CHAPTE

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LABORATORY REPORT WRITING

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1.1 INTRODUCTION

A laboratory report can be defined as is a systematic account of

scientific or engineering investigations. There is no one formal
format for writing a laboratory report. However, most laboratory
reports will have the following elements:

 Cover page
 Objective/s of the experiment
 Theory behind what is being experimented
 Procedure and method/s used during the experiments
 Equipment/Apparatus used in the experiments
 Results obtained and data analysis method/s
 Discussion of results obtained
 Conclusion drawn from results
 Recommendations and references

1.2. COVER PAGE

The front page should contain:

 Logo of the University of Zambia
 Name of the School
 Name of the Department
 Course Code and Title
 Title of the laboratory Report
 Author’s Name/s
 Computer Number/s
 Date of Experiment
 Date the Laboratory is due
 The name of the lecturer for whose attention the report is
intended.

Refer to Appendix A for a detailed layout of the Cover Page.

1.3. OBJECTIVE/S

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The objective states the purpose of undertaking a study. The
objective shows the existing independability or dependability of
variables; being material objects as opposed to concepts.
Objectives are undistorted by emotions or personal bias. The
Objective/s helps to:

(a) Sharpen and deepen theoretical framework by studying

different theories related to, the topic.
(b) Familiarize oneself with the latest development of
knowledge in the area of research.
(c) Discover gaps in knowledge as well as weaknesses in
previous studies.
(d) Discover connections between different research results.
(e) Identify variables that need to be considered in the
research as well as those that prove irrelevant.
(f) Study definitions used in previous studies as well as
characteristics of the population investigated.
(g) Study research methods utilized by others, their strong
and weak aspects in order to adopt or improve them in one's
own research.
(h) Prevent duplication.
(i) Provide convincing arguments for why your problem
warrants investigation/research.

Tips on formulating objectives

Avoid words and phrases like: PREFER

Know Define
Understand Describe
Really know Give examples of
Be familiar with Explain
Gain a working knowledge of Distinguish between
Fully understand Suggest reasons why
Become acquainted with Evaluate
Appreciate Analyse
Have a good grasp of Pick out
Realise the significance of Summarise
Learn the basics Compare
Acquire the feeling of Carry out
Be aware of Show diagrammatically
Believe in Demonstrate, Compute

1.4 THEORY

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The word theory comes from a Latin word “theoria” meaning a
sight. In engineering and physical sciences this is understood to
be a system of rules, procedures and assumptions used to
produce engineering or scientific results. Therefore, theory is the
body of knowledge related by logical or mathematical arguments
meant to explain and or predict a phenomena or a wide variety
of connected phenomena in general terms. For instant, the
“Theory of Relativity”.
1.5 PROCEDURE OR METHOD/S

Procedure can be defined as a way of acting or progressing in

the course of experiments. It is usually a tested and established
mode of investigating a given scientific or engineering
phenomena. A procedure is repetitive and will always lead to the
same result/s under a given condition or conditions. In computer
technology a procedure is executed by the subroutine/s.

Under this section of the laboratory report the author is

expected to describe the procedure or methods used in carrying
out the experiment/s.

1.6. EQUIPMENT/APPARATUS

Equipment and or apparatus: Devices, machines, tools, etc used

in carrying out the experiment/s. Under this section of the report
the equipment or apparatus used during experiment/s is
discussed highlighting the main features and functions. A
drawing or picture of the equipment or apparatus being used for
experiments should be included in the report. A reader should be
able to gauge if the equipment used was appropriate for the
investigations at hand. Readers (Addressee) should also be able
to appreciate, if the investigator understood the limitations of
the equipment used in performing experiments, acquiring data
and thereafter analyses or the methods used in analysing data.

1.7. RESULTS AND DATA ANALYSIS

This section, written in the past tense, should provide a factual

statement of what the investigator/s (authors) observed
supported by any statistics, tables or graphs derived from
analysis of the data recorded during the investigation/s. Any
other diagrams should normally be included with the results as
an aid to their interpretation.

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It is necessary, as in a thesis, that the original data is included
in tables. The tables in the Results section should be summaries.

In this section the investigator/s should also describe

representative successful experiments in detail; and it may be
helpful to mention briefly the unsuccessful experiments and
wrong turnings which are part of every investigation.

Results are presented in a logical order (not usually the order in

which you did the work). Remember that this is not the place for
the investigator/s’ comments.

1.8. DISCUSSION

This should be an objective consideration of the results given in

the previous section and should lead naturally to your main
conclusions.
Refer is made to any further light cast upon the problems raised
in the Introduction and how the work fits into the background of
previous investigations; but no claim should be made of what
can not substantiated.

References to what was done should be written in the past

tense to emphasize that investigator is commenting on the work
reported; however statements of fact are written in the present
tense.

The investigator/s are normally tempted to include much

information sifted from the work of other people. However,
many of these sources can be adequately covered by a few
words followed by a reference. Other things that seemed
relevant when you making your notes, may have no place in the
final report. The references cited should provide essential
background for which there is no space in the report or is
needed for the development of arguments.

Most scientists have been misquoted or misunderstood. They

may be pleasantly surprised when they are not. When reading,
therefore, use abstracts and reviews but one should go to the
original to find what other people did, how they did it, and what
they concluded. When writing care is taken to make the
meaning clear. Any ambiguous sentence is likely to be
misunderstood.

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Care is also taken care, when quoting from the work of others,
by checking that the words and punctuation used are copied
correctly. When summarizing other people's work the original
meaning should be preserved. This is not easy and when the
reference is out of context readers may take a different meaning
from the original.

1.9. CONCLUSION

The conclusion section should come immediately after the main

body (Discussion). There should be no new material introduced
at this stage. In this section reference is made to drawings and
arguments developed so that their implications are brought to
the fore or highlighted. It is often desirable to treat each item in
the conclusion as a separate paragraph, even if it is a single
sentence. There is no magic formula in creating conclusion, but
here are some general guidelines to consider:

 The conclusion comes at the end the report or paper.

 The conclusion should provide retrospective views that
summarises the major points and explain their significance.
 Brief elaborations on the accomplishment of the objectives
are stated instead of simply repeating of the objectives of
the report or paper.
 Investigators make sure not to undercut their own work, or
claim more than they have actually done.
 Afterthoughts that require more development are avoided.

1.10. RECOMMENDANTIONS

The recommendations list the recommended solutions. These

should be clearly prioritised, and the priorities justified. If there
are a number of alternatives possible the author should indicate
preferable ones and give reasons. Recommendations should be
the logical outcome of conclusions. One should not recommend
without the backing of the report. Recommendations are
expressed in parallel grammatical functions of words so that
they are seen as a set of related points.

1.11. REFERENCES (BIBLIOGRAPHY)

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A complete literature citation is necessary for information
retrieval. If a citation is incomplete other people (readers and
librarians) will waste time in trying to find the missing details.

A distinction is made between a list of references and

bibliography where the later is supplied as a comprehensive
coverage of books and journals in an area, even though these
may not be cited.

The bibliography serves to accomplish the listing of all the

sources used in writing the report, paper etc not necessarily
every work examined but those that were found to be relevant

Reference serves to list the sources used in writing the report,

comparing results and methods etc. The sources examined
should be listed in order of appearance in the report. You should
give the authors name and initials, title of the book, paper,
journal or report, publisher and place, edition, date and first and
last page numbers of the paper or journal.

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 CHAPTE
R

2 REPORT WRITTING

2.1 INTRODUCTION

There is no simple solution to the problems encountered in

engineering writing. Experience has shown that the basics of
sound engineering writing are: logical organisation of
engineering information being communicated, sensitivity to the
intended audience, lucid and convincing expression of ideas.

In helping engineering students become prolific writers of

engineering articles and reports it always important to spend
some time to clarify the thrust behind writing a thesis,
dissertation and project report.

2.2 THESES

The word thesis means a statement, proposition or position

which a person advances and is prepared to maintain. The word
is used as a synonym for dissertation: a written presentation of a
subject, a contribution to knowledge, usually prepared by a
candidate for a higher degree.

The purpose of writing a thesis or dissertation is to train the

mind of a writer and show how far it has been trained in
articulating and solving engineering problem at hand. The writer
of a thesis, after years of thought and study, must have made the
subject his or her own, and his or her writing must convey in-
depth ideas of thesis subject mater. The Master’s degree thesis
is based upon training in the problems and methods of scientific
investigation. That is, upon independent research. The Doctorate
thesis, on the other hand, is based upon independent original
research. That is, upon an investigation in which the frontiers of
knowledge have been explored and extended. Great care is
therefore taken in the selection of problem to which a
contribution may be made within the student available time.

2.3 PROJECT REPORTS

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A report is an account prepared for the benefit of others. Project
Reports have some features of a thesis and project work is part
of many first engineering degree courses.

Generally, a project report provides information, obtained during

an investigation, as part of training in research. The report of a
project is more demanding than anything that a student has
written previously.

A project in which a student’s own observations are reported and

related to other relevant work by others should be written as a
scientific paper. A project should provide scope of initiative,
ingenuity and originality. The report should therefore, not only
indicate what was done but also the student’s approach to the
problem involved, the interpretation by others, and, if
appropriate the analysis and interpretation of new observations
and results. Therefore a quality of the student written report
plays a major part in assessment.

The use of the commonly accepted headings will help an

engineering student to organize a Project Report or work and
will also help readers to know where to look for the required
information.

Many university faculties, like editors of all most all engineering

journals, specify the headings to be used in project report
writing unless there is sonic overriding reason for not doing so.
The following elements, among others, would indicatively make
up an engineering project report.

Introduction What did you do? Why?

Materials and Methods How did you do it?
Results What did you find?
Discussion Your interpretation of your results
Conclusion Statement of main findings
Acknowledgements Who helped?
References Details of references cited

2.3 THE FRONT COVER

The front cover of a research and development report should

include: a serial number; the title in full (including any sub-title);
the author(s) name(s); the name of the organization (and of the
division of the organization) responsible for the report, and its

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full postal address; the date when it was published; the price
(and sales point if different from the organization responsible for
the report); the security classification, if any.

Any special notices required by the sponsoring organization

should be on the inside of the front cover. Below the title, list
the name(s) of the author(s) of the report and the name(s) of the
institution(s) in which the work was done (the full postal
address). Date the report and give it a serial number. If it is
different from the place at which the work was done, give the
author's present address as a footnote.

If more than one person has contributed to the work, the

authors' names should be in alphabetical order, or in an order
which reflects each person's contribution, or in an order
determined by house rules or national custom.

For a printed report, write the following information on the title

page, and draw a circle around it to indicate that it is not to be
printed: a note of the number of folios (pages of typescript,
tables and illustrations or other copy); a name and address for
the editor to use in correspondence; and a short running title for
the top of each printed page.

In a bound report or thesis, after the front cover, the first sheet
is blank, and the third page is the title page it has the full title,
full names of the candidate, the qualification for which the report
is being submitted for, the name of the institution, the
department, faculty or organisation in which the investigations
were conducted, and the year and month of submission. The title
page should be followed by a table of contents and list of tables
and illustrations. The acknowledgment should include a
declaration in which a note is made of the source of material
used in the report, the author’s role in any joint work included in
the report. The Summary or Abstract, of about 300 words follows
the summary states the nature and scope of work and the
contribution made to the body of knowledge of the subject. A
brief summary of the method of investigation used, any outline of
the major principle arguments of work, the critical results
obtained and conclusions are included in the abstract.

2.4 TITLE

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It is worth giving a lot of thought to the choice of a good title to
ensure that it attracts the attention of all those who might wish
to read part or the whole of the report.

Remember that the title of any report should be useful to the

many people who will see only the title - in a memorandum, a
research report, or in a list of references. The title of a
published report should be useful to people who see only the
title - in an index or abstract or in a list of references in another
paper - as well as to those who have the whole paper to
examine.

The title should be brief but unambiguous, and it should give a

clear indication of the subject and scope of the work. Some
journals print lists of key words (words used in indices) and key
words that might contribute to information retrieval should be
included in your title. The title used at the start should be re-
considered at the end. Check that it is sufficiently direct and
informative. Delete superfluous words (for example: Aspects of ;
Neglected effects of ... ; Studies on ... Part ... ).

2.5 TABLE OF CONTENTS

The title is the first and most important part of any written
communication. Just as you read quickly through the headlines
of your newspaper- to see if there is anything worth reading
today- so scientists read the Contents page of a report or journal.
The Table of Content should have page number of the chapters
and sections headings. The List of Tables gives the table
numbers with their respective titles and page number.

2.6 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

This is a list of all graphical presentations like tables, graphs,

figures and photos are listed in chronological order.
 Every item must be numbered as either a table or figure.
 Every item must have a complete descriptive title.
 References pertaining to the illustrations must be
mentioned where the illustrations are physically presented
in the document.
 Specific reference must be made to the applicable
illustration in the document’s content.
 The list must make reference to the page numbers where
the illustrations are presented in the document.

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2.7 GLOSSARY

All technical terms and abbreviations are alphabetically defined

in this section. A list of symbols and their descriptions must also
be included.

2.8 ABSTRACT OR SUMMARY

On reading the title, they decide to look at the Summary or at

the Abstract, or they stop reading.

2.9 INTRODUCTION (CHAPTER 1)

The first chapter is used as an introduction to the problem being

investigated or studied and for this reason it can contain a
description of the problem. It also ends with a description of
how other subsequent chapters of the project report will
contribute to the solution of the problem. The introduction is not
the same as the abstract, as the abstract concisely summarises
the entire document, while the introduction introduces the
reader to the project. Therefore, in the introduction the reader
is led into the content of the project, by showing what is written
where. A diagram or flow chart can be included explaining the
structure of the project report. This diagram also allows the
student to thoroughly plan the project document. Typically the
introduction or Chapter One contains:

• A short background to the project (this can include a

definition and discussion of the problem and may also refer to
the history of similar projects).
• A short discussion concerning the objectives of the project
and the report.
• A short discussion of the procedure followed by the student to
solve the problem (this is only applicable if another section of
the document is not dedicated to this purpose).
• A short discussion concerning the challenges, limitations and
obstacles faced, for example time, financial, co-operation,
information and other constraints.
• A discussion pertaining to the scope of the project.
• A plan of execution of the project
2.9.1 Other chapters

In writing subsequent chapters of the project report, firstly, the

student should keep in mind that there are very specific
guidelines when writing a technical report. Therefore, most of
the guidelines outlined here are only to serve as an indication.

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Usually the first couple of chapters (starting at Chapter 2),
including literature review form part of the problem statement
(if not discussed as part of the introductory chapter).

The objective of the literature review is to use, as much as

possible, current knowledge and information on the subject
matter. Literature review gives a perceptive of the work and
show existing knowledge as a basis of further discoveries.
Therefore, this section or chapter must reflect various
theoretical and academic points of views, and it is up to the
student to interpret and integrate these views so that the
project report has a sound theoretical support. The literature
pertaining to the project always has a wider scope than that
concerning the problem at hand and it is, therefore, important
to establish the scope of the project and to set some boundaries.
Usually only a subset of the literature studied, by a student, is
relevant to the project and the student must be wary of not
incorporating all that has been studied into the project report.
The student can incorporate the literature review materials as
reference by making reference to them in the main text
underpinning the most important points pertaining to the
project.

2.10 MATERIALS AND METHODS

In this Chapter the student has to fully describe what was

employed to solve the problem, for example experimental
apparatus, software or programmers. The student should also
explain in a systematic way how the problem was solved and how
the appropriate information was obtained. The experimental
method and research tools or instruments used have to be
included as well.

2.11 FINDINGS

This Chapter may be subdivided (by sections or even chapters)

with appropriate headings, since the student is expected to
discuss the findings in detail. The information must be legible. It
is therefore, advisable that the various headings and sub-
headings be numbered in order to guide the reader through the
work. To avoid confusion and for the sake of clarity students
should not present huge amounts of information without
breaking it down.

2.12 DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINDINGS

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The findings are analysed and discussed in detail in this chapter.
However, the student might opt to include this part under their
findings. Chapters, under discussion, should always form
meaningful inter-related building blocks and should not end
without a summary.

The last two chapters of the document contain the conclusions,

and recommendations. These chapters form the essence of the
document. The reader must be able to read these two chapters
and the first chapter plus the abstract as a unit and more or less
form a complete picture of the project.

2.13 CONCLUSIONS

This Chapter is presented as the second last chapter of the

project report and together with the recommendations is
probably the most important part of the document. When
describing engineering developments and reporting new findings
or techniques, a summary is not always the appropriate way to
end a report. In the conclusion the student must present his/her
gained insights. These insights must be based on the findings
and, therefore, no new material should be introduced in the
conclusion. A conclusion unlike a summary or abstract not only
reviews the results but also interprets them. The conclusion
should, among other things, point out what was important, what
was significantly unique, and why the results are valid. To make
a report more creditable and convincing it is necessary to
include in the conclusion some negative aspects of the research
by showing the gaps in the work and limitations of the findings
with regard to others.

2.14 RECOMMENDATIONS

This Chapter is presented as the last chapter of the project

report and is an important part of the project report. The
Chapter has to contain recommendations concerning future
actions if applicable to the project. In this chapter the student
should take a critical review of the project work so as to indicate
any areas that require further investigations by highlight
deficiencies in the project.

2.15 ABSTRACT

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At the University of Zambia, as shown in Appendix 1-B, a project
report should be accompanied by an abstract. In the abstract,
the student should focus on whether the project’s initial
objectives have been reached and this must be discussed. The
student should expound which method were used, the
uniqueness of the method and results obtained, and the major
conclusion. Should the student compares his or her findings to
other projects or research areas, these must clearly stated in the
abstract.

