Wo kshop
Recommended ci a ion: Ju ado, N. (2025). Using Roleplay Case S udies Based on
Real Scena ios o Teach Rele ance o E hics and Decision Making o
Unde g adua e Enginee ing S uden s. In Kangaslampi, R., Langie, G., Jä inen,
H.-M., & Nagy, B. (Eds.), SEFI 53 d Annual Con e ence. Eu opean Socie y o
Enginee ing Educa ion (SEFI), Tampe e, Finland. DOI:
10.5281/zenodo.17631661.
This Con e ence Pape is b ough o you o open access by he 53 d Annual Con e ence
o he Eu opean Socie y o Enginee ing Educa ion (SEFI) a Tampe e Uni e si y in
Tampe e, Finland. This wo k is licensed unde a C ea i e Commons
A ibu ion-NonComme cial-Sha e Alike 4.0 In e na ional License.
USING ROLEPLAY CASE STUDIES BASED ON REAL SCENARIOS
TO TEACH RELEVANCE OF ETHICS AND DECISION MAKING TO
UNDERGRADUATE ENGINEERING STUDENTS
N. Ju ado a,
1
a Depa men o Mechanical Enginee ing, Uni e si y College London, To ing on
Place, WC1E 7JE, London, UK, ORCID 0000-0002-0759-1590
Con e ence Key A eas: Enginee ing skills, p o essional skills, and ans e sal skills;
Enginee ing e hics educa ion.
Keywo ds: E hics Educa ion, Decision Making, Enginee ing P o essional Conduc ,
C i ical Thinking
ABSTRACT
This pape p oposes a p ac ical wo kshop, simila o wha ou Mechanical Enginee ing
i s yea s uden s ha e o comple e as a o ma i e assessmen o gain a be e
unde s anding on how e hics and decision making plays a key ole in p o essional
enginee ing p ac ice. The basis o he wo kshop consis s o ou di e en case
s udies, all based in eal scena ios, which a e used as a basis o discussions o
alloca e which o he ac o s in ol ed bea s he esponsibili y o he inciden .
A e lec i e exe cise akes place a he end o he wo kshop assessing o wha ex en
he in ended lea ning ou comes expec ed ha e been achie ed. A ollow up
compa ison o hese e lec i e esponses is planned o be benchma ked be ween he
esponses o he a endan s o he wo kshop and hose ga he ed om unde g adua e
enginee ing s uden s du ing he las six yea s ha his o ma i e assessmen has been
unning.
1
Co esponding Au ho
N. Ju ado
n.ju ad[email p o ec ed]k
1 BACKGROUND AND RATIONALE
1.1 Teaching Con ex o E hics Case S udies
This pape p oposes using E hics case s udies based on eal scena ios o enhance
he unde s anding ha P o essional conduc , E hics and Decision Making plays a key
ole in he p o essional p ac ice o enginee s. This exe cise was implemen ed o he
i s ime six yea s ago in UCL Mechanical Enginee ing, in 2019. I ha e been unning
i o he i s yea mechanical enginee ing s uden s since. Conside ing he
depa men al coho size o ha pe iod o ime, he sample size is 1400 s uden s.
This o ma i e assessmen is ul illed wi hin a module dedica ed o Design and
P o essional Skills, pa o he In eg a ed Enginee ing P og am (Mi chell e al., 2021),
du ing he week dedica ed o E hics and P o essional Conduc .
1.2 Ra ionale behind he E hics Case S udies based on eal Scena ios
The implemen a ion o his me hodology , i.e. using eal scena ios o which key names
o he ac o s o loca ions a e changed, has been a success ul a emp o c ea e in e es
in he E hics subjec om ou unde g adua e enginee ing s uden s. This was iden i ied
o be necessa y o o e came he ini ial scep icism ha many i s yea enginee ing
s uden s p esen when hey a e in o med ha no only hey will be augh he co e
mechanical enginee ing subjec s, bu also p o essional skills. This scep icism comes
om a qui e naï e pe spec i e on enginee ing, ha some o ou unde g adua es ha e,
who belie e ha he only skills needed o succeed as a p o essional enginee a e he
ones ela ed o echnical sciences ( i.e. calculus, algeb a, ma e ials science,
he modynamics, e c.). This iewpoin has been obse ed by o he p ac i ione s ain
he ela ed li e a u e(Balak ishnan & Ta lochan, 2015). Consequen ly, when ou
s uden s a e p esen ed wi h he ac ha one o he i s modules hey will s udy in
uni e si y will be ocused on aining hei p o essional skills (i.e. E hics, P o essional
Conduc , Technical communica ion, Teamwo k &Leade ship, Visualisa ion, C i ical
hinking, e c), which is he con ex o whe e he o ma i e assessmen ocus o he
p esen pape akes place, hey do no hesi a e on showing hei ini ial eluc ance.
