, students had only a printed diagram and a textual description of the operation to go on - this is a very difficult way to learn the operation of these diagrams.

Over a number of years, the team developed some Quicktime animations that illustrated the step-by-step operation of the component diagrams using both colour and voice-over to richen the explanation. This represents a significant improvement in student learning.

Since then the team has also developed some interactive versions as well as a virtual reality computer that students can assemble and disassemble.

Concurrently, the team developed practical laboratory sessions for the internal students.

These lab pracs include disassembling and re-assembling a PC unit, installing hard disk drives, networking and soldering.

Students construct and solder a small unit that can be plugged into a PC's serial port for testing that port.

The team envisages that students could write a program to address and control this unit in their programming tutorial classes, thereby uniting the knowledge learned in two separate courses.

CQU has been cited as one of the few (if only) universities that includes in-depth coverage of the operation of computer hardware. Several research papers and research grants have been achieved throughout the duration of this project.