2.6 REFERENCES

This section of the report may appear at the end of each chapter
or at the end of the project report listing in alphabetical order or
order of appearance in the report of only those references
referred to in the project report. References include textbooks,
articles, electronic platforms (for example the Internet),
interviews,

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 CHAPTE
R
EDITING PROTOCOL

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3.1 INTRODUCTION

When engineering investigations are completed, information

generated during investigations is normally documented in some
form of a report. Some engineering students may feel that, in
scientific writing, the writing style is not important. However, in
writing an article in any science journal, a project report, or in
describing an experiment the author’s interest is to convey
information to the reader using proper words in proper places.
That is, the written report should be properly laid out with each
sentence a single step and each paragraph a complete stage in
the argument or narrative; with each idea in its right place in the
sequence, and none missing; with all connections made properly.
Evidently, good writing styles and editing abilities are required
in order to produce high quality written engineering reports.
Writing styles defer from student to student. A good writing style
depends on the students’ intelligence, imagination and good
taste, sincerity, modest, careful planning and paying attention to
the requirement of scientific writing. However, the syntax and
structuring of the sentences follows some basic rules of the
English language. Therefore, the trust in this chapter is on
sentence punctuation on one hand, and citation and illustrations
on the other as means of editing and improving the quality a
report.

3.2 PUNCTUATION

3.2.1 Full Stop

A full stop or period denotes an abbreviation and coming at the
end of a sentence. A full stop may also serve as the closing full
stop. The full stop is omitted at the end of items in a vertical list
or enumeration, whether or not the items are composed of
sentences, notes, and complete blocks of information.

Omit full stops at the end of all the following:

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  Display heading for chapters, tables, and so on,
 Any subheading that is typed on a line by itself,
 Superscription and legends,
 Box headings and out-in headings in tables,
 Address and date lines in communications, and signatures,

 With shortened form of words that end with the last letter
of the word (Dr, Ave),

 For an incomplete statement used within a sentence, use

three periods with a space before and after the periods ().

The period falls after a parenthesis that fails at the end of a

sentence. It goes with the parenthesis when the enclosed
element is independent. When a complete sentence enclosed in
parenthesis or brackets stands alone, the full stop for that
sentence is placed within the parenthesis or bracket, when the
parenthetical sentence appears inside another sentence,
however, the full stop is omitted.

Examples

We have already noted similar motifs in Japan. (Significantly,

very similar motifs can also be found in the myth and folk tales
of Korea).

The car crept up the driver’s way (I saw it turn in from the road
and pause just short of the entrance).

3.2.2 Parentheses (brackets)

The first word in brackets has no capital letter unless it is a
proper noun (John from Jamaica).

Square brackets are used around parenthesis within a

parenthesis, around an interpretation in a quotation, and around
missing or unverified data in documentation.

To enclose words that tell what is happening when someone is

speaking.

Not used immediately after a punctuating mark.

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Question marks are placed at the end of a query or may be used
to indicate uncertainty (1512?- 1571).

3.2.3 Comma
Commas are used, in sentences containing two independent
clauses joined by a coordinating conjunction, placed before the
conjunction.

Do not use a comma before a conjunction joining the parts of a

compound predicate (i.e. two or more verbs having the same
subject): For examples; the agencies should design their own
monitoring system and evaluate the data derived from them.

A series of three or more words, phrases, or clauses takes a

comma between each of the elements and before a conjunction
separating the last two.

No commas should be used, however, when the elements in a

series are all joined by conjunctions: cat or dog or rat.

When commas occur within one or more of the elements of a

series, semicolons instead of commas should be used to separate
the elements.

A comma may be used to mark an omission of a word or word

made clear by the context.

Use commas to set off a non- restrictive clause or phrase

following a main clause. An element is non-restrictive if it can be
omitted without altering the meaning of the main clause: these
books, which are placed on reserve, are required reading for the
course.

A word, phrase or clause in opposition to a noun may also be

restrictive or non restrictive, when it is non- restrictive, it is set
off by commas: For example; His brother, a Manchester
graduate, transferred to Oxford to read there. If, however the
opposition limits the meaning of the noun and is therefore
restrictive, no commas should be used; The Danish philosopher
Kierkegaard asks, 'What is anxiety?'

Commas are used to set off a phrase indicating the place of

residence, immediately following a personal name.

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The name of a title or position following a person's name should
be set off with commas.

Set off with commas the individual elements in addresses and

name of places.

Set off with comma interjections, transitional adverbs, and the

like, when they cause a distinct break in the flow of thoughts:
For example; His statement, therefore, cannot be verified. That,
after all, is a matter of great importance.

In using commas to set off a parenthetical element in the middle

of a sentence, the writer must remember to include both
commas: For example; The bill, you will be pleased to hear,
passed at the session.

Use a comma following Namely, That is, for example, i.e., e.g.,
there must be a punctuation mark before each of these
expressions, but the kind of mark varies with the nature and
complexity of the sentence.

Use a comma to separate two identical or closely similar words:

For example, they marched in, twos. Whatever is, had best be
accepted.

A comma should be used to prevent misreading of sentences

such as: For example; after eating, the lions yawned and then
dozed.

When each of reversal adjectives preceding a noun modifies the

noun individually, commas should separate them: For example; It
was a large, well-placed, beautiful house.

Set off commas contrasted elements and two or more

complementary or antithetical phrases or clauses referring to a
single word following: For example; the idea, not its expression,
is significant.

Between items in a series, between coordinate adjectives (we

listen to the absorbing, frightening account of the event).

Around parenthetical elements (the invention, the first, changed

lines).

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After fairly long phrases or clauses preceding the main clauses
(congress passed the bill, and the president signed it).

A comma is generally omitted following a stronger mark of

punctuation (a '?' mark is stronger than a',').

3.2.4 Colon
A colon indicates that what follows will be an example,
explanation, or elaborate what has just been said.

The colon is used to introduce a clause or phrase that expands,

clarifies, or exemplifies the meaning of what precedes it.

A colon should be placed at the end of a grammatical element

introducing a formal statement. It is usually placed after
following or as follows or in sum when the enumeration items or
illustrations come immediately after. The second and rare usage
is to divide an antithesis like 'Man proposes: God disposes'.

3.2.5 Dash
Dashes may be used in the following instances: around
parenthetical elements that represent a break in the flow of
thoughts, around parenthetical elements, which require a
number of internal commas -------,---, before a summarizing
appositive. A number of other uses are:

A dash or a pair of dashes may indicate a sudden break in

thought that disrupts the sentence structure: To this the young
man answered -he must have been very young- 'I will do as you
say.'

Breaks in faltering speech or interruptions should be indicated

by dashes: Beeky and Ann - where have they gone?

Use a dash to introduce an element that emphasizes or explain

the main clause through repetition of a key word or key words:
He asked where wisdom is to be found-'the wisdom that is above
rubies.'

In a sentence that includes several elements referring to a word

that is the subject of a final, summarizing clause. The dash
should precede the final clause: The status of the man throwing
the discuss, the charioteer at Delphi, the poetry of Pinder-all
show the culmination of the great ideal.

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To set of a list providing there is a collective word before the list,
i.e., the farmer grew crops - wheat, barley, and thing.

To make a comment that is an aside: we rowed the boat - a flimsy

craft - to the shore.

Can be used in pairs instead of brackets, since brackets can look

inelegant in formal prose, or it can be used dashingly, so to
speak - to signal a careless case, as here, towards the end of a
sentence.

3.2.6 Capitals
In the title of English works, capitalize the first and last words
and all words except articles, prepositions, and coordinating
conjunctions: Economic Effects of the War upon Women.

For family relationship name and title of people, clergy, and

books title.

When a pronoun comes before a reference to a particular

person.

3.2.7 Apostrophes
Indicates contractions and possessives. Also use apostrophes to
form the plural of letters.

With plural nouns ending in’s’ the apostrophe is used alone (the
horses' tail).

Used to write plural of numbers.

To show letter or words left out.

3.2. 8 Hyphens
Hyphens connect numbers indicating a range an also form the
same type of compound words.

To indicate stammering (c-c-ome).

Italics are rarely appropriate in research report writing.

20
3.3 QUOTATION
Titles of unpublished theses and dissertations and other papers
are set in quotation marks.
To enclose book titles

Double quote for spoken words, single quote used inside

quotation.

To separate special word or phrase

It is sometime advisable for the writer to insert in a quotation a

word or more of explanation, or clarification, or correction. All
such insertion (interpretations) must be enclosed in square
brackets.[ ]. Parenthesis may not be substituted.

3.4 NUMBERS

Numbers in general are written in words i.e., all whole numbers

from one to nine. But numerals are used for all numbers from 10
and over. Never begin a sentence with a numeral (Five years
ago). In indicating a range of numbers, give the second number
in full for numbers through 99. For larger numbers, give only
the last two digits of the second number, unless more are
necessary.

3.4.1 Format
If your instructor has specific requirements for the format of a
research paper, check these before preparing your draft.

3.4.1 Page Number

Give the inclusive page numbers when you cite part of the book.
Give the page number of the entire piece, not just the pages for
the materials you have used. Page numbers in a table of contents
are always given at the right-hand side of the page. Note that
only the beginning page number of each chapter or other section
is given. Page number for parts may be omitted unless, they are
not evidenced by the beginning page number, but if page
number is given for one part, it must be given for all of them.

3.4. 2 Footnotes
Footnotes have four main uses:

21
  To cut the authority for statement in text (specific facts or
opinions as well as exact quotations).
 To make cross-references.
 To make incidental comments on, to amplify or to qualify
textual discussion- to provide a place for material the writer
thinks worthwhile but it would disrupt the flow of thought if
introduced in the text.
 To make acknowledgement.
Footnotes must follow one another in numerical order.
Numbering may start at each chapter, or it may run continuously
through the paper. The omission of a number is not permissible
or alphanumerical format.

Footnotes should be arranged in numerical order at the foot of

the page, and all those texts that make references must appear
on the same page.
Tables, outlines, lists, letters, and the like that are not
immediately relevant to the text are best placed in an appendix
and referred to in the text by simple footnote.

Except in scientific and technical writing, few abbreviations are

permissible in text, but that in bibliographic and footnote
entries, in tabular matter, and in some kinds of illustrative
matter, abbreviations are normally preferred to complete words.
Such as: vol, pt, chap, pp, etc. When used without numbers these
words should be spelled out app. (appendix) art (article) oh, bk.
Pt (part) vs. (versus) div (division) comp (computer) c.
(copyright).

Reducing words
The distinction between Abbreviations and contractions
distinction is that abbreviations may consist of one or more
letters of the full word but always lack its final letter, whereas
contractions always retains the final letter. Abbreviations should
end with a fill stop: Rev. Co. pp. Contractions should have no full
stop: Dr, St, Ltd, 1 st

A few abbreviations for reference words are listed below:

 C copyright, Chs. chapters
 Fig., figs figure(s), Et al at alii and others
 P, pp. page(s), Vol., vols. Volume(s)
 V., vs. versus: "against'

22
A fraction standing alone should be spelled out, but a numerical
unit composed of a whole number and fraction should be
expressed in figures (10 1/2).

Citation and Quotation

A research report should make clear sources of materials.
Similarly, the researcher should recognize original ideals and
works of others. Reference should only be cited for only those
ideas, which an inexpert reader might think, were the
researcher’s although they are not (the Harvard or numerical
method). In addition to the need within the body of knowledge a
researcher must also consider the link between individual
reference and the list which will be at the end of the report.

In citing books, normally arrange the information in the

following order: Author's name, Title of a part the book, Title of
the book, Name of the editor, translator, compiler, edition used,
Number of the volume, Name of the series, Place of publication
name of publisher and date of publication.

Citing articles in periodicals: Authors name, Title of the article,

Name of the periodical, Series number or name, Volume
number, Date of publication, Page numbers. Place the title of an
unpublished dissertation in question marks, the name of the
degree-granting university, the year. Treat a publish
dissertation like a book.

Spelling
The correct usage of words is important, as the words can be
valid in their spelling yet incorrect. A few common ones are:

Advice - advise: the noun has 'a ', the verb an’s’. You can use this
pair as a model to help, practice-practise, where the
pronunciation is no help.

Affect-effect: to affect (a noun) is to change it, or to have an

effect on it. As a verb,' to effect' something means to bring it
about.

Councillor - counsellor. 'Councillor' are elected local authority

representatives. It is 'counsellor' who gives advice, or counsel.

23
Disinterested-uninterested. 'Disinterested' means impartial or
unbiased no interest in something is 'uninterested'.

Ensure-insure. To 'ensure' means to make sure. 'Insure' means to

take out an insurance policy.

Imply-infer. 'Imply' means to hint at. Infer' means to draw a

conclusion, or inference, from something.

Note that 'an' comes before a word that starts with a, e, i, o, u,

else you should use 'a'. An egg, a box.

Never carry over 'ed' in a word that is pronounced as one

syllable.

Wrong - hel-ed, vex-ed. Right - provided (pro vide is two

syllable).

Never carry over 'ed' in a word that is pronounced as one

syllable. Wrong: help-ed, vex-ed, and mark-ed, for example.
Right: provide-ed (pro vide > provided).

Agreement of verbs and its subjects

When the subject of a verb is compound and its parts are joined
by and, it usually takes a plural verb "the time and the place are
uncertain." When compound in "form' but singular in meaning, it
takes on a singular verb.

For the sake of sentence unity, construct your sentences so that

they draw together the facts that are most closely related.
Telling good of a function in one group, ill parts of the function
in a separate group, yet one sentence/ paragraph.

When a sentence contains two independent clauses the

punctuation between them should be a semicolon, unless joined
by a coordinating conjunction (and, but, for, or, nor, and
sometimes so and yet).

Similar parts of a sentence should be expressed in parallel form

if writing is to be clear, every sentence must be coherent, that
is it must hold together. To achieve this is necessary to
consider: the order of the parts, their structure, and the
concept as far as their content permit. For example, wood was
used for some for the parts, and metal for others.

24
The element of a series should be parallel in form, i.e. a
technician must learn the use, upkeep and repair of equipment.
When the elements of a series cannot be made parallel, the
phraseology should be changed to eliminate series implications.

Objects that are compared should be similar in nature. If the

comparison is not completely expressed, the words that are
omitted must be clearly and unmistakable implied.

Use of mood and tense should reflect a consistent point of view.

For example, inconsistent - if you would give me an extension
time, 1 shall appreciate it. While consistent - if you would give
me an extension time, 1 should appreciate it.

The Past Tense shows that we are thinking of something in past

time. The Present Perfect Tense shows that we are thinking of
the present time, and the result of a past action on the preset
time (I have bent the wire). Future Continuous Tense uses a
certain moment in the future to describe, and then this tense is
used for an action, which began before, and finished after, that
moment (When he enters the room you and I will be singing).

3.5 ILLUSTRATIONS

Pictures attract attention and help in presenting information

quickly, concisely, clearly and accurately. Apart from that
pictures stimulate the reader’s interest in the subject matter.
Generally, illustrations complete the quality of any written
report. A sequence of illustrations, therefore, gives a good
indication of the text and enhances the text description of the
subject matter. Because of the importance of illustration, in any
engineering and scientific work, they must be carefully planned
and produced so that the information is conveyed effectively to
the reader.

The various forms of illustrations – Charts, diagrams, drawings,

and photographs- can obviously have a strong influence on the
character of the report. A better chose of figures for the report
will obviously strengthen the report while a poor choice
definitely weakens the fabric of the report. For this reasons
figures in report writing should not be thought of isolation from
the report and tacked as an afterthought to support the text.

When writing a report the thrust should be on conveying the

findings. Therefore any attempt to make the report artificially

25
palatable and win the audience should be avoided. Illustrations
should not therefore be used as a method to break the reader’s
monotony or forcing attention. The most powerful way to attract
the reader’s attention and break up monotony is to provide
impact of illustrations that effectively bring out the content of
the report. When designing the illustrations that will make a
strong contribution to your report, be certain to select the most
effective form for each figure. Your choices are important. They
can affect the readability of the report and even its validity.
Observe, for example the distinctions among the four basic forms
listed in Table 3.1.

TABLE 3.1: Typical Uses for the Four Basic Forms of Technical
Illustrations

Form Typical application

1. Charts

Line chart Relationships between variables;

comparisons; trends; relative changes.
Surface chart Cumulative totals of data from successive
components.
Bar chart Comparison of fixed sums for successive
time intervals.
Pie chart Relative proportions of the parts of a process
or object.
Flow chart Steps in a process.

2. Drawings Pictorial representation of physical objects:

details, cross sections, motions, functions,
“exploded” assemblies.

3. Diagrams Abstractions; symbolic configurations;

operating principles.

4. Photographs Realistic views of objects in meaningful

perspective.

Like tables- illustrations (graphs, charts, and fig) should be

placed as close as possible to their first reference in the text.

26
When presenting your results, a good technique is to use graphs
in favour of tables or results whenever possible.

One of the more common problems, particularly in report writing

is the excessive number of figures. Illustrations are more
expensive reproduce and students normally prefer to delete
those that do not contribute any thing significant. When deleting
unnecessary charts, diagrams, and photographs from a draft
report students are most likely ridding the report of s weak
illustration. Here are some of the basic reasons for omitting an
illustration from a draft report:

 The figure has already appeared in the report

 The information in the figure is amply explained in the text
and need no illustration
 The figure emphasizes a trivial or irrelevant point
 The data is inherently available in another existing figure,
and the details in the serve more to confuse the issue that
clarify it
 The data can be more effectively listed in table form

3.5.1 Tables
Place illustrative material as close as possible to the part of the
text that it illustrates. A table is usually labelled, given a
numeral, and captioned, type both label and caption flash left
above the table and capitalize them as in the case of a title.
Another type of illustrative material should be labelled figure.

In general, every table should be given a number and title, even

though there may be few tables in the paper. The order in which
the tables are mentioned in the text determines the numbering.

Tables in an appendix should be numbered consecutively with

the tables in the text.

