An Interview with Jeremy Ham
(“Inter” refers to the interviewer, “Ham” refers to Jeremy Ham)
Inter:	Jeremy, could we begin by you giving us an indication of what you’re trying to achieve by teaching online?
Ham:	What I’m trying to achieve by teaching online is the integration of units, media and disciplines. By that I mean the integration of construction management units and architecture units from the School of Architecture and Construction Management, the integration of digital media into architectural design processes and also – so that is for the architecture students – and also for the integration of information technology into the building procurement process for construction managers. The integration of disciplines is very important for our school, being a combined school of architecture and construction management, so in any way possible we look at in this school to integrate the disciplines.
Inter:	And where does technology fit as part of that integration?
Ham:	The technology essentially facilitates the integration on those levels. The technology is used by the students in their design processes and through the doing of the project. And the use of Deakin Studies Online basically enhances that integration. So I use Deakin Studies Online for the digital submission, or delivery, submission and assessment of the unit material, and also to facilitate online virtual galleries from which projects are transferred from architecture students to construction management students, facilitating the discipline integration.
Inter:	Could you tell us a little bit about the virtual gallery and how that contributes to students learning?
Ham:	Okay, the virtual galleries are the repository essentially for student’s digital files. Essentially the architecture students undertake a project in the traditional manner but instead of producing posters I get them producing websites, PowerPoint files or JPEG or other digital files. From there they submit their work to Deakin Studies Online and then they’re posted to the online virtual galleries. So the galleries are then able to be viewed by anyone because they’re online. The integration between units occurs when the construction management students select projects for further development undertaken by the architecture students, so that in a sense the online virtual galleries are the nexus between this integration of units and disciplines.
Inter:	And perhaps could you say a little bit more about how students access the virtual gallery in terms of contributing to their learning?
Ham:	I think it’s essential for students to learn from other students. If we take the case study of the architecture students, the traditional model is a review where posters are put up on a wall and students do have an opportunity to see other people’s work. The V-gallery works in the manner of being a permanent repository of student work, so it’s online, available 24 hours a day. And it also, I suppose, given that the way in which students work generally is digitally, it just value adds to that process by furthering their digital work by allowing them to produce web pages, Flash pages and, in particular this year, we have a number of students producing movies.
Inter:	How important do you believe that such work with a digital environment is for preparing someone for your profession?
Ham:	The digital media is integral to the architectural profession. Information technology is too and it is integral to the construction management profession. The general principle is that over the last ten years all construction management practices and architectural practices on some level integrate information technology. So coming from the university environment all we’re doing is recognising that and using that to kick start a pedagogical process or a process of learning, which we think enhances our students’ learning.
Inter:	If you were in a position where you could not use DSO or any online for your teaching, how would that impact for you?
Ham:	I think the impact of not using DSO and digital media generally would be more felt on the students. When I studied architecture 15 years ago there was very little CAD work being done, if at all, so we were very limited in what we could achieve. So in terms of the students working, digital media does allow a lot more for the students themselves. They can basically produce and gain understandings of the buildings that they’re designing to a greater level I think than using traditional media. But also as a teacher the use of, for example, Deakin Studies Online, the virtual galleries, to facilitate the integration between units has enhanced the process. It would be possible but harder to achieve the integration between disciplines without the digital media and the information technology that we use.
Inter:	Jeremy, could you describe how you actually use DSO and perhaps illustrate with some examples?
Ham:	Deakin Studies Online is a part of a wider package that I’ve developed over the last four years. Essentially the project that we’re talking about today goes like this. I try and go to the community to find interesting projects for students to work with. This year we were approached by Pulse FM, a local community radio station, to develop a project. So I set the same project essentially for students of construction management and also students of architecture. In the first five weeks of the course the architects do a design based on the brief of the project. In that same five weeks the construction managers do a lot of work on relating to construction management on site setup, site surveys, etc. At week five we have the architecture students submitting their work to Deakin Studies Online. That work is then transferred to the online virtual gallery. From there the construction management students view the files on the virtual gallery and they select a project, which is confirmed by me. For the next eight weeks of semester the construction management students go off and undertake an intensive process of investigation into the construction technology and also the procurement of that building. So it’s a two-stage process whereby the disciplines of architecture and construction management are integrated. At the end of the process, and I must say that the designs that are chosen by the construction managers are designs by individual architecture students so there is a benefit for the students. In the case of the class this year we have 80 students and there is a 1 in 10 chance of their project being developed, so there’s quite a bit of incentive to do well because you might have your project developed. So at the end of the process the construction management students go into a great degree of detail, which is useful for the client group. So Pulse FM who have an interest in developing their radio station, on an ideas level at least, attend a final review where the construction management students present their work to the client group. We get builders in and also other staff members. Also present at that review is the architecture student designer who then offers an opinion on the way in which the construction managers develop their work. So the technological integration is enhanced by Deakin Studies Online through the digital submission and assessment, but also the online virtual galleries that we create, and also through the construction managers who undertake their work, basing the outcome of their investigations on a website. So at the moment we have four years of websites of students’ investigations into construction projects, which themselves represent a large body of information, which other students can then draw upon, other students of architecture and construction management. So there’s a circular process going on.
Inter:	Part of your project is the building of real scale models in the real world. So for you, could you comment perhaps about how the use of technology needs to be very deliberate and it’s not suitable at all times in all places?
Ham:	I purposively do not get my students using digital 3D models in all circumstances because I know, through my experience, that there are some things in terms of learning that are very difficult to achieve using 3D CAD, but very easy to achieve by one to one construction. So the hybrid processes that I encourage are for the students to use 3D CAD drawings, physical models within their design projects but also for the design unit, or in the design stream, I get the students building at one to one. So by the end of the year these students have had a wide variety of experience, both in digital media but also physical media, culminating in one to one real scale construction.
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