Aiming to enhance the capacity of graduates to engage quickly and effectively in their chosen profession, this assignment addresses the challenges of providing work-integrated learning experiences and authentic assessment for large cohorts of architecture students. The assignment is the second of three inter-related assignments that aim to replicate the iterative, research-driven design development process used by multi-disciplinary teams in practice.

In Assignment 1, students work in teams using a given 'design generator' architect and a tight functional project brief, to prepare a schematic design for a 7-8 storey building. In Assignment 2, students use a virtual learning environment to individually examine how a schematic design is developed into larger scale technical details. This learning is then applied to the development of Assignment 1. In Assignment 3, students again operate in teams to synthesise the individual work undertaken in Assignment 2 into a coordinated whole and prepare a set of construction drawings that enhance the original Assignment 1 schematic design intent.

Assignment 2 requires each student to prepare a critical written and diagrammatic report . Part 1 requires a 4-dimensional analysis of a given construction detail in terms of material properties, component selection and construction methods over time. Each team is provided with a section drawing from a real construction project located in an interactive digital learning environment (http://4dconstruction.architecture.uq.edu.au/virtual-tour-site-library). The environment integrates 3-dimensional photographic surveys taken at weekly intervals of a real construction project with other resources, including technical drawings and interviews. Students select one detail each, analyse 2-dimensional drawings, make a 3-dimensional physical model and annotate screen shots of the construction process over time. Part 2 requires a similar 3-dimensional analysis and resolution of two details from a selected section of the team's Assignment 1 – Schematic design.
PLEASE NOTE: The academic integrity information displayed on this page is currently under review. Some examples and descriptions were developed before the widespread availability of generative AI tools and may not reflect current approaches to assessment security. When adapting an assessment idea, staff should consider how the design supports authorship, verifies student achievement of learning outcomes, and mitigates inappropriate use of AI and other forms of academic misconduct.

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