All text references to a table should be by number, for example,

'As Table 3 shows.' or 'see Table 3'. Ideally each table should be
placed as close to the first reference to it as possible (at the end
of the paragraph before inserting the table)

In typing tables with text, three spaces should be left above and
three spaces below, each table. With the table centred
horizontally upon the page. No text should be typed on a page
containing a landscape table.

27
In typing table number and caption, centre Table No all in
capital letters on a line by itself. Centre the caption, also in
capital letters: 'EFFECTS OF A SINGLE'

There are no vertical rules at the side of a table. Each table

should have a double rule at the top, above the box heading, and
a single rule at the bottom.

28
 CHAPTE
R
LECTURING

4
Lecturing is one of the most widely used teaching methods at the
University of Zambia and in nearly all higher institutes of
learning in Zambia. The format, for lecturing, is simple and
straightforward. The Lecturer or instructor talks (illustrates,
demonstrates, etc.) and students are responsible for obtaining,
remembering, and using the most important contents from the
lecture at a later time, during most tests, quizzes and
examinations.

4.1 ADVANTAGES OF LECTURING

Some educators consider the lecture method outdated and

ineffective. However, lecturing offers several advantages and
reasons that support its continued use (Barbetta & Scaruppa,
1995; Michael, 1994).

 Lecturing is an efficient way to use the

lecturer’s/instructor's time. A good lecture can be
presented from one semester to the next, reducing
substantially the planning and preparation time, on the part
of the lecturer. Hence creating time for the lecturer to
review and update a lecture.
 Lecturing is versatile. Lecturing can be used for both large
and small groups, for any curriculum area, and can be
conducted for a short (minutes) or long period (several
hours).
 The lecturer/instructor has complete control of course
content. When lecturing, the lecturer/instructor has
complete control over the level of detail and degree of
emphasis with which course content is covered.
 Lecturing enables coverage of content not available in
published form. For example, findings from just-completed
or on-going research projects may be presented to students
via a lecture in a very concise and simplified way.
 The lecture method can be used to supplement or elaborate
course content. Content that is particularly important or

29
 difficult for students to learn directly through text-, web, or
field-based activities can be highlighted during the lecture.
 The lecture method provides flexibility. The
lecturer/Instructor can probe students' understanding and
make on-the-spot adjustments to the lecture where
necessary.
 Lectures can be personalized. Lecturer/Instructor can
customize lectures to meet students' interests and
backgrounds.
 Lectures can be motivating for students. Students can see
and hear their lecturer’s/ instructor's level of enthusiasm,
competence and commitment to the discipline.
4.2 DISADVANTAGES OF LECTURING.

The lecture method also poses some significant challenges for

students and instructors.
 Course content may be presented via lecture in
unorganized and uneven fashion. This makes it difficult for
students to determine the most important aspects of the
lecture (That is, what's going to be in the examination?).
 Students can be passive observers. A typical lecture does
not require active participation of students. One of the most
consistent and important educational research findings is
that students who make frequent, relevant responses
during a lesson learn more than students who are passive
observers (Brophy & Good, 1986; Fisher & Berliner, 1985;
Greenwood, Delquadri, & Hall, 1984).
 Many university students do not know how to take effective
notes. Although various strategies and formats for effective
note taking have been identified (e.g., Saski, Swicegood, &
Carter, 1983), note taking is seldom taught to students.
 The listening, language, and/or motor skill deficits of some
students with disabilities make it difficult for them to
identify important lecture content and write it down
correctly and quickly enough during a lecture. While
writing one concept in the notebook, the student with
learning disabilities might miss the next two points (Hughes
& Suritsky, 1994).
 Lecturers/Instructors sometimes get off-track from the
primary objectives of the lecture. Professors especially
those who really know and love their disciplines are famous
(infamous!) for going off on tangents during a lecture.
Although anecdotes are interesting and provide enriching

30
 context, they can make it difficult for even the most skilled
note takers to determine the most important content.

4.3 SUCCESSFUL STUDYING IN ENGINEERING

Apart from rules related to examinations and conduct, the School

of engineering at the University of Zambia, has regulations with
regard to students’ lectures, tutorial and laboratory attendance.
These rules and regulations are contained in the School
Handbook and, Students’ Code of Conduct and University
Calendar. This Chapter sets out some indicative guidelines for
success in engineering studies.

4.3.1 Time Management

Time management is creating and following the school time
table. The Time Table allows, engineering student to organize
and prioritize their study time within the framework of school,
family, work, and other responsibilities. Scheduling of the School
Time Table and individual student time is based on both long and
short term planning.
Long Term/Semester Scheduling: Students in the School of
Engineering are encouraged to read the syllabus for each
course. Using a calendar, student should plan ahead and
organize all their course assignments. Engineering students are
expected to note all tests and assignments due dates.
Short Term/Weekly Scheduling: Engineering students are
encouraged to create individual weekly calendar, and fixed
commitments such as classes, laboratory, appointments, meals,
family responsibilities, and sleeping. Studying and homework
should be done even during these fixed commitments. Learning
should be a priority, but one should also allow enough time for
sleep, healthy eating habits, and leisure activities. Most
engineering faculties expects a student, on the average, to spend
about two hours a week on outside study to every hour spent in
the classroom, but one should prioritize his/her assignments. As
much as possible, an engineering student should schedule study
time at the same time every day. Having regular study time will
help the student develop a "study habit." Engineering students
are called to duty to advantage of the "waiting time" or "dead
time" experienced each day, such as long breaks between

31
classes, semesters or recess periods to internalize the various
engineering course materials.

4.3.2 Lectures
Attendance: Lecturers, in the School of Engineering, assume that
the students will come to their classes and plan the semester's
work accordingly. Lecturers do not repeat lectures or give
"make-up" lessons. However, all engineering students are
expected to sign an attendance list. Therefore, engineering
students are required to develop a positive relationship with
their respective course lecturers. Engineering students are also
required to inform the Assistant Dean (Academic) if an absence
is unavoidable. It is of the responsibility the student to obtain
notes and assignments, and to sit for make up tests that they
miss. Just because notes are available on the net or lecture note
hand-outs should not be an excuse for absenting from lecturers.
Engineering students should be aware that there is a prescribed
school requirement for examination marking and attendance.

Approach to classes: Engineering students should attend all

classes, take notes, participate in class discussions, and ask
questions. Engineering students are expected to pay attention to
what the lecturer says - not just what he/she writes on the board
and practice taking notes from the verbal instructions of the
lecturer. Often students in the class have the same questions in
mind, if that is the case students should seek for the clarification
from the lecturer. Students should also attempt to answer
questions posed by the lecturer, even if the answer is uncertain.
Engineering students are expected to be polite and respectful
and pay attention to the discussions and questions of others. If a
student is confused about a requirement in a course or need
help, the student should then see lecturer or class tutor. Most
lecturers in the School of Engineering have time set aside for
student consultations.

Be on time: Although not a requirement, most lecturers in the

School of Engineering, spend the first few minutes of class to
conduct "class business." Most lecturers answer questions,
explain assignments, and quickly review the last class and
provide a general outline and expectations of the day's class
work. Reporting for class late is a distraction for both the other
students and the lecturer and draws "negative" attention to late
comer. It is therefore, with this in mind that some engineering

32
lecturers ask late comer, 15 minutes after the lecturer has
started, not to enter the class.

4.3.3 Tutorials and Problems

All engineering students, collectively and individually, are
encouraged to attempt some tutorial problems before the
tutorial class and immediately after covering the topic in the
lecture. It is good practice for engineering students never to
attempt answering problems with the answers in front - students
should keep any solutions way until they really need them -
students will not have them in the examinations.

4.3.4 Assumed Knowledge

Engineering courses, at the University of Zambia and at in other
foreign faculties, are designed to flow on from one to another.
For example, the concepts covered in Structural Mechanics are
essential for Steel and Concrete Structures. Engineering
students should know that after finishing one course, they will
reinforce and use these skills later on in other courses. Even the
basic skills learnt at high school, and foundation courses in the
School of Natural Sciences are essential. Because of this most
lecturer, especially in at 3rd, 4th and final years of study introduce
topics in during lecturers assuming that students have the basic
knowledge in most courses.

4.3.5 Students’ Interaction and Networking

It has been observed that successful engineering students
develop friendships and support groups with their classmates.
Engineering students are encouraged to exchange phone
numbers or emails so they can get together to study or to get
missed assignments and lecture notes.

An engineering student should be open to learning from

engineering students or indeed any student. For example, when
a classmate receives an "A+" grade in course during mid
semester test, other students should ask to see it. This will give
other engineering students an example of what the lecturer is
looking for and can apply this knowledge to future assignments
or tests. There is nothing wrong, for engineering students to
work together on assignments, but care must be take not to copy
– nor should a student not let another engineering student copy.
Engineering students should not forget to socialize and have a
good time while at the University of Zambia.

33
4.3.6 Take Responsibility for Learning
Engineering students should take note of their individual and
collective academic weaknesses and take steps to overcome
them. All engineering students should work hard and seek help
from each other and use the available resources to enhance their
academic performances. The School of Engineering has a
number of support services created to help students succeed. All
engineering students in “distress” are advised to take advantage
of the Student Support Services that have programs designed to
academic achieve success

34
CHAPTE
R

5
TAKING LECTURE AND CLASS NOTES

Information presented in an engineering class often contains the

central concepts of the course and the material most likely to be
included in examinations. Yet, engineering students do not
frequently realize the importance of note taking and listening.
This chapter provides some tips on how to recall more
information from lectures through active listening and
purposeful note taking. Learning to make notes effectively will
help engineering students improve in their studies and work
habits and to remember important information. Often, students
are made to believe that because they understand everything
that is said in class they will therefore remember the subject
matter. This is completely wrong! Notes enable students to
retain important facts and data and to develop an accurate
means of arranging necessary information. In addition, lecture
notes can prove critical during preparation for examinations.
Class notes can serve as an important tool for reviewing for
examinations and packaging key concepts. Suggestions are
provided for how students can take notes regularly and review
them.

While many engineering students view note taking as an activity

conducted simply in lecture, sound note taking skills require
preparation and reflection as well. The key is to develop a system
that enables a student to:
 review lecture notes regularly
 recite (repeating key concepts from class)
 reflect (connecting class ideas to other notes and readings)

5.1 TAKING LECTURE NOTES

There are many reasons for taking lecture notes.

 Take notes forces a student to listen carefully and test his
or her understanding of the material.

35
  Reviewing, notes provide a gauge to what is important in
the text.
 Personal notes are usually easier to remember than the
text.
 Writing down of important points help students to
remember and master the material even before the subject
matter is studied per se.

Lecturers usually give clues to what is important to take down.

Some of the more common clues about what is important are:

 Material written on the blackboard.

 Repetition
 Emphasis
a) Emphasis can be judged by tone of the voice and
gesture.
b) Emphasis can be judged by the amount of time the
lecturer spends on points and the number of examples he
or she uses.
 Word signals (e.g. "There are two points of view on . . . "
"The third reason is . . . " " In conclusion . . . ")
 Summaries given at the end of class.
 Reviews given at the beginning of class.

Each engineering student should develop his or her own method

of taking notes, but most students find the following suggestions
helpful:

 Make your notes brief.

a) Never use a sentence where you can use a phrase.
Never use a phrase where you can use a word.
b) Use abbreviations and symbols, but be consistent.
 Put most notes in your own words. However, the following
should be noted exactly:
a) Formulas
b) Definitions
c) Specific facts

 Use outline form and/or a numbering system. Indention

helps you distinguish major from minor points.
 If you miss a statement, write key words, skip a few spaces,
and get the information later.
 Don't try to use every space on the page. Leave room for
coordinating your notes with the text after the lecture.

36
 (You may want to list key terms in the margin or make a
summary of the contents of the page.)
 Date your notes or number the pages.

5.2 SAVING TIME ON LECTURE NOTETAKING

Here are some hints regarding taking notes on classroom

lectures that can save time for almost any engineering student.
Some students say that they plan to rewrite or type their notes
later. To do so is to use a double amount of time; That is, once to
take the original notes and a second to rewrite them. The advice
is simple: DO IT RIGHT THE FIRST TIME!

Second, there are some engineering students who attempt to

take notes in shorthand. Though shorthand is a valuable tool for
a secretary, it is almost worthless for a engineering student
doing academic work. Here's why. Notes in shorthand cannot be
studied in that form. They must first be transcribed. The act of
transcribing notes takes an unnecessary amount of time and
energy but does not significantly contribute to their mastery. It is
far better to have taken the notes originally in regular writing
and then spend the time after that in direct study and recitation
of the notes.

Third, do not record the lesson on a cassette tape or any other

tape. The lecture on tape precludes flexibility. This statement
can be better understood when seen in the light of a person who
has taken his/her notes in regular writing. Immediately after
taking the notes this person can study them in five minutes
before the next class as s/he walks toward the next building, or
whatever. Furthermore, a student, in looking over his/her notes,
may decide that the notes contain only four worthwhile ideas
which s/he can highlight, relegating the rest of the lecture to
obscurity. Whereas the lecture on tape has to be listened to in
its entirety including the worthwhile points as well as the
"garbage," handwritten notes may be studied selectively. A
student who takes the easy way out - recording the lecture on
tape as he or she sits back doing nothing - will box him or herself
into inflexibility.

As engineering students make notes, they develop skill in

selecting important material and in discarding unimportant
material. The secret to developing this skill is practice. Students

37
should always check their results, in note taking constantly and
strive to improve.

Here are some practical suggestions for taking notes for

someone else, as well as strategies to help you improve your own
lecture note taking abilities:

General Info:
 Be sure of your purpose and the lecture purpose.
 Attend all lectures.
 Sit up front so you can see and hear better.
Format:
 Record the date, place, topic/title and lecturer.
 Number your pages.
 Use dark ink and write on one side of the page.
 Write neatly. Make lecture notes complete and
clear enough to understand when you come back to
them.
 Use shorthand ('Fe' for iron, '=' for equals, '@' for
at, etc.) and abbreviations. Feel free to develop your
own set of abbreviations, but please put a key at the
top of the page so your notes can be understood.
 Highlight important items with asterisks (*) or
draw circles or boxes around critical info. Mark
important ideas, terms, concepts with different
colours, underlines, or asterisks. Indentation,
underscoring and starring are also effective for
indicating relative importance of items. Show
uncertainty with a circled question mark.
 Leave plenty of white space for later additions.
Skip lines. Leave space between main ideas.

What to write:
 Definitely copy:
* Anything written on the board or presented
on an overhead.
* Any info that is repeated or emphasized.
Ways to emphasize include: tone or gesture,
repetition, illustration on board, reference to
text, and use of cue words such as: finally,
remember, most important, another cause, etc.
* All numbered or listed items.
* All terms and definitions.
* Examples.

38
 * New words and ideas.
 If the instructor refers to the text, mark the page
number in notes to refer.
 When you cannot keep up with the speaker, jot
down key nouns and verbs so that you can return to
the latter and ask questions/fill in gaps. Leave
blanks for words, phrases or ideas you miss. Ask a
classmate to fill in the gaps.
 Include comments the class makes that the
professor agrees with.
Listening:
 Listen carefully to what is being said.
 Pay attention to qualifying words (sometimes,
usually, rarely, etc.)
 Notice signals indicating that a change of
direction is coming (but, however, on the other
hand)
 Look for meaning and implications; be an active
listener.

Additionally:
 Ask questions if permitted; if not, jot down
questions in your notebook.
 Soon after the presentation, review your notes,
rewrite skimpy or incomplete parts, and fill in gaps
you remember but didn't record.

All engineering students should bear the following in mind when

taking lecture notes:

a) Not to write down everything that you read or hear. Be

alert and attentive to the main points. Concentrate on the
"meat" of the subject and forget the trimmings.

b) Notes should consist of key words or very short sentences.

If a speaker gets sidetracked it is often possible to go back
and add further information.

c) Take accurate notes. You should usually use your own

words, but try not to change the meaning. If you quote
directly from an author, quote correctly.

d) Think a minute about your material before you start making

notes. Don't take notes just to be taking notes! Take notes,

39
 that will be of real value to you, when you look over them at a
later date.

e) Have a uniform system of punctuation and abbreviation that

will make sense to you. Use a skeleton outline and show
importance by indenting. Leave lots of white space for later
additions.

f) Omit descriptions and full explanations. Keep your notes

short and to the point. Condense your material so you can
grasp it rapidly.

g) Don't worry about missing a point.

h) Don't keep notes on oddly shaped pieces of paper. Keep

notes in order and in one place.

i) Shortly after making your notes, go back and rework (not

redo) your notes by adding extra points and spelling out
unclear items. Remember, we forget rapidly. Budget time for
this vital step just as you do for the class itself.

j) Review your notes regularly. This is the only way to

achieve lasting memory.

40
 CHAPTE
R
LEARNING BY LISTENING

6
6.1 LISTENING

Listening is an essential learning tool; however, humans

are poor listeners. Research shows that individuals can
only recall 50% of what they hear and that 20-30% is
incorrect! Engineering students can learn a lot through
listening. In the university, listening is a prime source of
information. Unfortunately, students do not instinctively
listen well. Quite the reverse! Listening is a skill which
must be developed. If engineering students apply some
listening suggestions, they will find themselves listening
more effectively, both in class and out. This Chapter
outline ways to improve engineering students’ listening
habits, therefore, retaining more information from
lecture.

a) An engineering student should determine why what

the lecturer is saying is important to him or her. If
the student does not have an immediate, vivid
reason for listening to a lecturer, then she or he is
an unmotivated student.
b) An engineering student should remember that the
responsibility for interest and understanding lies
him or her and not entirely with the lecturer.
Learning, to a major extent, is up to the student. If
the student simply wants to sit passively and blame
the lecturer for lack of success, then he or she is not
a serious engineering student.
c) If an engineering student can not hear, she or he
should arrange things so he or she can. The student
should move away from sources of human or
mechanical noise. The student should sit where he
or she can see the speaker easily, and where other
distractions are at a minimum.

