Stewart, Orion; Moudon, Anne Vernez; Claybrooke, Charlotte. (2014). Multistate Evaluation of Safe Routes to School Programs. American Journal Of Health Promotion, 28, S89 – S96.
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Abstract
Purpose. State Safe Routes to School (SRTS) programs provide competitive grants to local projects that support safe walking, bicycling, and other modes of active school travel (AST). This study assessed changes in rates of AST after implementation of SRTS projects at multiple sites across four states. Design. One-group pretest and posttest. Setting. Florida, Mississippi, Washington, and Wisconsin. Subjects. Convenience sample of 48 completed SRTS projects and 53 schools affected by a completed SRTS project. Intervention. State-funded SRTS project. Measures. AST was measured as the percentage of students walking, bicycling, or using any AST mode. SRTS project characteristics were measured at the project, school, and school neighborhood levels. Analysis. Paired-samples t-tests were used to assess changes in AST. Bivariate analysis was used to identify SRTS project characteristics associated with increases in AST. Data were analyzed separately at the project (n = 48) and school (n = 53) levels. Results. Statistically significant increases in AST were observed across projects in all four states. All AST modes increased from 12.9% to 17.6%; walking from 9.8% to 14.2%; and bicycling from 2.5% to 3.0%. Increases in rates of bicycling were negatively correlated with baseline rates of bicycling. Conclusion. State-funded SRTS projects are achieving one of the primary program goals of increasing rates of AST. They may be particularly effective at introducing bicycling to communities where it is rare. The evaluation framework introduced in this study can be used to continue tracking the effect of state SRTS programs as more projects are completed.
Keywords
Transportation Of School Children; Physical Activity Measurement; Health Promotion; Cycling; Walking; School Children -- United States; Bicycling; Children; Commuting; Health Focus: Fitness/physical Activity; Manuscript Format: Research; Outcome Measure: Behavioral; Prevention Research; Research Purpose: Program Evaluation; Schools; Setting: School; Strategy: Skill Building/behavior Change, Built Environment; Study Design: Quasi-experimental; Target Population Age: Youth; Target Population Circumstances: Geographic Location; Physical-activity; Mental-health; Travel; Association; Validity; Mode; Bus
Yocom, Ken. (2014). Building Watershed Narratives: An Approach for Broadening the Scope of Success in Urban Stream Restoration. Landscape Research, 39(6), 698 – 714.
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Abstract
The success of urban stream restoration is often measured through biophysical attributes, or the progress towards restoration of a notionally intact section of landscape. What remains understudied is how success can be defined across social, economic, as well as ecological parameters. This research offers a narrative approach for urban restoration research that serves as a chronotope for untangling the biophysical and sociocultural complexities of the contemporary urban environment. The framework of this approach is presented through a case study of a recent stream restoration project in Seattle, Washington. The findings highlight the need for urban stream restoration processes to be grounded within a sociocultural context that is interdependent with biophysical conditions, and recommends measures of project success to include community, educational and participatory goals.
Keywords
River Restoration; Landscape; Management; Catchment; Systems; History; People; Restoration; Success; Watershed; Narrative; Urban
Abdirad, Hamid; Dossick, Carrie S. (2016). BIM Curriculum Design in Architecture, Engineering, and Construction Education: A Systematic Review. Journal Of Information Technology In Construction, 21, 250 – 271.
Abstract
In the past several years, Building Information Modeling (BIM) adoption has grown significantly in the architecture, engineering, and construction (AEC) industry. In response to this trend, the industry and academia realized that BIM education in university curricula is an important requirement for satisfying educational demands of the industry, and a notable body of research has reported strategies AEC programs implemented to incorporate BIM in their curricula. However, no study has comprehensively reviewed and synthesized the research on sfrategies adopted by educators. To bridge this gap in the literature, this paper presents a systematic review of research on BIM curriculum design in AEC education. The authors report on the trends of research on BIM curriculum design (e.g. methods, timelines, and contexts) as well as a synthesis of implemented pedagogical strategies with detailed discussions on their implications and effectiveness across different studies and contexts. These strategies address a variety of important pedagogical issues such as enrolment of students, optional or required BIM use, important competencies and skills, tutoring methods, industry engagement, designing assignments, and assessment methods and criteria. This synthesis shows that designing pedagogical sfrategies for BIM education is complex and challenging, and AEC programs need to make trade-offs between advantages and disadvantages associated with these strategies. The results also highlight the need for more diverse research designs and settings to bridge the gaps identified in BIM curriculum research to date. Finally, the authors present a literature-based framework of BIM curriculum design sfrategies as well as a set of recommendations that can be used BIM educators and researchers as a guide for designing or assessing their BIM curricula in future research.