Encou agingly enough, by he end o he i s e m, ha is when mos o he cu iculum
on p o essional skills has been deli e ed, he ac ion o he coho ha keeps belie ing
ha p o essional skills a e no impo an o hei u u e as p o essional enginee s is
minimal. By hen, he s uden s unde s and and ag ee wi h one o he p emises s a ed
in he Royal Academy o Enginee ing (RAEng) Repo ‘Enginee ing E hics in P ac ice
Repo ’, whe e i says: “Enginee s in en he u u e and hei wo k a ec s he li es o
millions o people, o be e o wo se.”(The Royal Academy o Enginee ing, 2011).
This o ma i e assessmen is a p epa a o y ac i i y o a summa i e assessmen ha
he s uden s need o comple e wo weeks a e hey pa icipa e in he E hics Case
S udies. The subsequen summa i e assessmen is an E hics Deba e ha is ocused
on he e hical implica ions o an echnological solu ion ha he s uden s ha e been
esea ching and wo king on o wo mon hs, by he ime hey need o deba e on he
e hical implica ions o i . Hence, ha ing comple ed p e iously he E hics Case s udies
and unde s anding he cause-e ec ela ion be ween p o essional decisions and he
eal consequences hey ha e (i.e., numbe o deceases as consequence o an
acciden , o en i onmen al impac ha akes decades o he ecosys em o eco e )
helps he s uden s o ecognise he impo ance o adop ing an e hical p o essional
conduc . This ision is p omo ed by (A esh e al., 2016). Fu he mo e, hese Case
S udies help he s uden s o unde s and he po en ial impac ha a bad o no
su icien ly e alua ed enginee ing decision can ha e down he line (i.e. when he
echnical solu ion eaches he use s). A simila app oach has been used be o e by
o he academics (Vilaza & Bækgaa d, 2022) This way he s uden s gain an enhanced
iew and a e be e p epa ed o hei summa i e assessmen (i.e. E hics Deba e) o
e alua e comp ehensi ely he wo s case scena ios ha hei echnical solu ion could
gi e place o, and, hence, o an icipa e o hose issues by add essing ha opic in he
design s age. O , a leas , being awa e o he po en ial implica ions o be able o jus i y
he decision made agains o he possible al e na i es, applying c i ical hinking
oge he wi h e hical conside a ions on he socie y, and en i onmen . Fo ins ance, a
decision made a he design s age abou using ma e ial A ins ead o ma e ial B
because i is cheape , no conside ing he ma e ial cha ac e is ics needed o he
speci ic use (i.e. s eng h equi emen s, condi ions o empe a u e and p essu e ha
he ma e ial will be wo king a ). Ou i s yea s uden s , be o e comple ing he E hics
Case S udies end o s op he e alua ion a e acknowledging ha one ma e ial is less
expensi e ha he o he . Howe e a e ha ing comple ed he Case S udies, hey will
keep ques ioning ha he inancial c i e ion migh no be su icien o selec he bes
ma e ial o a speci ic applica ion. This has been ex ensi ely acknowledged in he
s uden eedback collec ed a e comple ing his o ma i e assessmen .
2 WORKSHOP OBJECTIVES
2.1 Ta ge audience
The a ge audience o his p ac ical wo kshop a e eaching p ac i ione s and/o
s uden s ( MSc s uden s, PhDs s uden s) who would like o explo e his ype o
o ma i e exe cise wi h he po en ial o be added in o hei p ac ice. The pa icipan s
will be able o expe ience in i s pe son and comple e he e hical discussion a ound
he scena io p esen ed, by adop ing he oles o he s uden s. This wo kshop will be
acili a ed in small g oups o 5-6 people each.
2.2 Expec ed lea ning ou comes
The expec ed lea ning ou comes gained upon comple ing his wo kshop a e desc ibed
as ollows:
- Simul aneous aining and enhancemen o E hics, Decision Making and
C i ical hinking skills.