41
 d) An engineering student should do what the lecturer
is saying. The student should not tune the lecturer
off because she or he does not like something about
the lecturer or the message. Be sure the student
should understand something before rejecting it.

6.2 WHAT CAN BE DONE ABOUT LISTENING

The business of becoming a good listening student

primarily consists of getting rid of bad listening
habits and replacing them with their counterpart
skills. Though the discussions in the section, on
the ten bad listening habits, is in relation to the
ways they may affect humans in a formal listening
situation, the effects of these habits can also be
devastating in less formal listening situations at
home, at school, in business or social groups.

Calling the Subject Dull; Bad listeners often find a subject

too dry and dusty to command their attention and they
use this as an excuse to wander off on a mental tangent.
Good listeners may have heard a dozen talks on the same
subject before, but they quickly decide to see if the
speaker has anything that can be of use to them.

The key to good listening is that little three-letter word

use. Good listeners are sifters, screeners, and winnowers
of the wheat from the chaff. They are always hunting for
something practical or worthwhile to store in the back of
their mind to put to work in the months and years ahead.
G.K. Chesterton said many years ago that in this entire
world there is no such thing as an uninteresting subject,
only uninterested people.

Criticizing the Speaker; it’s the “indoor sport” of most

bad listeners to find fault with the way a speaker looks,
acts, and talks. Good listeners may make a few of the
same criticisms but they quickly begin to pay attention to

42
what is being said, not how it is said. After a few
minutes, good listeners become oblivious to the speaker's
mannerisms or his/her faults in delivery. They know that
the message is ten times as important as the clothing in
which it comes garbed.

Getting Over-stimulated; Listening efficiency drops to

zero when the listeners react so strongly to one part of
the presentation that they miss what follows. In
Universities this bad habit is so critical that, it is
therefore paramount for any listener to withhold
evaluation until comprehension is complete -- hear the
speaker out. It is important to understand the speaker's
point of view fully before accepting or rejecting it.

Listening Only for Facts; most engineering students think

it was important to listen to facts. However, it has been
found that, almost without exception, it is the poor
listeners who say they listen for facts. They do get facts,
but they garble shocking numbers and completely lose
most of them.

Good listeners listen for the main ideas in a speech or

lecture and use them as connecting threads to give sense
and system to the whole. In the end they have more facts
appended to those connecting threads than the ones who
listen only for facts. It is not necessary to worry too much
about fact as such, for facts have meaning only when
principles feed the context.

Trying To outline everything; there is nothing wrong with

making an outline of a speech -- provided the speaker is
following an outline method of presentation. But probably
not more than a half or perhaps a third of all speeches
given are built around a carefully prepared outline.

Good listeners are flexible. They adapt their note taking

to the organizational pattern of the speaker-they may
make an outline, they may write a summary, they may list
facts and principles -- but whatever they do they are not
rigid about it.

43
Faking Attention; the pose of a chin propped on hands
with gaze fixed on speaker does not guarantee good
listening. Having adopted this pose, having shown the
unconcealed courtesy of appearing to be listening to the
speaker, the bad listener feels conscience free to take off
on any of a thousand tangents.
Good listening is not relaxed and passive at all. It is
dynamic; and constructive characterized by a slightly
increased heart work rate, quicker circulation of the
blood, and a small rise in body
Temperature. It's energy consuming and plain hard
work. The best definition of the word attention is a
"collection of tensions that can be resolved only by
getting the facts or ideas that the speaker is trying to
convey."

Tolerating Distraction; Poor listeners are easily distracted

and may even create disturbances that interfere with
their own listening efficiency and that of others. They
wriggle, talk with their neighbours, or shuffle papers.
They make little or no effort to conceal their boredom.
Good listeners try to adjust to whatever distractions and
soon find that they can ignore them. Good listeners do
not distract others.

Choosing only what Easy is; often poor listeners shun

listening to serious presentations on radio or television.
There is plenty of easy listening available, and this is
their choice. The habit of avoiding even moderately
difficult expository presentations in one's leisure time can
handicap anyone who needs to use listening as a learning
tool.

Letting Emotion-laden Words Get in the Way; It is a fact

that some words carry such an emotional load that they
cause some listeners to tune a speaker right off: Such as,
affirmative action and feminist agendas -they are
emotional words to some listeners.

If the listener knows the trouble-making words in the

English language it is possible to fence them out or
perhaps discuss them, and get them behind. It is not

44
good to let a mere emotions stand between the listener
and learning.

Wasting the Differential between Speech and Thought

Speed; Americans speak at an average rate of 125 words
per minute in ordinary conversation. A speaker before an
audience slows down to about 100 words per minute.
How fast do listeners listen? Or, to put the question in a
better form, how many words a minute do people
normally think as they listen? If all their thoughts were
measurable in words per minute, the answer would seem
to be that an audience of any size will average 400 to 500
words per minute as they listen.

Here is a problem. The differential between the speaker

at 100 words per minute and the easy thought speed of
the listener at 400 or 500 words per minute is a trap and
a pitfall. It lures the listener into a false sense of security
and breeds mental tangents.

However, with training in listening, the difference

between thought speed and speech speed can be made a
source of tremendous power. Listeners can hear
everything the speaker says and not what s/he omits
saying; they can listen between the lines and do some
evaluating as the speech progresses. To do this, to
exploit this power, good listeners must automatically
practice three skills in concentration:
Anticipating the next point; Good listeners try to
anticipate the points a speaker will make in developing a
subject. If they guess right, the speaker's words
reinforce their guesses. If they guess wrong, they'll have
to do some thinking to discover why they and the speaker
failed to agree. In either case, their chances of
understanding and remembering what was said is nearly
double what it would have been if they had simply
listened passively.

Identifying supporting material; Good listeners try to

identify a speaker's supporting material. After all, a
person can't go on making points without giving listeners
some of the evidence on which the conclusions are based,

45
and the bricks and mortar that have been used to build up
the argument should be examined for soundness.

Recapitulating; With the tremendous thinking speed that

everyone has, it is easy to summarize in about five
seconds the highlights covered by a speaker in about five
minutes. When the speaker stops to take water or walks
over to the blackboard to write something or even takes a
deep breath, the experienced listener makes a mental
summary. Half a dozen summaries of the highlights of a
fifty-minute talk will easily double the understanding and
retention important points in a talk.

Here are some hints that can help improve your listening:

 Look for the speaker's pattern of organization. In a

lecture, a lecturer is generally referring to notes or
some other source of information. You can
understand much better if you are able to recognize
what the speaker's driving at and how the speaker's
getting there.

 Look for the main idea or ideas of the presentation.

Facts are important only as they support the
lecturer’s points. If you have trouble distinguishing
between the important and the trivial, a friend or a
tutor during tutorials can help you.

 During a lecture don't let your mind wander. Your

thoughts move far more rapidly than the swiftest
mouth, and the urge to stray is tempting. Your
attention span can be increased, however, through
deliberate effort. Continue to practice the habit of
attention and don't be discouraged by early failures.

 Take lecture notes while you listen. Even if you

recognize everything being said, jot it down, because
you won't remember it later unless you do.

46
 1-
CHAPTE
R
SEMINAR AND PROJECT ORAL PRESENTATIONS

7
A
7.1 INTRODUCTION

Key to an effective seminar and project oral presentation

is careful planning and preparation. These two aspects
are very important in calming the presenter’s nerves.
This is because every one who has given a presentation
feels nervous especially if one is going it for the first time.
Although planning and preparation ideally translates into
a good presentation some students of engineering will
always find it more difficult than others to speak
confidently in public. However, with perseverance, most
engineering students can deliver very effective
presentations. The follows guidelines would make an
engineering student feel more confident during seminar
and oral project presentations.

7.2 SEMINAR PRESENTATION

7.2.1 Organization
Most presentations are organized in a predictable
pattern. Presentations normally have three main stages,

47
introduction, body and conclusion. When a presentation
does not have these clear sections, it is very difficult for
listeners to follow what is being said. It is easy, therefore,
for the audience to lose the thrust of the spoken
arguments because the audience can not turn the pages
of the written work as the presentation is proceeding.
Therefore, the structure of the seminar or project
presentation is very important. It is, therefore, important
for engineering students to outline at the beginning of the
presentation what they intend to tell the audience.

7.2.2 Introduction
The Introduction is the most crucial part of any
presentation. The student needs to capture the audience’s
attention, interest them in the topic and establish rapport
with them. The introduction should take into account
what audience knows what they are going to hear in the
presentation. The audience should know what to expect in
order to get interested and to be able to follow the
presentation. Giving them an outline of the presentation
in the introduction enables to know what to expect.

In the introduction the student is supposed to introduce

himself or herself, explain the objectives of the
presentation, indicate the benchmarks or main points of
presentation and how presentation is structured.

Prior to the introduction, it is very important to analyze

the needs and expectations of the audience. Students
should try to find out as much as possible about who will
be attending the presentation, what their background
are, why they will be attending and how much they
already know about the topic. The more the students
know about the audience the more likely they will give
effective presentations.

7.2.3 Content Body

The research needed in preparing a presentation is no
different to that involved in writing an essay or report. In
order to present a topic convincingly a student must
understand it thoroughly. However, there are significant
differences between an essay or report and seminar

48
presentation. The introduction of a seminar presentation
should be considerably longer than that of a written
report. Repetition is vital in a seminar presentation. The
audience needs to hear information several times and
slightly in different forms to understand it, whereas for a
written report the reader can refer back to the text if
necessary. Informal rather than formal language is used
in a seminar.

The clarity of the problem/s situation, which the student

is addressing, is very important to the audience. For
instance, what are the significant factors in the study and
the unique scientific and engineering fundaments or
discoveries that point to a shift in what is currently
acceptable practice? The student should describe
methodologies and tools used to analyze data or the
options. The student should explicitly state what the
recommendations from the study are. It is always good
practice to make a brief summary (three to six
statements) of each point or benchmark before
proceeding to the next one.

In the case of a written report, e.g., project report, the

body of the presentation must be clearly organized with
the main points highlighted. One effective technique is to
number the ideas (numbering the slide is also a good
idea, and it is easy to find a page). Any idea which is new
to the audience needs to be presented in a simple way
with supportive evidence or examples which make it more
easily understood. Each important idea should be
presented in a different way within the body of the
presentation. The student should bear in mind that at
times the audience may need several opportunities to
absorb the full meaning and significance of important
ideas. It is also important to state the links between the
ideas clearly.

7.2.4 Conclusion
The student should always make a summary of the key
findings or points of the presentation and thereafter make
recommendations, thank the audience for their patience,
and write down questions posed thereafter. The

49
conclusion should reinforce the central ideas of the
presentation and signal a forceful ending. A weak,
inconclusive or apologetic conclusion detracts from a
good presentation. Students should show in the
conclusion that they have all the points that they said
would be marshal in the introduction. Students should
also show that they are confident, and that they have
communicated effectively.

7.6 PREPARATION FOR ORAL PROJECT

PRESENTATION

The main concern of the project examiners, in the School

of Engineering is to ensure that any claim made in the
written project report are justified and that the analytical
methods used were well understood by the student. As far
as the preparations are concerned the students must
individually decide, after consultation with the
supervisor, what best suits each one of them. Students
must expect questions, which probe the scope of study,
the nature of the target population, type of cross
sectional comparisons selected, and the level and
appropriateness of the type of research or work
undertaken.

The student should endeavor to demonstrate at least

some of the following feature of the project work or
study:

7.6.1 Evidence of an original investigation or testing

of ideas
Was the objective clearly stated or described?
Were the hypotheses, questions or methods to be
developed stated?
Were the relationships between the current and previous
research in related topic areas defined, with similarities
and differences stressed?
Was the extent and nature of the original contribution
clear?

50
7.6.2 Competence in independent work or
experimentation
Was the methodology employed appropriate?
Was the justification adequately described?
Were the limitations recognized and stated?

7.6.3 Ability to make critical use of published work

and sources of materials
Was the literature reference pertinent to the study or
research?
Was evidence presented of the skills in searching the
literature?
Was literature quoted evidence of the ability to critically
analyze, identify key items in the literature and or
compared them?

7.6.4 Appreciation of the study objective in

relationship to the wide field of knowledge
Were the relationships between the current and previous
research in related topic areas defined, with similarities
and differences stressed?
Was and attempt made to present previous work within
the overall conceptual framework and in a systematic
way?

7.6.5 Work in part publication or engineering

application
Was part of the research or study published in scientific,
engineering of academic journal?
Was part of the research or study applied to solve real life
problems in society?

7.6.6 Originality
Was the topic of study original in nature?
Was the methodology original in nature?
Were the techniques or equipment original in nature?
Were the results obtained distinct in nature?

7.7 PRESENTATION DELIVERY TECHNIQUES

51
Most project presentations have a time limit. In the
School of Engineering the Chairman of the presentation
group normally tells the students how long the
presentation should be. On the part of the student the
amount of time allocated will determine the amount of
information to be present. To keep within the allocated
time, students need to plan carefully. During the planning
stage the students should consider:
 The time limit.
 The amount of information available, and how much
of it can be covered.
 How much detail can be included in the project
presentation.
 Dividing the material into sections, with subject
headings.
 The most effective way to present information is
OHTs, slides, videos, handouts, whiteboard etc.
 Deleting less important topics from the presentation
rather than hurrying to cover everything.

During presentation it is very important for the student to

ensure that:

A relationship with the audience is established: The

presenting student should look at the audience and
ensure that everybody can see the slides. The student
should treat the questions courteously and thank the
audience for points raised.
It is easy for the audience to hear and understand: The
presentation should be clear with a varying tone when
stressing a point. The student should avoid dropping the
voice at the end of each sentence. The student should
face the audience while speaking and avoid turning the
back at the audience. Similarly, the student should use
short sentences and straight forward language. That is
the student should avoid jargon and vulgar or
inappropriate language during presentation.
The presentation is interesting by using the sentences
sparingly: If details are important the student should
have a written handout for distribution before
presentation. All OHTs should be numbered for

52
referencing during the question and answer session and
to avoid to leaving out one.
Eyelids in the audience do not drop: Dropping of the
eyelids is a clue that the pace of the presentation is very
slow or the voice of the presenter is becoming
monotonous.
The audience is not fooled: If the student knows there is a
mistake or weakness in the study or research it is
perfectly in order to admit to it.
Visual aids are appropriate to keep the audience
captivated: Students can at times vary the color visual
aids. It is prudent to avoid lack of clarity in the visual
heads. Overloading a slide and color contrast are some of
the example that lead to loss of clarity in the slides.
Questions are handled properly: It is important to
understand what is being asked. In case the student is not
certain about what is being asked, it is only proper to
seek for clarification before attempting to answer the
question. If the audience or examiners challenge what is
being presented, the student should resist the temptation
of becoming defensive. The student should always take
the opposing view seriously, and look at ways to develop
a constructive discussion. Most questions, especially from
examiners, will focus on genuine weakness in the
presentations. In that event the student should
acknowledge, and indeed share the concerns rather than
pretend the problem is lesser that the examiners think.
Preparation for the presentation: By rehearsing the
arguments as many times as possible it important that a
student thinks about what to include in the presentation
or not. The student should always arrive at the
presentation venue to check on everything including
observing other students presenting. This will help in
formulating sharp concise answers to some routine
questions that examiners may be looking for. For instance
it is important to answer the question first and then
elaborate if necessary.

If the student runs short of time it important to lift up the

tempo of the presentation, cut off most of the explanation
that can be captured in the conclusion.

53
Here are some essential rules of thumb, among others,
that apply when using slides:

 The student should take at most two minutes

maximum per slide.
 The slides should not be congested and should be
legible (at least sentences should be five rows
apart).
 Conclusion should have some of your main points,
taking into account potential questions.
 For a talk of 10 minutes use a time scale such as:
introduction up to 1 minute, main theme 4 to 5
minutes, and summary one to one and half minute.
 Each student should do at least two trial sessions.

7.8 PRESENTATION EXPRESSION AND STYLE

Any presentation style is requires four priories. Namely,

there must be in the first place, be knowledge and
materials. In the second place there must be a command
of words; in the third place there must be imagination to
place things in such views as they are not commonly
seen. In the fourth place there must be presence of mind,
and a resolution that is not to be overcome by failures.
With the four priories in mind students should try and
speak to the audience using noted rather than
memorizing or reading the presentation. If possible
student should rehearse in front of an audience. If no one
is available or willing to listen, practicing in front of a
mirror or recording oneself on a tape recorder can do.
Practicing before hand will make the student familiar
with the material and it will also give an indication of how
long the presentation will take, and enable the student to
tailor the presentation to meet the time constraints. The
students are advised to use of a conversation style to
make listeners feel personally involved and compelled to
pay attention.

7.8.1 Voice
Clarity of speech, conciseness in expression, and
pleasantness in delivery are some of the concepts may
lead to a lessening of the tensions due to mis-

54
interpretation arising from inefficient oral
communication. Students, during presentations, should
sound genuine, convincing and in control of subject
matter. However, students can amplify the points being
put across through gestures, facial expressions and clear
and distinct voice to emphasize what they want to say and
give it more impact. For instance, a student should keep
the head up so that listener can see the face. This also
helps to direct the voice at the listener’s direction. A
student should allow the words time to develop and not
clipping word endings and rush into the subsequent
word. If the student knows she or he has difficulties with
pronunciation, it is safe speak a little more slowly than
usual. The use of intonation, stress, changes in pace and
pause to keep the listeners attention on important points,
during presentation, is very cardinal.

7.8.2 Body language

It has been estimated that 75% of meaning transfer,
among human beings, is non-verbal. Thus, the student’s
appearance, posture, gestures, facial expressions, and
eye contact are all vital to a successful presentation. In
the School of Engineering students are advice to dress
formally. Other than that students should generally
maintain eye contact with the audience and watch the
audience to see how they are responding to the
presentation. Students should appear friendly, sincere
and confident.