Keywords
Bridges; Curricula; Economic And Social Effects; Education; Information Theory; Personnel Training; Reviews; Students; Architecture; Engineering; And Constructions; Building Information Model; Bim; Curriculum Designs; Pedagogical Issues; Pedagogical Strategies; Research Designs; Systematic Review; University Curricula; Industry; Management; Building Information Modeling; Training; Curriculum; Review
Lin, Ken-yu; Lee, Wonil; Azari, Rahman; Migliaccio, Giovanni C. (2018). Training Of Low-literacy And Low-english-proficiency Hispanic Workers On Construction Fall Fatality. Journal Of Management In Engineering, 34(2).
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Abstract
The construction industry has made extensive efforts to improve the safety of its labor force through various approaches, including training. However, many construction workers in the United States are recent immigrants who lack English proficiency and do not possess sufficient literacy levels in their own language for training comprehension. This reduces the effectiveness of traditional text-dominated translated training materials, which depend on both literacy and proficiency in a language. Thus, in this study, the authors used three-dimensional (3D) visualization to overcome the communication barriers that hinder effective safety training for low-literacy (LL) and low-English-proficiency (LEP) construction workers. This article summarizes the contributions of a study sponsored by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) Susan Harwood Training Grant Program; it describes the methodology to develop scenario-based 3D training materials on fall safety for LL and LEP workers and to validate the effectiveness of the materials. The results show that 3D training materials improve interaction between trainer and trainee during safety training, facilitate learning processes, and can overcome some of the communication barriers that hinder effective safety training. (c) 2017 American Society of Civil Engineers.
Keywords
Chemical Hazards; Computer Based Training; Construction Industry; Hazardous Materials; Industrial Training; Occupational Health; Occupational Safety; Personnel; Safety; Low-literacy; Low-english-proficiency Hispanic Workers; Construction Fall Fatality; Extensive Efforts; Labor Force; Construction Workers; English Proficiency; Sufficient Literacy Levels; Training Comprehension; Training Materials; Three-dimensional Visualization; Communication Barriers; Effective Safety Training; Health Administration Susan Harwood Training Grant Program; Fall Safety; Occupational Injuries; United-states; Industry; Health; Education; Issues; Occupational Health And Safety; Training; Visualization; Fall Protection; Case Study
Jon, Ihnji. (2019). Resilience and ‘Technicity’: Challenges and Opportunities for New Knowledge Practices in Disaster Planning. Resilience-International Policies Practices and Discourses, 7(2), 107 – 125.
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Abstract
With increasing exposure to environmental catastrophes and natural hazards, the terminology of 'resilience' is becoming ubiquitous in the planning field. As a part of this continuing discussion, this paper examines how the concept of resilience has been used in disaster planning, especially with a focus on the creation and use of knowledge to 'build resilience' in response to potential future natural hazard events. In discussing the practice of creating and using knowledge in disaster planning, I draw insights from the interdisciplinary critical studies of science and technology literature, which has been developing rich discussions on the challenges we face in producing geographical knowledge. I demonstrate in this paper how resilience theory can be linked with the concept of 'technicity' used in the virtual geography literature, and how that association can have meaningful implications for the production and application of knowledge in disaster planning.
Keywords
Community Resilience; Adaptive Capacity; Vulnerability; Hazard; Risk; Sustainability; Participation; Geographies; Uncertainty; Complexity; Resilience; Technicity; Disaster Planning; Virtual Geography; Knowledge Practice
Abdirad, Hamid; Dossick, Carrie Sturts. (2020). Rebaselining Asset Data for Existing Facilities and Infrastructure. Journal Of Computing In Civil Engineering, 34(1).