- Be e unde s anding ha E hics and Decision Making play a key ole in
enginee ing p o essional p ac ice because i has impo an consequences on
socie y and en i onmen al impac ( o he be e o o he wo se).
- T aining empa he ic skills by being able o acknowledge di e en poin s o
iews and jus i ica ion o decisions om di e en ac o s.
- Exe cising he alloca ion esponsibili ies linked o decisions made and he
impac hey gene a e.
3 WORKSHOP DESIGN
3.1 Time plan
The ime plan o his p ac ical wo kshop is as p esen ed in Table 1.
Table 1 Time plan o E hics Case S udies Wo kshop
Run ime
Ac i i y
No es
7 min
In oduc ion and con ex o he exe cise
All pa icipan s
3 min
Se ing small g oups (5-6)
In g oups: alloca ed by he acili a o
10
B ie ing on Case s udy alloca ed
In g oups: Indi idual quie eading ime.
Each pa icipan will ha e access o a
segmen ed piece o he in o ma ion
linked o he scena io.
10-12 min
In e ac i e ac i i y 1: each o he ac o s
p esen hei ole and he decisions hey
made o he es o he pa icipan s wi hin
hei Case S udy (2 minu es pe g oup
membe )
In g oups: Du ing his discussion is when
all he pa icipan s acqui e he ull pic u e
o he si ua ion. This mimics wha occu s
in eali y when an expe hea ing akes
place, which o en occu s a e an
acciden o disas e .
15min
In e ac i e ac i i y 2: Discussion and
alloca ion o esponsibili y
In g oups: He e i is whe e he e hical
implica ions o he decisions made by
each o he ac o s a e e alua ed. The
pa icipan s ha e o come o an
ag eemen o who is hold esponsible o
he inciden /acciden /si ua ion
5min
Ga he ing e lec ions in he oom
All pa icipan s: A Men ime e su ey will
be comple ed and commen s a ailable
o he pa icipan s o discuss on
5 min
Conclusions
All pa icipan s: p elimina y compa ison
wi h e lec ions om he unde g adua e
s uden s who ha e comple ed his as an
assessmen .
3.2 B ie desc ip ion o he Case S udies
The desc ip ion included in he p esen pape is pu posedly succinc , in an a emp
ha p ospec i e a endan s o he wo kshop expe ience i in a simila way o he
s uden s, i.e., wi h minimal p e ious in o ma ion. This way, he pa icipan s will no
ha e access o addi ional in o ma ion (gi en ha he case s udies a e based on eal
acciden s/disas e s) o wha is included in he b ie ing o he exe cise, which will be
p o ided du ing he wo kshop.
The e will be a maximum o ou cases un in pa allel du ing he wo kshop, a ound
di e en opics: i e, lood, oil spill, and d ug o e dose. Each pa icipan will be
alloca ed o one case by he wo kshop acili a o , which will be he only one hey ge
in o ma ion abou and do he subsequen e hical discussion on.
The in o ma ion ha each o he pa icipan s aking pa in an E hics oleplay will be
ailo ed o he ole hey a e ep esen ing, which ies o eplica e he in o ma ion ha
hese ac o s migh ha e had access a he ime o he eal acciden . Se e al oles (4-
6) will be a ailable wi hin each case, and will be assigned by he acili a o . Examples
o hese oles a e: Chie enginee o a p ojec , Local au ho i ies, Go e nmen egula o ,
in e nal companies p o iding enginee ing se ices, ex e nal con ac o s, esea che ,
chie scien is , company acqui ing goods, company supplying wi h he goods, sa e y
equipmen manu ac u e , e c.
3.3 In e ac i i y
This p ac ical wo kshop is e y much based on he in e ac i e discussions be ween
he membe s o each g oup, which will be ep esen ing he main ac o s in ol ed in he
eal case scena io/disas e /acciden . I is expec ed ha minimal in e en ion om he
acili a o s will be needed; only key ques ions will be se o guide he con e sa ion o
he discussions o be mo e e ec i e and o help eaching he s age o alloca ion o
esponsibili ies as ea ly as possible, bu wi hou missing impo an de ails o he cases
s udied.
4 WORKSHOP RESULTS
An e alua ion compa ing he e lec i e commen s p o ided by he a endan s o he
wo kshop and he eedback submi ed by he unde g adua e s uden s has been
comple ed, looking a simila i ies and di e ences be ween he wo g oups sampled.
4.1 How he wo kshop ook place: p ac ical no es.
The wo kshop ook place ha ing 18 a endan s and being aided by h ee acili a o s.