7.8.3 Visual Aids

A presentation can be enhanced by the effective use of
visual aids such as overhead transparencies (OHTs),
charts, pictures or posters. Visual aids provide variety
and can help reinforce points made. However, students
are still the main communicator of the information.
Students should familiarise themselves with the visual
aids equipment, refer to OHTs specifically and display
them only when referring to them, otherwise OHTs can
be a distraction. Pointing is at objects on OHTs is always
a better practice. When pointing at OHTs students should
always face the audience and stand at an angle avoid
blocking the audience. When covering a portion of the

55
transparency the covering paper should be placed under
the transparency. This prevents the paper from falling as
students pull the paper to reveal more of the slide. Some
people dislike covering of slides.

7.9 EVALUATING A SEMINAR OR PROJECT

PRESENTATION

Evaluating the standard of the seminar or project

presentation a student should look at obvious indicators
and assess if the criterion were met. The following are
some of the indicators:

7.9.1 Contents
Did the content have a clear thesis (message)?
Was the technical level suited to audience?
Was there demonstration of knowledge of subject
obvious?

7.9.2 Organization
Did the introduction prepare listeners for body?
Was the material logically organize, main point supported
with evidence?
Was there clear transition from point to point?
Did the conclusion summed up main points?

7.9.3 Presentation
Where there clear pronunciation, variation in pace and
intonation, effective and use of body language?
Where there appropriate materials within sections, and
prescribed limit adhered?
Where there recap main points during presentation, and
reminding of the audience about what stated at the
onset?

7.9.4 Conclusion
Generally, the objective of nay presentation is to
stimulate enthusiastic co-operation and agreement with
your ideas. Therefore, the conclusion can be evaluate on
the basis of the following indicators among others:

56
Did the conclusion refresh the audience’s memory and
drive home the concept in a bright vigorous manner?

Generally a good presentation will be judged on factors

such as the three ‘m’.
 Matter – was the subject suitable for that occasion
(both time and audience) and was it adequately
covered?
 Manner – was the physically presentation acceptable
and free of distracting mannerisms?
 Method – was the subject adequately handled – was
there a smooth flowing of ideas leading to logical
end of the presentation?

57
 CHAPTE
R EXAMINATIONS

8
8.1 PREPARING EFFECTIVELY FOR EXAMINATIONS
Are you concerned about approaching examinations? Are you
unsure about preparation and how to go about it? Most
students feel nervous about taking examinations. It is easy
to feel you will be put on the spot, that you do not know what
to expect, and that you may not do yourself justice. The most
common difficulties encountered by students when papering
for examinations are: Frustration (You have not perfected an
effective and efficient system of revision), spending a lot of
time revising and not getting good results (You need to try
out different techniques), not knowing the most effective way
to study for examination and not spaying enough time on
revision (Your time management is in need of an overhaul).

All this happens because most students come to university to

study engineering with some ideas about how to go about
revising for examinations. However, the strategies used in
the past may have been effective for the type of examinations
they did then, but are not necessarily the most efficient to
pass undergraduate engineering examinations. Most
engineering students may think that preparation is only
about drawing up a timetable and arranging their files and
books on their work space in the library! There is need for
engineering students to reflect upon how to tackled revision;
analyse what works well (you got good results) and what
does not work well when preparing for examinations.

8.2 THE RIGHT MIND SET

Preparing for examinations is not just about learning and

memorising facts and information so that one can regurgitate
them in a timed examination. It is also about:

 Knowledge of what is expected of you by lecturer;

 Consideration of the assessment criteria;
58
 Selection of important theories, ideas and evidence;
 Setting realistic self-expectations;
 Development of efficient note-making systems;
 Development of organisational strategies;
 Ability to crack the examination questions;

Engineering students should always consider whether the

revision techniques would lead to expected outcomes of the
course during examinations.

8.3 REVISION NOTES

Examinations can help students to consolidate the knowledge

and bring together lots of different strands from the mind.
During revision time students may find that some topics that
were found difficult to understand during the semester are
actually simple. Making effective revision notes will help in
this process and will ultimately give a student an indication
of what he or she understands and where the gaps are in the
knowledge.

What sort of notes are produce by the student and how the
distil a whole series of lecture notes into revision notes is to
some extent of personal preference. There are a variety of
ways of producing effective notes which the student may
want to consider. It is vital however; that whatever system
the student chooses it provides useful notes and is of an
efficient use of student’s time and effort.

Some students find that they have amassed a lot of lecture

notes and notes made from books and articles for a specific
assignment. It may seem rather daunting to try to
consolidate these in a couple of weeks before the
examinations! It may be an impossible task and as a result
students are immediately put off doing what is a very
important aspect of revision that involves not only memory
techniques but understanding.

If the student has organised the lecture notes carefully, at

the end of each topic/unit he or she might find it useful to
make revision notes while things are fresh in the mind. It is
often a good idea to place revision notes at the beginning of
the section and identify them in a different colour so that
they stand out when at the final stages of revision in the

59
build up to the examinations. Many students use different
coloured paper for this or a range of coloured pens or
coloured fonts.

Some students feel that if they do this too soon they will have
forgotten everything by the time the examinations come. A
student must, therefore, think about what has worked in the
past and has led to success in the examinations. It is
important for each student to know what works for him or
her.

8.3.1 Organising the key concepts or theories in a topic

 A Student should gather together all notes relevant to
the examination and organize them into sub-sections
relating to different topics/examination questions and
put the notes into different piles.

 A Student should look out for connections between

topics that could be useful. For example, common
theoretical or methodological approaches to different
topics, or different theoretical or methodological
approaches to the same (kind of) topic.

8.3.2 Revision techniques

It is important, for a student, to find a method that suits the
learning style and a particular topic. The student may want
to change the method depending on the topic being revised.
A student should always remember that to revise effectively
she or he will need to remember facts and figures,
understand concepts/theories and the critical debates of the
topic.

Some common approaches include:

 Summarizing notes or handouts into ‘distilled’ notes

(key words, phrases) of no more than two sides of A4 for
each possible question topic.

 Some people find flash cards useful for this. Flash

cards can incorporate colour for different layers of
information and for making links.

 If the student is a visual learner she or he could draw

charts/maps of key ideas using visual symbols/shapes,

60
 which act as a metaphor for key concepts and ways in
which they relate to one another.

 If the student would rather listen, because she or he has

a preferred style of learning which is auditory, the
student could use cassette tapes to read key notes onto,
and then play them back several times so that she or he
can become more familiar with the language of the
discipline and with the key ideas relevant to the
examination.
 It can really help the student to enlist the help of a
friend in any or all of these approaches, as long as the
students promise not to distract each other from the
task in hand. Some students enjoy working with others
and can learn by discussing ideas and explaining
concepts to each other – this helps to consolidate
knowledge and picks out where gaps in understanding
occur.

 Whichever revision method is use by the student, she or

he should work towards a situation where she or he can
imagine a map of the topics needed for the exam: which
are the bigger and smaller areas? How do they relate
to one another? Are there themes running across
different areas, like streams through a varied
landscape?

 Some students prefer to use branching notes

which put information in a hierarchy of importance but
also show links. It is often useful to use colour with this
type of method of note-making so that the various levels
of information clearly stand out.

8.3.4 Aids to Memorizing

However effective students are at revising and gaining an
understanding of the material, they must commit it to
memory for an examination. The more thoroughly students
understand a topic, the more easily they can deal with
unexpected and/or complex examination questions. So,
should no rely totally on pure memory to recall the
expositions of given topic but they need to develop strategies
to help them remember.

8.3.5 Memory strategies

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Why do some students seem to have good memories and
others struggle to remember what day it is? Perhaps, those
with good memories have developed strategies for
remembering and they have worked out ways of
remembering what is important. Metal-learning (learning
chunks of information by heart) may have worked in the past
for some examinations but at University this is not a sensible
strategy because of the volume of information students will
have to deal. Metal-learning is simply over-loads the memory
without understanding of the subject. It is difficult to
remember isolated strings of information, but when the
student has a way to connect them, then she or he has a
deeper understanding of the material, and this is makes it
easier for the student to recall the information during
examinations.

8.3.5 Develop your memory strategies

On long term basis memory is organised so human can
remember facts, episodes, knowledge and procedures.
Humans therefore use different aspect of the memory. In
addition, how facts and knowledge are remembered (written
text, diagram, mind map etc) could reflect the ability to
recall information. Certain subjects can be remembered
effectively by drawing and labelling diagrams, e.g. the
intricacies of the blood system, but this would not be suitable
for learning the causes of poverty in the last century where a
flow chart may be better.

Students should find out find themselves the best ways of

remembering some types of things than others. Any
university student should be able identify his or her memory
strengths and weaknesses.

8.4 EXAMINATION TECHNIQUES

8.4.1 Tips and hints for the final stages of preparation

At this stage of the process, the student should come to
terms with new knowledge and will have worked actively to
remember the information needed for the examinations. The
student should organise his or her time in such a way that
there time for practising the skills needed in the
examinations. This means that the student should be able to
recognise, at speed, information that has been restructured

62
and reformulated in an examination question. A student may
want to practise with friends reformulating some of the
questions on earlier papers or making up your own questions
for each other.

Review and practice the skills needed in the examination

may include:
 analyzing examination questions
 planning essays
 writing appropriately and accurately
 arguing effectively, using appropriate concepts and
theories
 close analysis of texts (verbal or visual) or other kinds of
‘evidence’
 selecting areas of knowledge in support of an argument
 synthesizing and reaching a conclusion
 deciding which type of questions you are good at
answering
 getting your ideas down in a specified time
 managing your time during an examinations
 prioritizing information in an examinations question
 prioritizing questions during an examinations
 Look out for revision sessions which are provided by the
tutors. These sessions will give the student an idea of
what is expected, and will also show where the gaps in
your knowledge and understanding are so that more
efforts are concentrated in those learning areas.

Characteristics of examination answers: It is important for a

student to analyze what makes a good answer – not just in
terms of the subject content but also in terms of how the
information is presented; how the answer has been argued,
or how the wording of the question makes a difference to the
way the information has been handled. The School of
Engineering provides have sample solution of test questions
for students to examine to improve techniques of written
response during examination.

Examination writing groups: Some students practice writing

an examination solution under timed conditions and then
mark each other’s work. This means that students become
familiar not only with getting his or her ideas down in a short
time but also with the ability to re-shuffle the knowledge to
fit the question.

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8.5 MULTIPLE CHOICE OR MULTIPLE GUESS!?

The strategies that have been covered thus far should be

helpful in preparing a student with the necessary knowledge
needed to succeed descriptive and analytical examination.
For students who lack essential learning skills or who fail to
apply the kinds of active strategies that have been
discussing, multiple choice examinations may even be
extremely difficult for them. Some engineering students have
even gone so far as to label themselves incapable of writing
multiple choice examinations effectively. Some could even
opt changing the specialization of study to avoid taking
multiple choice examinations. In cost most of cases, these
extreme positions are unnecessary; these students can do
better by examining the way they were preparing and adjust
their style of learning and studying in order to equip
themselves better for these so called “difficult” examination.

The reasons why choice examinations are “difficult” have to

do more with the structure of the examination than the level
of difficulty of the material. Many students make the
assumption that multiple choice examinations are simple and
do not require a rigorous approach to study. If students can
understand not only how to prepare, but how to approach
and analyze the structure of multiple choice questions, they
will have a much clearer sense of how to take the guess work
out of multiple choice examinations. In terms of their
structure, multiple choice examinations have a few
unsavoury characteristics: firstly, choice examinations
typically have many questions to answer and the topics
studied by students are typically scrambled and shuffled;
secondly, the ideas the students learned about in class or in
the text may be reworded in different ways: colloquially,
technically, by example, or by analogy; thirdly, very often a
choice examination is not simple recognition of basic ideas
but recognition of the answer to a reasoned problem. The
student processes of reasoning must make use of learning
from the course and may go beyond the material covered in
class or may require a student to apply the knowledge from
the course. The student may have to go beyond straight
memorization to make an analogy or to solve a novel
problem. The student must not be just familiar with the

64
material; she or he must be able to write down, talk about,
and analyze the subject matter of the course.

8.5.1 Strategies of Answering Multiple Choice

Examination Questions
In this section some strategies of answering multiple choice
questions as provided. These preparation strategies that
could be used to prepare for the questions:

Preview the examination. As a student browse through the

multiple question examination paper, he or she should take
note of those questions which seem easier (i.e., those
questions she or he think can answer) and perhaps plan to
skip those which seem harder, setting time limits, and
getting settled; keeping the timing for questions as they are
usually equally weighted.
Start with questions that can readily be answered. A student
should not waste time labouring over troublesome questions
at the start. A student should Endeavour to get credit for
items she or he know well.
Recycle through the test. The student should try the
questions they could not do on the first attempt. Sometimes
the answer will occur to him or her simply because the
student is more relaxed after having answered other
questions. Sometimes, too, the answer to one question
provides a clue to the answer of another.
Set goals for time and pace accordingly. A student should
allocate time, to questions, according to the relative worth of
questions. The student should aim to save a few minutes in
order to review the questions and answers at the end.
Remember: the first answer may not always be your best
answer. The student can change answers, but only if she or
he a good reason for doing so. For instance, changing an
answer from, say, "b" simply because the response to the
previous four questions was also "b" and the student cannot
believe that five questions in a row would have the same item
as the correct response, is likely not to be a good reason; the
student should be flexible in the approach.
Reading the questions carefully. If necessary the student
should read the question twice and avoid jumping to
conclusions about what she or he thinks the question asks.
Underlining key words in questions. Multiple choice
examinations examine the student’s ability to read carefully
and thoughtfully as much and test the student’s ability to

65
recall and reason. A student should look out for words like
"all," "always," "never," "none," "few," "many," some,"
"sometimes."
Attempting to recall a concept from memory. A student
should think out the answer according to the topic of concept
before looking at the options. Doing this successfully may
help the student navigate through and find a reasonable
answer or choice.
Labelling true or false strategy. The student should consider
labelling the answers as true or false, on the basis of prior
knowledge of the course, and then look for substance in the
answers.
Dereference in answers by only one or two words. The
deference in answers may be by one or two words or in the
order of one or two terms. These can seem very confusing. It
is advisable that the student reads the stem of the question.
This way, the student may be able to make more sense of the
options by labelling the questions true or false and
eliminating those that don't correctly complete the question.
Using the hint of highly similar pairs – this hint says that
often the answer is imbedded in one of two very similar pairs
and the "most correct" answer is often the one that correctly
uses course terminology.
The student should be prepared to change the answer. If the
student has a clear reason why the first response is
incorrect, then there is no harm to change the answer. The
change should however not be done on the basis of nervous
feelings.
Linking terminology to the area of study. A student should be
able to figure out questions according to the key areas of the
course, lectures, or chapters of a course's materials. This
helps the student narrow the field of possible choices and
think through to the best answer.
Paying attention to descriptive words. The student should
pay attention to word that are absolute or relative. These
absolute terms tend to portray things as right or wrong
where this is often not the case. Words like always, never,
completely, and only are absolutes. Relative words like often,
usually, seem and may are often more accurate.
Guessing the answer. If a student has to guess the answer,
she or he must look for some of the following possibilities:
the style of an answer option that is very different from all of
the others (this may disqualify it); the grammar of the
question stem is not in agreement with the grammar of an

66
other answers; some answer is not in the area or topic of the
question, but comes from some other part of the course (this
may disqualify it).

Overall, the student should remember that she or he is

looking for the best answer, not only a correct one, and not
one which must be true all of the time.

8.6 DESCRIPTIVE EXAMINATIONS

For engineering students who are comfortable with their

descriptive writing skills, the onset of final examination
featuring descriptive questions or short answers usually
brings a sense of consolidation to a year's work and offers an
opportunity to display the knowledge and thinking skills
developed over the course of the year. Some students,
however, are not quite comfortable with the thought of
descriptive examinations. These students may want to
develop some ways to prepare for descriptive examinations
which can foster some comfort in them. Doing well in
descriptive examinations, as is the case for any examination
at university, demands that the student be thoroughly
prepared with the concepts, ideas, theories, and arguments
of the course. It is vital that a student understand the
relationships between elements of the course as there is
often an emphasis on the content of the discipline, the
theoretical perspectives used to understand the course, and
on the way knowledge is defined in the course. The student
should therefore be able to think analytically and critically
and articulate the expositions in written form.
Typically in the School of Engineering descriptive
examinations have fewer questions than multiple choice, and
computational examinations. But descriptive examinations
are normally worded and slight different focus. Sometimes
descriptive examinations or section of the examination calls
for the student to answer all questions, but often students
are required to make selections, say choose two of three
questions. Questions typically emphasize some analytical and
critical process around themes of the course with reference
to particular theories, ideas, concepts, readings, or lectures
through special direction words such as compare, contrast,
discuss etc. In this section a variety of these direction words
at looked at considering related examination preparation

67
strategies. Some general suggestions for studying for
descriptive examinations follow.
In preparing to descriptive examinations the student is called
to duty to perform elaborative rehearsals of key concepts,
ideas, and theories with a view of becoming fluent in the
concepts of the course. The key focus here is on
understanding the key issues, themes, and concepts of the
course at the highest level of thinking. This kind of thinking
suggests an emphasis placed on the student understanding
and demonstrating the ability to discuss the connections
among the themes and issues of a course. Many engineering
courses, however, offer students critical tools in the form of
theoretical models which students are expected to be able to
discuss and apply to related engineering situations. Thus,
preparation for descriptive examinations needs to focus less
on detail than on the broad themes, their interconnections,
and on the application of critical tools to course content.
Engineering Students should in most cases look at course
assignments, tests, and past descriptive examinations for the
kinds of questions to expect and for feedback on how to
improve on their answers. A keen engineering student may
also construct some questions on the basis of his or her
understanding of course themes and issues and critical tools.
Answering these questions as self-tests (perhaps by forming
an outline of ideas rather than by writing out the answer)
may help as student to "pull the course together". Study
groups may also be very helpful in this regard because
different members of the group often have a different way of
thinking about concepts and come up with different
questions to test the same course content.

