SEFI 2021 Annual Conference – Best Paper Awards

During the SEFI 2021 Annual Conference, four different awards were offered to four different papers. Enclosed please find the winners of the different categories. Thank you for participating and, congratulations!

Best Research Paper Award – “Towards Stakeholder Specific Visualization of Learning Paths in Software Engineering Teaching” Bomström Henri; Sievi-Korte Outi; Kilamo Terhi; Systä Kari; Annanperä Elina; Kelanti Markus; Liukkunen Kari (Tampere University, University of Oulu, Finland)

Motivation:

• This paper presents a novel concept to the identification of learners’ needs in online contexts. The authors present an interesting approach to explore various opportunities for visualizing the learning path to create transparency regarding learners’ progress. Such information can support teachers in proactively steering the learning process and identifying students in need of support. 
• The study can inspire other disciplines for further research.
• The paper was presented very clearly and questions from the audience especially about ethical issues were well handled.

Best Concept Paper Award – ’’The value of interdisciplinary presentations for engineering students’’ Ruijten Peter (Eindhoven University of Technology, TU/e innovation Space, The Netherlands)

Motivation:

• It addresses the topic of how to make engineering students more proficient in presenting for their work for different audiences (from peers to lay persons). The concept they introduce is ‘audience analysis’ as a key element in the training of the students to acquire a higher level of competence in presenting.
• This paper might inspire other engineering programs to include a similar step in their trainings for presentation skills, and it might also spark more research in order to optimize the workshop and the training itself.

Best Short Paper Award – ‘’Build it and they will come: Maintaining students access to fabrication and testing during a pandemic’’ Di Benedetti Matteo; Garrard Andrew; Beck Stephen (The University of Sheffield, United Kingdom)

Motivation:

• It provides a good level of qualitative detail of a case study in civil engineering in migrating to a remote lab. 
• It presents an interesting approach to conducting lab-work for students during the pandemic, while focusing on student learning and improving the course post-pandemic.

Susanne Ihsen Award on Diversity and Inclusiveness – ’Diversity, equity, and inclusion in engineering education: an exploration of European higher education institutions’ strategic frameworks, resources, and initiatives’’ Direito Ines (University College London, United Kingdom); Chance Shannon; Clemmensen Line; Craps Sofie; Economides Sophia; Isaac Siara; Jolly Anne-Marie; Truscott Fiona; Wint Natalie

Motivation:

• It clarifies the terms Diversity, Equity and Inclusion by examining how eight different universities in seven European countries engage these values at an organisational level.