Journey or Destination? Effective student learning in transport planning

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Author(s)
Burke, Matthew
Griffith University Author(s)
Year published
2009
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Transport planning is an integral part of most Australian planning programs. This paper summarises research conducted at Griffith University in 2009 on teaching and learning in transport planning education. A detailed examination of learning objectives is used to frame the problem, drawn from course outlines in Australian and US planning programs. Where once transport planning education was narrowly focused on predicting and planning for roadway capacity, the subject now encompasses a wider set of problems including sustainability, equity, neighbourhood amenity and health (Handy et al. 2002:piii). Learning objectives therefore ...
View more >Transport planning is an integral part of most Australian planning programs. This paper summarises research conducted at Griffith University in 2009 on teaching and learning in transport planning education. A detailed examination of learning objectives is used to frame the problem, drawn from course outlines in Australian and US planning programs. Where once transport planning education was narrowly focused on predicting and planning for roadway capacity, the subject now encompasses a wider set of problems including sustainability, equity, neighbourhood amenity and health (Handy et al. 2002:piii). Learning objectives therefore include: understandings of planning theory, and how these relate to transportation planning; understandings of key concepts in transportation and land use planning; practical skills in capturing information on travel behaviour, in analysing that data, and in modelling and simulation to predict transport futures; and, other educational goals, including academic writing, statistical skill development, and presentation skills. The paper explores how these learning objectives can best be met, using examples provided by Frank (2002), Flyvberg (2001), Van Zuelen (2000) and Rose (2006). Recent changes to the Griffith University course in line with these approaches are then examined in detail, noting both their advantages and their significant limitations.
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View more >Transport planning is an integral part of most Australian planning programs. This paper summarises research conducted at Griffith University in 2009 on teaching and learning in transport planning education. A detailed examination of learning objectives is used to frame the problem, drawn from course outlines in Australian and US planning programs. Where once transport planning education was narrowly focused on predicting and planning for roadway capacity, the subject now encompasses a wider set of problems including sustainability, equity, neighbourhood amenity and health (Handy et al. 2002:piii). Learning objectives therefore include: understandings of planning theory, and how these relate to transportation planning; understandings of key concepts in transportation and land use planning; practical skills in capturing information on travel behaviour, in analysing that data, and in modelling and simulation to predict transport futures; and, other educational goals, including academic writing, statistical skill development, and presentation skills. The paper explores how these learning objectives can best be met, using examples provided by Frank (2002), Flyvberg (2001), Van Zuelen (2000) and Rose (2006). Recent changes to the Griffith University course in line with these approaches are then examined in detail, noting both their advantages and their significant limitations.
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Conference Title
Australia and New Zealand Association of Planning Schools (ANZAPS)
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Copyright Statement
© The Author(s) 2009. The attached file is posted here with permission of the copyright owner for your personal use only. No further distribution permitted. For information about this conference please refer to the publisher's website or contact the author.
Subject
Transport Planning