8.7 WORDING OF DESCRIPTIVE EXAMINATIONS

As engineering students beginning to answer descriptive

examination questions it is important to pay attention to
examination instructions and how the questions are phrased.
Many engineering students lose marks simply because their
answers do not respond to the language of the questions.
They may write about the subject matter mentioned in the
question, but not in the precise manner that the question
requires. Students should ensure that the answer matches
the requirements of the question. The following section
organizes some key words that are found in engineering
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descriptive examination questions. When the preview a test,
past examination or assignment it is advisable to circle or
highlight them as reminders of what the answer should
include and how it should be focused and structured.

8.7.1 Identify
The first group comprises words in descriptive examination
questions which elicit direct answers and may tend not to
elicit developed answers. Consequently, they may be rarely
seen on descriptive examinations. Nonetheless, they appear,
and when they do, they often imply that the student should
explain or elaborate.
 List - Write an itemized series of concise statements
 Enumerate - Write in a list or outline form, making
points concisely one by one
 Describe - Recount, characterize, sketch, relate in a
sequence or story form.
 Define-Give clear, concise, authoritative meanings.
 State - Present main points in brief, clear sequence,
usually omitting minor details and examples.
 Summarize - Give the main points or facts in condensed
form, like the summary of a chapter in a text, omitting
details and illustrations.
 Sketch - Give a graphic answer, a drawing, a chart, a
plan, a schematic representation.

8.7.2 Explain
As a group, these words tend to suggest fully thought out
and demonstrated answers. These terms tend to be a little
slippery and it is often advisable for a student to clarify the
meaning of these words within the context of the course.
 Discuss - Consider various points of view, analyze
carefully, and give reasons for and against.
 Analyze -Summarize fully with detail in accordance with
a selected focus, consider component of ideas and their
inter-relationships
 Explain - Clarify, interpret, give reasons for differences
of opinion or of results, analyze causes.
 Illustrate - Use a picture, diagram, or concrete example
to clarify a point.
 Outline - Organize a description based on main points
and subordinate points, stressing the arrangement and
classification of the subject matter.

69
  Trace - In narrative form, describe the evolution,
development, or progress of the subject.

8.7.3 Compare
These action words are premised on an analysis which works
to integrate ideas under focus; emphasizing similarities,
differences, and connections between the ideas deepens the
understanding of the ideas and may help students
contextualize ideas more effectively.
 Compare- Look for qualities or characteristics that
resemble each other. Emphasize similarities, but also
note differences.
 Contrast - Stress differences, dissimilarities of ideas,
concepts, events, problems, etc., but also note
similarities.
 Relate - Show how ideas or concepts are connected to
each other.
 Related words: Distinguish.

8.7.4 Argue
The words in this group direct the student to take a position
on an issue and defend his or her argument against
reasonable alternatives.
 Prove - Establish the truth of a statement by giving
factual evidence and logical reasoning.
 Justify - Show strong reasons for decisions or
conclusions; use convincing arguments based on
evidence
 Related words: Agree, Disagree, Debate, Defend

8.7.5 Assess
Writing a descriptive examination with these action words
involves invoking acceptable criteria and defending a
judgment or position on the issue, idea, or question involved.
The underlying questions here include "to what extent?" and
"how well?".

 Criticize - Express judgment about the merit or truth or

usefulness of the views or factors mentioned in the
question.
 Evaluate - Appraise, give a viewpoint, cite limitations
and advantages, include the opinion of authorities, and
give evidence to support a position. (cf., Criticize)

70
  Interpret - Translate, give examples or comment on a
subject, usually including your own viewpoint.
 Review - Examine a subject critically, analyzing and
commenting on it, or statements made about it.
 Related words: Interpret, Recommend.

Students can see that various words require them to think in

different ways in order to answer descriptive questions
during examinations. It is clear that students must go beyond
simple definition of terms when answering descriptive
questions during examinations. The thinking that is involved
in answering these questions is something that a student
practice all year long as she or he descriptive assignments,
tests and participated in tutorials.

8.8 OPEN BOOK EXAMINATIONS

In the School of Engineering some students take open books

examinations in some courses. The important point the
student should to remember is prepare effectively and
thoroughly. The student should not expect to be able to
simply look for everything he or she does not know: The
student will not have adequate time to do so. The student in
other words should be prepared to use textbooks and notes
efficiently. The student should know where to locate
information she or he thinks will be needed when writing
answers (quotations, dates, definitions, graphs, diagrams,
etc.). A student should not be lulled into a false sense of
security such that she or he does little or no prior
preparation.

8.9 TAKE HOME EXAMINATIONS

The form of examining students is hardly practiced in the

School of Engineering. However, the basic guidelines for
descriptive examinations apply. During this kind of
examination the student probably will not be asked to do lots
of new research for the, nor will she or he be given as much
time as would during writing a formal descriptive
examination. The student should be direct in writing and use
straightforward organizational patterns. The student should
demonstrate the breadth of his or her knowledge of the
subject matter by referring to a variety of sources when
providing concrete examples to support the main points. The

71
student should ensure that your responses are analytical and
evaluative where appropriate.

8.10 EXAMINATIONS DOS AND DON’TS

a) If you are too tired when you go into the examination,
you will not perform well.
b) If you are still learning information right up to the last
few hours before the examination, you will NOT
remember all of this in the examination.
c) Adrenaline is good in examinations – at the right levels.
d) Too much adrenaline can cause stress which means that
you will under-perform on the day.
e) Relaxation is a vital part of the revision process.
f) During revision make sure that you have some rest
periods. Short breaks are best – set treats for your self.
g) Physical activity, such as jogging or aerobics, can
stimulate your brain into more activity when you are
trying to remember all the information.
h) Relaxation exercises, such as yoga, are good for
clearing the mind ready for the next onslaught!
i) Don’t drink the night before an examination.
j) Plan time carefully: Identify exam date and amount of
review time needed well in advance. Alter your usual
schedule accordingly.
k) Avoid cramming: This often causes fatigue, increased
worry, poor retention, and prevents thorough review.
Also avoid stimulants and all night study sessions.
Learning is inefficient under these conditions if it occurs
at all.
l) Find out everything possible about the examination:
What material will it cover? What form is it in? (Essay,
short answer, multiple choice, etc.) Also determine what
proportion of the course grade is the exam? What
course average do you have going into the exam? Test
yourself using old previous exams or the book
publisher’s website.
m) Use appropriate review techniques: Several of the most
used techniques are listed below.
 Study the lecture notes.
 Reread selected important assignments.
 Review underlined portions of reading and notes.
 Make a brief overall set of notes for review
purposes.
 Predict questions and outline answers.

72
  Organize a group study session (Be careful with
this.).
 Use self-testing procedures where information is
reproduced or written from memory without using
notes and other aids.
n) Look at past tests for the pattern of errors that you
make and practice answering questions.
o) Make review an active learning process: Test yourself
often! Don’t limit review to rereading only. Vary your
review method. Don’t overly review material you know
well. Write down things from memory without the help
of notes or reading. Keep your review active!
p) Don’t panic if you feel pressure. It’s normal to feel
anxious when tests are coming up. Anxiety can help you
work harder and concentrate better. Don’t indulge in
negative thinking. Stop by the Counseling Center, in the
Student Hotels Area, or go to the University Clinic if
your nervousness seems out of control.

8.10.1 On the examination day

a) Make sure you know the examination venue and what
time to be at the venue.
b) Plan for all eventualities, set the alarm clock and ask
someone to call you as well, just in case the alarm
doesn’t work. Leave the house early – The highway may
be congested or the bus may be late or break down.
c) Carry all the materials you are permitted to the
examination venue. That is student card, and
certification of calculation etc. Take a drink and some
sweets into the examination room if you are allowed to.
This will help to keep your blood sugar level and
concentration up.
d) Avoid the before examination discussion at the venue
and rising group hysteria. This can make you panic.
e) Listen carefully to the invigilator and read the question
paper very carefully. If you are allowed to, make notes
next to the questions and decide which ones you are
going to tackle.
f) Write your student number on the answer sheet. It is
easy to forget and cause problems for later.

73
g) Read each question carefully. Be sure to understand
what each question is asking. If you are not sure, ask.
Don't let shyness cheat you out of a better grade.
Sometimes invigilators are positive the question is clear
when it really isn't.
h) Most importantly: Remain Calm! Panicking only leads to
mistakes. If you studied well the answer is in your head
somewhere. It may take a little concentration to retrieve
the required information.

8.10.2 At the end of the examination

a) Check the answer scripts carefully. Correct any obvious
mistakes and if your handwriting is not very clear in
some places, make sure the examiner will be able to
read it.
b) Check that the numbers on your answer paper tally with
the number of the questions to be answered.
c) Cross out rough notes and aborted answers.
d) Tie up the examination answer script and hand it to the
invigilator.
e) Leave the examination hall and do not carry any
prohibited examination materials out of the in the hall.
f) Resist having a "post mortem" with your friends. It's all
over now and you can't change it. Get on with your next
task.

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 CHAPTE
R
UNDERGRADUATE VACATIONAL INDUSTRIAL

9 TRAINING

9.1 INTRODUCTION

All 3rd, and 4th year engineering students must do vacation

industrial training. Industrial Training (EG 493 and EG 593) and or
any fieldwork is an essential part of the undergraduate training and
therefore forms part of the requirement for the degree of Bachelor
of Engineering.

Students must complete three sessions of vacation training during

their studies. Each session must be at least seven (7) uninterrupted
weeks long. Under exceptional circumstances, and on
recommendation of the Industrial Training Committee, the Board of
Studies of the School of Engineering may accept a period of
Industrial Training performed after second year to make up for any
shortfall in required fourteen weeks provided that the outstanding
period does not exceed two weeks.

Engineering students are generally uncertain about the

expectations of/requirements for vacation training, and even who to
contact in the Department if questions arise. This is particularly
applicable to 2nd, 3rd and to a lesser extent to 4 th year students who
may not be familiar with the requirement for the partial fulfillment
of the Degree of Bachelor of Engineering at the University of
Zambia.

The Chairman of the Industrial Training Committee, who is in

charge for vacation training in the School of Engineering, is the
Assistant Dean Technical. Industrial Training Committee is
comprised, apart from the Assistant Dean Technical, of five
Departmental Industrial Training Coordinators. There is a
Secretary of Industrial Training Committee, chosen among the
Departmental Industrial Training Coordinators, who coordinators
the industrial training. The Departmental Industrial Training
Coordinators are responsible for all questions regarding vacation
training, as well as the liaising with the Chairman of the Industrial

75
Training Committee thereof. The following are general problems
and questions that students have with regard to vacation training:

9.2 WHY VACATION TRAINING

Engineering students are educated in an academic environment

eventually go and work in a very practical situation in future. As
engineering studies progress, they get more and more exposed to
specific aspects of Industrial Engineering, especially from the 3rd
year onwards. The purpose of vacation training is to give
engineering students general exposure to these practical
environments, and to enhance the knowledge of objects referred to
in the respective disciplines. Mechanical engineering students, for
instance, will better appreciate and master some aspects of a
Computer Numerical Control (CNC) machines easier they have
seen or operated one.

From the School's point of view, the purposes of Industrial Training

are:

 To provide experience of industrial/field conditions.

 To enable the student to learn engineering techniques by

observation and practice.

 To show how theory presented in the University courses is

applied.

 To provide contact with practising Engineers and other members

of the Engineering team.

 To familiarize the student with the practices and problems

important in companies which employ engineers.

 To give the student the responsibility of completing a program of

work under typical industrial/field conditions.

9.3 WHERE TO GET A VACATION TRAINING POSITION

Some students are privileged to have a bursary and the bursar has
planned for in house vacation training for the sponsored student.
Experience at the University of Zambia has shown that in past one
decade and half most engineering students have to struggle to get
placement for industrial training. As much has it is the
responsibility of the School to find industrial placement for

76
students, it is also the responsibility of each student to find a
position. However, the School of Engineering, through the Vacation
Training Committee assists in securing training positions, and
students are expected to make full use of this opportunity to realize
their industrial training. Similarly, the Departmental Industrial
Training Coordinator can help with suggestions of companies
where a student may get placement. The student may compile a list
of all known industries, in the area of study, as starting point. There
are many engineering companies in Lusaka, Copperbelt, North-
Western and Southern Provinces. The School of Engineering tries
as much as possible to solicit for industrial training from industry
by stressing to industry the need for vacation training work, and
that industry should contact the School if they require students.
Such requests by industry are accordingly put up on the notice
boards in the Department or School of Engineering.

The School has experienced a situation when students apply for

jobs at companies, but they submit such bad applications that they
end up being refused. If a student applies, for industrial training in
writing, it is better to ensure all is clearly stated. For instance,
what the student will/can do, and what his or her current expertise
is (e.g. can program in Java). Also the student should ensure that
the application is free from typing/grammar/spelling errors.
Departmental Industrial Training Coordinator, in the School of
Engineering, always gives out a standard letter and can make
suggestions to the contents of the application the student intends to
send to a company if necessary. Please note that Departmental
Industrial Training Coordinator will not write your applications for
you, he will only give advice on existing applications.

9.4 WHERE TO WORK DURING VACATIONAL TRAINING

A common question asked by engineering students is where can I
work? The basic requirement is that a student must work under the
supervision of a qualified engineer in an industrial environment. A
student can therefore not work as a lifesaver at the Lusaka Olympic
Swimming Pool vacation, even if the Chief lifesaver is an engineer.
Students that are doubtful of a specific company may check with
the Departmental Industrial Training Coordinator to ascertain the
credibility of a company or firm.

9.5 WHEN TO DO VACATION TRAINING

There is no best time, but there is a sensible time. According to the
requirements the student may start at the end of the second
academic. Students are discouraged to postpone working until the

77
final year, when they have to the final year project. The ideal time
windows are the end of 2nd and 3rd year and the final year.

9.6 WHEN TO HAND IN VACATION TRAINING REPORTS

The formal requirements state that the report must be handed in
within four weeks of the beginning of academic year or semester
following the vacation training period. The reports must be
submitted to the Departmental Industrial Training Coordinators. If
the student does not hand in the report on time, the vacation
training work will only serve as experience and it will not be
recognized as completion of vacation training. The industrial
training report must be accompanied by the daily log duly certified
by the employer or Vacational Work Certificate (Appendix 5-A).

9.7 FORMAL REQUIREMENTS FOR VACATION TRAINING

The Industrial Training Committee prepares and circulates, at the
beginning of each vacation period, guidelines for both students
(Appendix 5 -D) and employers (Appendix 5-C) on the nature and
conduct of vocational training and supervision expect by the
School. Student must refer to the requirements and follow them.
Reports that do not meet the requirements may be handed back for
improvement. Appendix 5-D shows some of the general directive
pertaining to vacational training reports.

9.8 GRADING OF INDUSTRIAL TRAINING

Industrial Training, in the School of Engineering, is graded as
satisfactory or unsatisfactory on the basis of:
 Individual student’s written report;
 Employers’ or field supervisors’ confidential report;
 Report of the staff member visiting the student during
industrial training period; and
 When necessary the industrial Training Committee may
interview a student on activities during the industrial training
and recommend a decision on grading for the School Board
approval.

However, apart the evaluation of the student the general conduct

(Appendix 5-C) of the during Industrial Training, academic staff
that mark the Industrial Training Report score students on
(Appendix 5-D)

I. Physical Appearance ,
II. Language, Style, and Grammar ,
III. Technique, and

78
IV. Format.

79
APPENDIX

1- SAMPLE LAB REPORT COVER PAGE

A
THE UNIVERSITY OF ZAMBIA
SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING
DEPARTMENT OF MECHANICAL ENGINEERING

ME 461 Fluids Mechanics II

Measurement of Standard Empirical Discharge Coefficient

Author: Chimugo J. Yamamoto

Computer No. 49307041

Date of Experiments: 11th June, 1949

Date Due: 18th June, 1949

Attention: Prof. F. Yamba

80
APPENDIX

2- SAMPLE LABORATORY REPORT

A
Sample Report Details

This document describes the required sections to be included in all

laboratory reports. Additional sections may be included at the
author’s discretion or as required for specific laboratory
experiments. In this document, the italic text at the beginning of
each section describes the purpose of the section and discusses the
expected content. Example text follows in standard font. Following
the example, another italicized paragraph will discuss the key
features of the sample section.

General Lab Report Instructions

All laboratory reports should be stand-alone documents that do not

require the laboratory handout to be understood. Avoid phases such
as “this lab report” or reference to the laboratory handout. Assume
that your target audience, that is the lecturer, is an engineer
familiar with the subject matter but lacking direct knowledge or
expertise in your work. Be sure that all reports are clear,
organized, well written, and flow smoothly. Proofread your report
to ensure there are no spelling or grammatical errors.

Overall the lab report grade is based upon the quality of the written
laboratory report.

1.0 Cover Page

Use the cover page in this document as a guideline for your lab
reports. Make sure you include, the School name, Department,
Course Code and Title, Laboratory Report Title, your names,
computer number, and names of all group members if your lab
report was gone as group work, Date the laboratory test were

81
conducted and the date it was turned handed in and for whose
attention the lab report is.

Abstract

An abstract is a concise summary of the paper, including the major

objectives and critical findings. The abstract allows a reader to
determine if the content of the paper is of interest without having
to read the entire document. Your abstract should state the
objectives of the study and highlight important conclusions without
directing the reader to specific graphs, etc. Abstracts are typically
less than 250 words. Hint: It is typically easiest to write your
abstract last.