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Abstract
This paper introduces rebaselining as a workflow for collecting reliable and verifiable asset management data for existing facilities and infrastructure. Reporting on two action research case studies with two public owners in the US, this research structures rebaselining in four phases: (1) preparing technology enablers, (2) collecting data from existing documents, (3) conducting field verification, and (4) updating asset management databases. These workflows address some of the common challenges in managing existing assets, including the fast-paced changes in asset data requirements, the inaccuracies in data and documentation of these existing assets portfolios, and the need to update data and documents over their life cycle. The findings set the groundwork for implementing workflow by mapping the rebaselining business processes in each phase, listing the technological requirements for these processes, and explaining the feasibility and examples of customizing building information modeling (BIM) platforms for rebaselining workflows. This customization of BIM platforms aims to offer simplified solutions that reduce the facility management staff's need for advanced BIM software knowledge.
Keywords
Asset Management; Building Management Systems; Business Data Processing; Database Management Systems; Facilities Management; Production Engineering Computing; Project Management; Risk Analysis; Software Tools; Reliable Asset Management Data; Verifiable Asset Management Data; Action Research Case Studies; Public Owners; Research Structures; Technology Enablers; Asset Management Databases; Facility Management Staff; Rebaselining Workflows; Technological Requirements; Rebaselining Business Processes; Existing Assets Portfolios; Documentation; Asset Data Requirements; Managing Existing Assets; Information; Bim; Existing Buildings; Infrastructure; Asset Data; Rebaselining
The 2019 UW Resilience and Compassion Initiatives Seed Grant supported a project called “Raising Resilience: Connecting Compassion + Well-Being with Pedagogy in the College of Built Environments”. This grant allowed a group of CBE faculty to collaboratively explore their pedagogy and support for students through the lenses of resilience and well-being, systems thinking, and biophilic design. Seed Grant leads include Julie Johnson, Associate Professor of Landscape Architecture and Brooke Sullivan, Landscape Architecture Lecturer. The project sought to continue the work…
The SHARE Lab (Safety and Health Advancement through Research and Education) has produced two ergonomics best practice booklets and two training videos on the use of 4-wheel carts in the roofing trade. Housed in the Department of Construction Management, the mission of the SHARE Lab is to promote construction safety and health through evidence-based innovative research, education, and practices. For more information, please contact Contact Dr. Ken-Yu Lin, Associate Professor, if you’d like access to the guide book or the…
The Applied Research Consortium (ARC) is rooted in the idea that collaboration across academia and industry will accelerate progress in our fields. ARC brings together an interdisciplinary group of built environment firms with faculty experts and graduate student researchers at the University of Washington’s College of Built Environments (CBE) to address the most vexing challenges that firms face today. The next generation of practitioners and scholars apply their creativity and knowledge of the latest scholarship and practices, accelerating progress and preparing for future work at the leading edge of our fields.
Through the ARC initiative, built environment firms with a presence in the Seattle area partner with College of Built Environments graduate students and faculty for research that is targeted at the specific needs of the firms. Firms work with faculty to shape research priorities for the consortium based on their needs and the latest research in our fields. ARC then matches graduate student fellows with firms for multi-quarter applied research projects that directly relate to the firms’ current work. Faculty mentors and supervisors at firms work with the fellows, contributing to their academic and professional development in the program and ensuring that the projects fit with longer term research goals.
The unique set of fields under the College of Built Environments umbrella—architecture, construction management, landscape architecture, real estate, and urban design and planning—allows ARC projects to leverage creative, interdisciplinary approaches to the most vexing problems that firms–and the disciplines themselves–face today.
ARC builds on CBE’s prioritization of equity and diversity, thus ensuring that the next generation of built environments practitioners and scholars bring the broadest possible range of perspectives and experiences to their work.
SHARE Lab (Safety and Health Advancement through Research and Education Laboratory) embarks on innovative research that promotes the wellbeing of the construction taskforce and/or reduces occupational injuries and illnesses for the construction industry.
The lab is housed in the Department of Construction Management at the University of Washington and is a part of the Pacific Northwest Center for Construction Research and Education (PNCCRE). The mission of the lab is to promote construction safety and health through evidenced-based innovative research, education, and practices. In particular, the SHARE lab is specialized in creating new knowledge, learning resources, and practical solutions using technology interventions such as wearable sensors, visualization, serious gaming and tablet computers.
Projects completed at the lab include: sensor based physiological status monitoring on construction workers, video gaming development for the training and education of construction safety, information communication technology for field safety inspection, machine-learning based solutions for retrieving and classifying safety resources, and Total Worker Health.
SHARE Lab’s work is supported by domestic stakeholders as well as national institutions and global corporations.