Hence, he commen s a e om a o al sample o 21 pa icipan s.
A decision was made on he day o use he same case scena io o all o he g oups
o ease he subsequen con e sa ion, and so e e yone had he same knowledge
abou he cases commen s.
The session was in e ac i e, whe e all he pa icipan s in e ened e y ac i ely,
assuming hei assigned oles wi hin he oleplay scena io en husias ically.
4.2 Benchma king imp essions om wo kshop pa icipan s and Y1
Mechanical Enginee ing s uden s
4.2.1 Sampled examples when he ques ion asked was “Some hing ha
su p ised me abou he session”.
4.2.1.1 Simila esponses:
- How well people ook on he oles and a gued he case.
- The o e lapping oles and he complexi y o he case. Especially when
communica ing you own ole// How complex his p oblem is and how many
s akeholde s a e in ol ed.
- E hics a e complica ed! The e a e no easy answe s.//Tha he e is no a single
no simple solu ion.
- How un o una ely ich he ma e ial (based on eal case) is wi h he con lic s o
in e es .
- I was an in e es ing exe cise especially wi h he mul iple nuances and no
esolu ion
4.2.1.2 Commen s om wo kshop a endan s no obse ed o enginee ing s uden s:
- The e iciency o he one-page desc ip ion
- Timing o indi idual esponses.
- I was much mo e e sa ile han I expec ed.
4.2.2 Sampled examples when he ques ion asked was “Some hing I enjoyed
abou he session”.
4.2.2.1 Simila esponses.
- Lis ening, discussion, opics.// E e ybody was ac i e in hei oles.
- Ac i e and chance o deba e and discuss.// The discussion and chance o
e lec .// Join discussion on he case.
- Respec ul discussion
- Feeling in ol ed immedia ely.
- Good case o unde s and decision making impac . I hink his is o en
unde es ima ed in enginee ing.
4.2.2.2 Commen s om wo kshop a endan s no obse ed o enginee ing s uden s.
- The discussion and he di e en mo al in ui ions people ha e. This helps in
building c i ical mo al hinking.
- The psychological sa e y o playing oles, communica ing ailu es and ou lack
o knowledge.
4.2.3 Sampled examples when he ques ion asked was “Wha could be
imp o ed abou he session”
4.2.3.1 Simila esponses.
- Time//Mo e ime//Enough ime.
- Ou come in eal li e o whe e he case s ands
- Fo he ole play - a bi mo e in o ma ion o he explici ole.
- I would like o know wha happened
4.2.3.2 Commen s om wo kshop a endan s no obse ed o enginee ing s uden s.
- Some eedback on how s uden s expe ience his migh be in e es ing o us
esea che s.
- Include he esiden s associa ion as a ole.
- Maybe some hing angible would help ocus he discussion, line a pic u e o an
objec - he cladding, a i e ex inguishe ...
- Adding a inal o ing elemen on each g oup o appoin he ac o mos
esponsible. // A o ing sys em a he end.
Fo he la e commen lis ed, his migh diminish one o he main LOs o his
exe cise which is unde s anding ha all he ac o s in ol ed had some
esponsibili y he disas e . So maybe his could be applied, aming is well as he
ac o wi h mos esponsibili y, cla i ying ha e e yone held some kind o
accoun abili y.
5 CONCLUSIONS
This p ac ical oleplay exe cise has shown o be e y e sa ile in e ms o audiences
i can be applied o; in e ms o le el o expe ise o he pa icipan s and di e en
enginee ing speciali ies. This was la e con i med by ollow-up con e sa ions held
a e he wo kshop wi h he pa icipan s, whe e hey had s a ed hinking how hey
could change some de ails o he case scena ios o he example used o be
implemen ed in hei eaching. Lo s o in e es in applying his app oach and use
hese oleplays scena ios in o he se ings - i.e., o he uni e si ies as an example o
gami ica ion, and wi hin o he subjec s- i.e. ci il enginee ing, a chi ec u e, elec ical
enginee ing-. This ool shows g ea po en ial o ob ain he lea ning ou comes
o iginally s a ed in he in oduc ion sec ion
Mos ly, same LOs and expe ience om a endan s o wo kshop du ing SEFI2025 as
om Y1 enginee ing s uden s. This means i is inclusi e o a wide ange o
expe ien ial backg ounds: om i s yea enginee ing s uden s o HE p ac i ione s.
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