The applicability of the standard empirical discharge coefficient

relationship is tested with an orifice plate of diameter ratio 0.735.
The discharge coefficient equation is tested by measuring the
actual mass flow rate through the orifice plate using the bucket-
and- stopwatch method for a range of Reynolds numbers and
comparing it to the predicted value. The experiment demonstrated
that the empirical relationship is likely an adequate prediction for
this geometry. Unfortunately, the uncertainty in the discharge
coefficient measurement was unacceptably large making a detailed
analysis of the empirical relation impossible. The experiments
should be repeated with a larger bucket before any definite
conclusions can be drawn.

Notes: This abstract summarizes the problem investigated as well

as the major conclusions. It is short and succinct, containing far
less than 250 words.

2.0 Objective/ Introduction

The introduction section provides the objective and background

information on the subject and rationale for the experiment. It is
expected that this section will include information beyond that
provided in the laboratory handout. Included in the introduction
should be a discussion of the objectives of the study, important
previous studies, and a description of the relevant theories on
which the study is based. Enough background information should
be provided that the reader can understand the experiment and
results without having to consult other references. You are
encouraged to look information up in your textbook, online, or in
the library (the big building with all of the books in it).

82
Restriction flow meters are simple devices used to measure the
mass flow rate of liquids through pipes. These mass flow meters
relate the pressure drop across a constriction in the flow to the
mass flow rate of the fluid in the pipe. Several common restriction
flow meters are commercially available, including orifice plates,
flow nozzles, and venturi meters. Orifice plates are the simplest and
least expensive of the restriction meters, but they also incur the
largest losses. Flow nozzles and venturi meters are both more
expensive and larger, but the frictional loss penalty is reduced.
Flow meter selection depends on several factors, including cost,
size, and acceptable energy losses (based on pump size). All three
flow meters are discussed in some detail by Fox et al. (2003).

3.0 Theory

This is more or less like the introduction but it focus more on the
work at hand bring to the fore the body of knowledge by logical
related to the mathematical arguments meant to explain or predict
a phenomena or a wide variety of connected phenomena in general
terms.

The fundamental model on which restriction flow meters are based

is represented by the Bernoulli Equation, which states that velocity
and pressure are inversely related in a steady, incompressible, and
inviscid flow. The theoretical relationship between mass flow rate
(velocity) and pressure drop for all restriction type flow meters,
based on this principle, is

Where theory mtheory is the mass flow rate, A1 is the pipe area
upstream of the constriction, A2 is the cross-sectional area of the
flow meter contraction, ρ is the fluid density, and (p 1-p2) is the
pressure drop across the flow meter. Equation 1 states that the
pressure drop across a restriction type flow meter is a function of
the mass flow rate squared. The remainder of the discussion will
focus on orifice plate flow meters. Equation 1 is derived in
Appendix A.

83
The utility of Equation 1 is limited in practice due to the presence
of frictional losses in real fluids. As depicted in Figure 1, the
minimum flow area through an orifice plate is not the geometric
size of the constriction, but rather the effective flow area caused by
the formation of the vena contracta. Additionally, friction causes a
departure from the assumed uniform velocity profile in the pipe,
particularly at lower Reynolds numbers. This implies that the
measured pressure drop across the orifice plate is a function of the
Reynolds number and some unknown area ratio. Pressure tap
placement also affects the measured pressure drop across orifice
plates.

Figure 1: Schematic of orifice plate flow field.

To account for these irreversible losses, the mass flow rate

prediction in Equation 1 must be modified. Flow of real fluids at
high Reynolds numbers are typically very difficult to predict
analytically, and thus empirical relationships are often derived.
Equation 1 can be adjusted by defining an empirical discharge
coefficient to modify the measured mass flow rate. Fox et al. (2003)
introduce a modified mass flow rate defined
as

Where β = Dt/D1 (orifice plate diameter/pipe diameter), C is the

discharge coefficient, and At is the area of the orifice plate opening.
A flow coefficient, K, can be defined as

84
thus simplifying Equation 2. Fox et al. (2003) provide an equation
for the discharge coefficient as a function of β and Reynolds
number for an orifice plate with corner taps

where Re is the Reynolds number based on the upstream pipe

diameter. According to Fox et al. (2003), Equation 4 predicts the
discharge coefficients to within 0.6% for 0.2< β<0.75 and
104<Re<107.

This paper will address the calibration of an orifice plate with

corner pressure taps and test the proposed accuracy of Equation 4.
The experimental orifice plate has a diameter ratio, β = 0.735
which is approaching the limit of the applicability of Equation 4.
The orifice plate will tested over a range of Reynolds numbers and
the actual mass flow rate, measured using a bucket and a
stopwatch, will be used to determine the accuracy of Equation 4.
The measured flow coefficient will be plotted and compared with
published results (produced using Equation 4). The uncertainty of
the measured mass flow rate using this orifice plate based on the
analysis technique presented by Fox et al. (2003) will be presented,
as well.

Notes: Nowhere in the above paragraph is the paper referred to as

a lab report. It is written to a technical audience that is not
necessarily familiar with orifice plate flow meters and their
function. Background information on restriction type flow meters is
presented and a reference is provided to direct an interested
reader to more information. Similarly, the theory of orifice plate
flow meters is briefly presented, while readers requiring more
detail are referred to the appendix. The last paragraph introduces
the work to be presented in the paper and discusses the importance
of the work (orifice plates must be calibrated; we are checking the
validity of an empirical calibration equation for our orifice plate).
Note the use of a figure to show the geometry for analysis as
opposed to a long paragraph of description. Also note that the
source of the equations, etc. is presented (i.e. Fox et al.).

85
4.0 Procedure/Materials and Methods

This section should contain a description of the experimental

apparatus and state the data collection and processing procedure.
Useful items to include are a sketch of the apparatus, material
properties (if necessary), and a list of the procedures, in order. A
good rule of thumb is to include only enough detail such that a
skilled lab technician could reproduce the experiment. Avoid
overuse of the word ‘then’ and excessive detail.

Orifice plate calibration experiments were performed using the

experimental setup shown schematically in Figure 2. Water from a
constant head tank flowed into the test pipe, through the orifice
plate, and exited to the atmosphere. Water flow to the tank was
continuous, with excess water spilling over a bellows and thus
drained from the tank. The upstream pipe length was 50 pipe-
diameters to ensure that the flow was fully developed before
encountering the orifice plate. The pressure drop across the orifice
plate was measured using a standard manometer. The experimental
procedure was as follows:

1) Measure the orifice plate and pipe diameters and install the
orifice plate.
2) Record the air temperature in the room (this is assumed to
equal the water temperature) and the weight of the beaker.
3) Close all operating valves.
4) Turn on the pump that supplies the water to the constant head
tank and allow
it to fill.
5) Open the manometer valves and adjust it to read zero pressure
drops.
6) Open the valve at the end of the flow loop to establish flow
through the
system.
7) Record the time required to fill a beaker with water.
8) Weigh the water and calculate the mass flow rate by dividing
this value by the
Filing time.

86
9) Record the pressure drop across the orifice plate from the
manometer
connected to the corner pressure taps.
10) Repeat steps 6-9 for 10 mass flow rates.

5.0 Equipment /Apparatus

Under this section of the report the equipment or apparatus used in

the experiments are discussed highlighting their main features and
functions. A drawing or a picture of the equipment used in the
experiments should be used. Remember the reader should be able
to gauge if the equipment used was appropriate for the
investigations at hand.

A schematic of the orifice plate geometry and pressure tap

locations is presented in Figure 3. The measured pipe and orifice
plate diameters are presented in Table 1.

87
Notes: The above schematics are used to show the experimental
setup to the reader and clarify the experimental procedure.
Schematics are encouraged when discussing the experimental
setup and test section geometries.

6.0 Results and Data Analysis

The Results Section is where the results of the experiment are

presented. This section is to be written in paragraph/s form in past
tense and should provide factual statements of what the
investigator (author) observed supported by any statistics, tables or
graphs derived from analysis of the data recorded during the
investigation/s. Any other graphs should be included as an aid to
their interpretation. DO NOT simply present your results in a
bulleted or listed form. Bullets are very useful for listing things
such as assumptions, but they should be bracketed by text. Recall
that the report is graded partially on how well you communicate
the results. A smooth flowing and descriptive paragraph
introducing the results communicates much more clearly the thrust
of the work than does two sentences listing the numerical values.
Tables are normally used to concisely summarize results. Refer to
the Experiments, Data Handling and Lab Report Writing handout
for more information regarding figure.

The air temperature at the start of experimentation was 18°C. The

kinematic viscosity of water at this temperature is 1x 10 -6 m2/s (Fig.
A.3, Fox et al., 2003). The water density was assumed to equal
1000 kg/m3 with no uncertainty and the beaker mass was 112.6 g.
The measured experimental data is presented in Table 2. The
columns of Table 1 correspond to the mass of the water collected in
the bucket, the time required to fill the bucket to nominally 1L, the
computed mass flow rate, m dot, and measured pressure drop, and
the computed discharge coefficient, C. The discharge coefficient is
calculated by solving Equation 2 for C then using the
experimentally measured mass flow rate and pressure drop as
inputs.

88
The Reynolds number of the flow was calculated using the mass
flow rate, pipe diameter, and water properties.

Using the Reynolds number at each mass flow rate, the empirical
discharge coefficient (Equation 4) was computed. Figure 3 is a
comparison of the measured discharge coefficient and the empirical
calculation versus Reynolds number. The raw data used to produce
this plot, including the uncertainty values are presented in
Appendix B. Note that the empirical calculation presented in Figure
3 relies on the experimental data as well, but the uncertainty is less
than 0.1%. These values are included in Appendix B as well.

89
Notes: All pertinent information is provided in this section in
paragraph from. A table is used to better organize the raw data.
Were the amount of collected data much larger, Table 2 could have
been relegated to an appendix. Take care when reporting data that
the number of significant figures is correct. There is no discussion
of the results. The plot has error bars corresponding to the
computed uncertainty while the numeric data is reserved for the
appendix.

7.0 Discussion

The results of the laboratory experiment are objectively interpreted

and discussed in this section. All results presented in the previous
section should be discussed, including all figures. You should
discuss the agreement between your experimental results and
previously published results or theory (as applicable), particularly
noting any discrepancies. Significant or potentially significant
sources of error should be discussed, particularly noting how these
errors should affect the results. Simply rattling off the first few
possible sources of error that come to mind is not sufficient. A
discussion of why the listed sources of error are important and an
interpretation of their significance is required. A thorough
discussion of the experimental assumptions and their impact on the
results and analysis should be included as well.

90
The empirical discharge coefficient relationship (Equation 4) agrees
with the measured discharge coefficient values. The empirical
curve passes through all of the data points within the uncertainty of
the experiment. The uncertainty in the measured discharge
coefficient is less than 2.5% (the large error bars on Figure 3 are a
result of the y-axis scale). The orifice plate discharge coefficient is
relatively insensitive to Reynolds number in the range investigated,
varying only 3% over the full span of Reynolds numbers. Given the
small change in the discharge coefficient, the measured discharge
coefficient uncertainties are likely too large, however. To ascertain
the validity of Equation 4 for the orifice plate and flow conditions
considered, much lower measured uncertainties would be required.

The largest contribution to the uncertainty in the measured

discharge coefficient is due to the time measurement. At the higher
mass flow rates, the bucket filled much too quickly (~1 second)
causing large temporal uncertainty. The simplest solution to this
problem would be to use a larger vessel to capture the water. This
would increase the filling time and reduce the uncertainty in the
temporal measurement. If the orifice plate is to be used at higher
flow rates than those presented here, it would be necessary to
recalibrate and expand the Reynolds number range. Expanding the
Reynolds number range would benefit from a larger bucket as well.

Notes: All of the figures presented in the Results Section were

discussed (in this case there was only one). The uncertainties
associated with the experiment were discussed in detail and a
suggestion for improving the accuracy of the experiment was made.
The suggestions are based on an analysis of the largest contributor
to the uncertainty. Typically your lab handout will contain a list of
questions that must be answered in the Discussion Section. Be sure
to incorporate your answers coherently into your discussion. The
reader should not be able to tell that you are answering a series of
questions.

8.0 Conclusions

This section should present any conclusions drawn from the

experiment, restate any limitations of the experiment, and
summarize the assumptions and their effects on the results. Refer
to the Experiments, Data Handling and Lab Report Writing handout
for more information regarding figure and table.

91
Within the limits of the experimental uncertainty and the Reynolds
number range investigated, the results obtained for the discharge
coefficient through an orifice plate with a diameter ratio β = 0.735
agree with the empirical relation presented in Equation 4.
However, the large uncertainty in the experimental data
significantly reduces the reliability and utility of the data. The
orifice plate should be retested prior to its use as a mass flow rate
sensor using a larger bucket to measure the mass flow rate.

Notes: The discussion and conclusions drawn from the results

analyze the data critically. The fact that the uncertainty in the data
is too large is documented and discussed. When discussing your
results and drawing your conclusions, be sure to think carefully
about the data and analyze it critically. Keep in mind that your boss
(for example) will likely follow your suggestions.

9.0 References

Any portion of the lab report that is not expressly your own
thoughts and writing should be referenced. This will avoid sticky
plagiarism problems. A complete literature citation is necessary for
information retrieval. A distinction is made between a list of
references and bibliography where the later is supplied as a
comprehensive coverage of books and journals in an area, even
though not cited.

1. Fox, R.W., McDonald, A.T., and Pritchard, P.J., Introduction to

Fluid Mechanics, 6th ed.

2. http://twiki.psas.pdx.edu/pub/PSAS/WaxPlumbing/2003test-
orifice.pdf

10.0 Appendices

Appendices should include detailed information that is only of

interest to a few readers. This includes raw data, calculations,
algorithm details, etc. The report itself should be comprehensible
without referring to the appendices. The appendices should,

92
however, be referenced in the report to alert interested readers to
the additional information. The appendices for the example lab
report are not included.

93
 APPENDI GENERAL INSTRUCTIONS AND
X GUIDELINES

1-
FOR FINAL YEAR ENGINEERING
STUDENTS PROJECT WORKS

1. Importance of the Project Work

The fifth year project work forms an essential and very

important part of the engineering curriculum. Its significance
is emphasised by the allotment of a project running for
academic two semesters. The project report will reflect the
student's comprehension and understanding of the
engineering principles, the student must therefore, put in
serious efforts and meet the objectives of the project.

Students are reminded that both project work and

presentation of its results are very important. Neither of
these aspects must be neglected.

2. Approach to the Work

2.1 The project work is the student's own responsibility.

However, the project supervisor will render the
necessary advice and guidance to the student to enable
him or her to carry out project work. The student must
collect all the necessary data and information by
consulting books, journals, scientific publications and
relevant organisations. The supervisor’s assistance can
be sought in the bibliographic search, software
recommendation and sourcing and study materials. The
student is obliged carry out all the necessary design,
construction and experimental work.

2.2 A methodology, including the starting and terminal

point of the project, decided upon by mutual agreement
between the supervisor and the student, shall be
prepared at the beginning of the academic session.
However, the methodology is subject to revision during
the session. Such revisions shall only happen at the end

94
 of the first academic semester subject to the approval of
all academic members of staff in the Department.

2.3 The student is expected to spend 8 hours per week in

the classroom and/or drawing room and/or laboratory
and/or field working on his/her project, as scheduled in
the School Timetable. However, since the project work
requires more than the 8 hours, the student is expected
to spend more time on project outside the allotted time.

3. Meetings with the Project Supervisor

3.1 The student is expected to meet his/her project

supervisor according to the School Timetable or a
schedule mutually agreed upon by the supervisor and
the student, to review and discuss his/her work. The
student should meet the supervisor at least once per
week, and should not work alone without supervision. It
is essential that both parties adhere to this schedule to
ensure adequate progress in the project work. Any
default on either of the parties to keep to the scheduled
meetings can seriously affect the progress of the work
and should this occur for 3 consecutive weeks, it must
be brought to the attention of the Head of the
Department in writing.

4. Seminars

4.1 There are three scheduled periodical seminars on the

project work. The presentation dates are normally fixed
by the Assistant Dean Academic in consultation with
Heads of Department. The main objectives of the
seminars are to review the work of the student critically
and to give the student the opportunity to present the
work to gathering in a cogent and intelligible manner.

4.2 At the beginning of each presentation, the student will

be expected to make clear to the audience the
methodology and amount of work agreed upon by the
student and the supervisor.

4.3 Each presentation will be graded and such marks shall

contribute to the continuous assessment for the course.

95
5. Reports

5.1 There will be two reports submitted during the entire

duration of the final year project work.

5.2 Final year students must submit one copy of their

progress project report at the end of the first semester
of the project year. The progress report shall be in such
format as the final report. One bound copy of the
progress report shall be submitted and it shall be
marked solely by the relevant student’s project
supervisor.

5.3 Final year students must submit two copies of their

project report, one of which will be retained by the
Department and the other given to the University
Library. The final report shall be submitted at the end of
the project year, more specifically, at by the day of the
last day of lectures in that semester.

5.4 Before writing up the final report the student will

submit to his/her supervisor, a clearly written and
complete manuscript of his/her report for his critical
review. The manuscript must preferably be typed.

5.5 The report must be submitted in its final form to the

Head of Department, with the supervisor's signature
indicating that the correct format has been adhered to
well before the commencement of the final
examinations. The actual date of submission of the final
report will be fixed by the Assistant Dean (A) (normally
the last day of the classes) and communicated to
students in advance, preferably at the start of the
second semester. Late submission will be penalised by
deducting 2% per day up to a maximum of 10 working
days (20%). Students who do not meet this deadline
will fail the course with grade "D". No supplementary
exams will be given. Deferred exams will be awarded
on the same conditions as the other courses.

6. Format of the Report

96
6.1 The report must be bound in an acceptable traditional
form or as specified by the Head of Department.

6.2 The paper to be used shall be of international size A4

(210 mm by 297 mm). Margins of 35 mm at the left (for
binding) and 15 mm at the right, top and bottom (for
appearance and trimming) must be left.

6.3 One side of the paper only shall be used.

6.4 The report should be typewritten; the normal spacing

between lines shall be one and half (special illustrations
may be hand written).

6.5 All pages must be numbered consecutively at the top

right hand corner as described in sections 6.7 and 6.8.

6.6 The order of presentation of various parts of the report

shall normally be as shown below:

i) A cover containing the following

a) The University of Zambia
b) School of Engineering
c) Department of Mechanical Engineering
d) Project Title
e) Name of the Student(s)
f) Year of Report
ii) A blank sheet
iii) A title page containing the following:
a) The University of Zambia
b) School of Engineering
c) Department of Mechanical Engineering
d) Project Title
e) Name of the Student(s)
f) "Report submitted in partial fulfilment of the
Requirements for the degree of Bachelor of
Engineering, University of Zambia."
g) Date
iv) Acknowledgements
v) Table of contents including appendices
vi) List of figures
vii) List of tables
viii) List of drawings
ix) Nomenclature or Notation

97
 x) Summary not more than 300 words - 1 page.
xi) Introduction, statement of the project problem,
review of the literature, reasons for undertaking
the project work, purpose, and scope of the work
done.
xii) Main part of the report. This presents the work
done by the student, e.g. methodology, findings of
a survey, experiments carried out, tests
performed, analysis, calculations done, design
carried out, discussions, as the case may be.
xiii) Conclusions
xiv) References
xv) Appendices
The student will also submit an abstract (of not more than 150
words and which shall not be the same as the Summary)
together with his final report on a detached page and a page for
supervisor's signature - also detached.

6.7 The pages containing items (i) to (x), above shall be

numbered in lower case roman numerals, e.g. i, ii, iii,
etc.

6.8 The following pages shall be numbered in Arabic

numerals e.g. 1, 2, 3, ...

6.9 The chapters shall be numbered 1, 2, 3, etc. and the

sections of a chapter as 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, etc. Further
subdivisions may be used such as 4.2.1, 4.2.2., etc.
under section 4.2

6.10 Figures, graphs, charts, photographs, etc., shall be

numbered as Fig. 1.1, Fig. 2.3, etc., the first number
referring to the chapter and the second indicating the
serial number of the figure in the chapter. Apart from
the number, every figure, graphs, chart, photograph
etc., shall have a title. The number and title shall
appear at the bottom of the figure etc.

6.11 Tables shall be numbered similarly as Table 1.1, Table

1.3 etc. They shall also carry titles. The number and
title shall be placed at the top.

6.12 Drawings and lists of computer programmes may be

inserted at appropriate places in the text or placed

98
 together in a pocket at the end. They shall be folded
down to the size of the paper for the report.

6.13 The drawings and program lists shall also be numbered

similarly e.g. Drg. 3.1, Drg 3.2 etc. and List 4.1, List 4.2
etc. The number and title shall appear at the bottom of
the drawing while those for lists shall appear at the top.

6.14 The drawings, graphs, charts, figures, etc., should be

referred to in the text by their identification numbers.

6.15 Tables, figures, graphs, charts, photographs etc., shall

be bound such that they can be read either from the
bottom or from the right.

6.16 References shall be listed and numbered in the order

they appear in the text where they will be referred to by
numbers enclosed in brackets.

E.g. "...trapezoidal pressure distribution as assumed by

Terzaghi and Peck (8)…"

The style for giving references shall be:

a) For books:
Author(s) (Year), "Title", Edition, Place (City) of
Publication: Publisher, Page(s).

Example:
 Terzaghi, K. and Peck, R.B. (1967), "Soil
Mechanics in Engineering Practice", 2nd
Edition, New York: John Wiley & Sons, Inc., pp.
402-412.

b) For journals:
Authors(s) (Year), "Title", Journal, Date, Volume,
page(s).

Example:
 Williamson, A C. and Mwenechanya, J. M.
(1980), "New Method of Low Speed
Commutation of an Inverter Fed Synchronous
Motor" IEE PROC. B, January 6 - 12, 1980, 127,
pp. 375-281.

99
 6.17 While emphasis is on quality rather than quantity, it is
expected that the project report will have about 50
pages.

7. Oral Presentations

The lecturers examining the students should ensure that the

conclusions and hypotheses made by the students in writing
are correct and justified, bearing in mind the analytical
tools and methods used in arriving at them. During oral
presentation, the students need to demonstrate the
following:

7.1 Originality of the investigations or ideas. The

Examiners need to establish:
(i) If the aim of the project was clearly understood
and defined by the student.
(ii) If the hypotheses, questions and appropriate
methods developed, were properly tested and,
adequately described.
(iii) If the scope of the current projects with regard to
previous works and topics were contrasted.
(iv) If the originality, quantity and quality of the
current project are clear.

7.2 Level of Competence: Experimentation:

(i) If the limitations in the methodology and
execution of the project were stated.
(ii) If the student was able to demonstrate
independent thinking, generation of options and
showing competence in executing his/her project.
(iii) If the student applied appropriate analytical and
experimental tools to solve problems related to
the project.

7.3 Ability to contrast and fuse current project to

existing works:
(i) If appropriate literatures in form of the present
and previous works, related to the tasks in related
topic areas, were referred to and presented in a
systematic way.

100
 (ii) If the student pointed out what the reference
literatures state and how the statements contrast,
fuse or enhance his/her work.
(iii) If the student critically reviewed the literature
and consolidated his/her ideas, hypotheses,
experiments, etc.

7.4 Some General Features of an Oral Presentation:

(i) The student should spend at the most two minutes
per slide (OHP).
(ii) The OHPs should not be crowded but neatly
spaced (Bold Arial, Font 15 - 18).
(iii) Conclusion should contain no points.
(iv) The student should face the audience, look at the
members of the audience, speak clearly and make
it easy for the audience to understand him/her.
(v) The student should treat all questions with
courtesy and thank members of the audience for
the points raised. The student should not try to
fool the audience but admit it if there is a
weakness in his/her case or point. It is, therefore,
important to assess if the student clearly
understood questions being asked.

8. Assessment

The project work will be assessed as per separate

attachment issued with these guidelines.

101
 APPENDI
X GUIDELINES FOR GRADING

2-
WRITTEN PROJECT REPORTS

Please allocate marks in the boxes for each aspect of the project
report.

EXAMINER: Prof. A. Ludwig Date…………………

Score Obtained (Enter

names and computer
numbers of students in
the boxes below)
Max.
Criteria
Score

Student
Name
Student

Student

Student
Name

Name

Name

Abstract/Summary (does it
contain/capture the correct 20%
information?)
Referencing (correct citations,
20%
consistency, etc)

Plagiarism -20%

Technical drawings, Figures,

30%
Graphs (clarity, quality, etc)
Discussions/Conclusions/
Recommendations (logic, 20%
coherence, etc)
General outlook and technical
10%
writing skill

Total Score 100%

You are requested to TOTAL up the marks, please

102
 APPENDI
X
GUIDELINES FOR GRADING TECHNICAL

3- CONTENT OF PRACTICLE PROJECT REPORTS

The criterion for marking provided in the table below is

for physical inspection of project items such as prototype,
laboratory or filed set-ups, computer simulation and
programming, case study etc.. Examiners are required to
assess the practical project in terms of soundness,
quality, functionality etc. of the project. Analytical aspects
of the data colleted may also be examined with regard to
quality, authenticity etc.

EXAMINER: Prof. A. Ludwig

Date…………………

Max.

Stude

Stude

Stude

Stude
Criteria Scor

nt

nt

nt

nt
e
1. Project Formulation
Problem Identification and Justification
15 %
Objectives
Literature Review (Relevance Depth)
2. Project Synthesis
Design of survey/Study materials
(questionnaire, other techniques, etc)
Design of Prototype (Structure Analysis,
material Selection, Costing etc). 30 %
Formulation of Mathematical background
to numerical simulations.
Design of Experimental set-up
(Laboratory set-up, filed set-up, etc.)
3. Project Implementation
Field Survey Techniques and Sampling,
Experimental Data Collection and
Processing, 30 %
Construction of Prototype and Testing,
Computer Programming, Data input and
Results

103
4.General Engineering Aspects and
Application
Creativity and Engineering Intuition in
Solving the Problem,
25%
Originality and initiative/Interest in
Solving the Problem,
Appropriateness of Solving the Problem

100
Total Score %

You are requested to TOTAL up the marks, please

APPENDI
X
GUIDELINES FOR GRADING ORAL

4- PROJECT PRESENATION

B
The criterion for marking provided in the table below is
for assessing oral project presentations. The assessment
is done, by examiners, during oral project presentations.

EXAMINER: Prof. A. Ludwig

Date…………………
Stude

Stude

Stude

Stude

Max.
Criteria
nt

nt

nt

nt

Score

Part A: Presentation Skills 40 %

Introduction of the Topic 5%

Planning of the Presentation 5%
Sequencing of Major Ideas 5%
Use of Presentation Aids 5%
Clarity and coherence 10%
Summarising and concluding 5%
Answering Questions 5%
Part B: Technical Aspects 60 %

104
Problem Justification/Objectives 5%
Literature Review (Relevance and
10%
Depth)
Choice of Methods/Materials for
20%
Investigations (Suitability)
Creativity and Engineering Intuition 10%
Originality and Initiative 10%
Future Projections and Foresight 5%

Total Score 100%

You are requested to TOTAL up the marks, please

105
APPENDI
X
VACATIONAL WORK REPORT

5-

THE UNIVERSITY OF ZAMBIA

SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING
VACATION WORK REPORT

NAME OF
STUDENT…………………………………………………

STUDENT NUMBER
……………………………………………………

FIELD OF STUDY
………………………………………………………

NAME OF FIRM OR INSTITUTION AT WHICH WORK

WAS DONE

……………………………………………………………………. ………

PERIOD OF VACATION TRAINING COMPLETED: FIRST /

SECOND

……………………………………………………………………………

DATES OF SERVICE
……………………………………………………………………………

……………………………………………………………………………

106
107
APPENDI
VACATION WORK REPORT
X
MARK SCHEDULE FOR VACATION WORK

5- REPORTS

THE UNIVERSITY OF ZAMBIA

SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING
VACATION WORK REPORT
MARK SCHEDULE FOR VACATION WORK REPORTS

STUDENT’S NAME:
…………………………………………………………………
BRANCH AND YEAR OF
STUDY…………………………………………………..
PERIOD OF TRAINING COMPLETED (first / second):
…………………………..

A. GENERAL For Completion by the Academic Examiner only

Item Max. Marks Awarded

Marks
1. Appearance / neatness 20

2. Command of language 10
3. Lay-out/technique / 10
completeness
SUBTOTAL (A) 40

B. CONTENTS For Completion by the Academic Examiner only

Item Max. Marks for Marks Awarded for

Period Period
FIRST FIRST SECOND FIRST SECOND
1. Technical: 20 15
descriptive part
2. Non-technical: 10 15
descriptive part
3. Summary with 20 20
conclusions and
recommendations
4. Originality 10 10
SUBTOTAL (B) 60 60
TOTAL (A) + (B) 100% 100%

108
REMARKS:
…………………………………………………………………………..
MARKED BY: ……………………………….. DATE:
……………………………..

NOTE: This document should, after completion, be

included in the confidential envelop on vacational training
to be handed in at the School of Engineering

109
 APPENDI
X GUIDELINES FOR GRADING

5-
VACATIONAL TRAINING REPORT

C
THE UNIVERSITY OF ZAMBIA
SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING
VACATION WORK CERTIFICATE

STUDENT’S NAME: ………………………………..

……………………
FIELD OF STUDY: ……………………………..
……………………….
PERIOD OF TRAINING (first / second): ………………….
……………
EMPLOYER’S NAME AND ADDRESS:
…………………………………
DATE STARTED SERVICE: ……………………………….
……………
DATE LEFT SERVICE:
…………………………………………………
INTERRUPTIONS (IF ANY):
……………………………………………
TYPE OF WORK DONE:
………………………………………………
GENERAL CONDUCT
5 4 3 2 1
Punctuality
Ability to work with others
Ability to work without
supervision
Quality of work produced
Attitude towards discipline
Ability to communicate
clearly
Willingness to ask questions
Ability to follow instructions

110
(Key: 5- Excellent, 4-Good, 3-Average, 2-Bad, 1- Very Bad)

REMARKS:……………………………………………………………..
……………………………………………………………………………
DATE: ……………………….. …………………………………………
EMPLOYER’S SIGNATURE
AND OFFICIAL STAMP OF
INSTITUTION
NOTE: This document should, after completion, be
included in the confidential envelop on vacational
training to be handed in at the School of
Engineering.

111
 APPENDI
X
GUIDELINES FOR WRITING

5- PROJECT VACATIONAL TRAINING

REPORT

THE UNIVERSITY OF ZAMBIA

SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING

GENERAL DIRECTIVE PERTAINING TO REPORTS ON

VACATIONAL TRAINING

1. PHYSICAL APPEARANCE

1.1 The report must be neatly bound.

1.2 The paper size for vacation work reports must conform to the
new metric standards, i.e. the size A4. Larger tables or drawings
in metric A-sizes, should be folded and bound in the appropriate
places.
1.3 The reports should be typed.

2. LANGUAGE, STYLE, GRAMMAR

The industrial training report must be written in English and

must be:

2.1 Written in the impersonal form; never use the first person.
2.2 Written in short sentences and paragraphs.
2.3 Clear, simple and direct.
2.4 Brief and precise.
2.5 Content well defined technical words.
2.6 Content necessary abbreviations.
2.7 Written in concrete referred to the word in abstract.

112
Good style improves readability and does not draw attention to
words and is not monotonous to the reader.

3. TECHNIQUE

3.1 Assemble and organize all the notes, tables, drawings and
other material needed.
3.2 Plan the layout of the report first.
3.3 If time permits, make a draft report first, and then write the
final report.
3.4 Write the draft rapidly and do not worry about factual gaps
or not using the “right word”. These problems can be rectified in
the final report.
3.5 Only relevant information should be included in tables,
graphs or diagrams. This information will usually be evaluated
results. The bulk of other numerical data and information should
be included in numbered appendices (e.g. Appendix 13). All
tables (e.g. Table 21), graphs and diagrams (e.g. Figure 16) used
in the text, should be numbered (Arabic numbers are preferred)
throughout the report. It is self-explanatory with a suitable
descriptive title or caption.

4. FORMAT

4.1 COVER

The following information should appear on the standard cover

(Appendix):
4.1.1 The name of the firm or institution at which the work
was done.
4.1.2 The name of the student.
4.1.3 Period of vocational training completed: First / Second.
4.1.4 Branch and year of study.
4.1.5 The dates on which the training commenced and ended.

4.2 FIRST PAGE

Vacation work certificate completed, stamped and signed by an

authorised representative of the firm or institution. (Appendix).

4.3 SECOND PAGE

Mark schedule for vacation work reports. (Appendix).

113
4.4 TABLE OF CONTENTS

4.5 INTRODUCTION

The following general aspects in regard to the institution and the

training should be covered in this section.
4.5.1 The name and historical background.
4.5.2 Present size and location.
4.5.3 Divisions or departments.
4.5.4 Available transport and services.
4.5.5 Short summary of the work/project/investigation that
was undertaken or witnessed.
4.5.6 If work has been done on a project, a short account
should be included to explain the reason why the project was
undertaken and what importance it has for the firm or
institution.

4.6 DESCRIPTIVE PART

4.6.1 Technical: This section should include detailed descriptions

of projects in which the student participated or of the work
witnessed by the student. The department of the firm, the
apparatus used and the experimental procedures (where
applicable) should be described. Photographs, diagrams or
drawings may be included in the text.

4.6.2 Non-technical: This section should include detailed

descriptions (where applicable) of the organisation,
management, lay-out, planning, production methods, handling of
materials, quality control, buying and selling and maintenance,
etc. Photographs, diagrams or drawings may be included in the
text.

4.7 SUMMARY OF RESULTS

In the case of a project or whenever applicable, the most

important evaluated results should be included in this section.
The detailed bulk of experimental results, reading, calculation
and data, etc., must be included in suitable numbered
appendices.

4.8 DISCUSSION OF RESULTS WITH CONCLUSIONS AND

RECOMMENDATIONS

114
In this section the results obtained from investigations or
observations should be discussed critically and the conclusions
that can be derived from it, clearly stated. The recommendations
must clearly indicate what action the firm or institution should
take to improve the operation of the plant, procedures, working
conditions and safety, etc.

(Although students are encouraged to be critical, proper conduct

will demand that no student express unreasonable criticism or
make any derogatory remarks.)

4.9 ABBREVIATIONS AND REFERENCES

When applicable a complete alphabetic list of all symbols and
abbreviations used, as well as a numbered list of all references
should be included at the end of the report.

The following format is suggested:

Books: Kern, D.Q., Process Heat Transfer, McGraw-Hill Book

Co., New York, 1950, p.120.
Periodicals: GRIMISON, E.D. Trans. ASME 59, 583 (1973)

4.10 APPENDICES (numbered 1, 2, 3, etc)

The appendices should contain the bulk of experimental

readings, data, calculations, mathematical methods, computer
programs and general information. If information such as
maintenance, start-up procedures, operating instructions,
drawings, etc., of a machine, apparatus or plant is considered of
major importance for the purpose of the report, photocopies of
such information should be included in appendices. (Under no
circumstances should such information be copied down by hand.
No credit will be given for such time wasting procedures).

115
BIBLIOGRAPHY

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Michael, J. (1994). How to teach a college course. Unpublished
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