In this work-in-progress, we explore the use of prompt engineering and image generation to elicit student understanding of different concepts discussed in structural engineering courses. In the context of image generation, prompt engineering refers to the process of providing a text or image prompt to a machine learning model to generate an image that meets certain criteria. The quality of the prompt can significantly impact the quality of the generated image. Hence, prompt engineering is an important part of the image generation process. By providing a well-crafted prompt that accurately describes the desired image, the generative model will more likely produce an image that meets the desired criteria. In the context of this study, students created prompts that were converted into images using Text-to-image Generative Models. When adequately prompted, these images are meant to visually describe their understanding of the concepts we have discussed during traditional lectures. The participants were presented with their own image as well as others' images to elicit both agreements or concerns at two levels: their understanding of the concepts and their understanding of the importance of prompting in the foreseeable future of AI-based systems. Hitherto, we have tried to use the generation of images using natural language for answering these research questions: i) for students, to which extent the crafting prompts may elicit thinking about the structural engineering phenomena? and ii) for instructors, to which extent these represent the level of understanding of the students on these topics?

This work-in progress (WIP) depicts the first edition of the educational game "Petan-Camins". This game is conceived as one of the many potential gap bridges between the physical and virtual realms among civil engineering students. Petan-Camins is based on the traditional Mediterranean game Petanca and players inherit identical rules. The difference between Petanca and Petan-Camins comes after the game. Once completed, a terrestrial laser scanner surveys the final scene of the physical game and generate a digital point cloud with the result. Then, players must use computational geometry tools for answering manifold geometrical questions. A physical-to-virtual journey of information is experienced by civil engineering students. The flow of information from the built-environment to building information models represents cornerstone knowledge for civil engineers in the verge of the digitization of the sector.

This full paper describes a set of pedagogical activities designed for students of all academic years in civil engineering programs. The pedagogical project has a twofold aim: i) exposing civil engineering students to Construction 4.0-related technologies and ii) fostering motivation and creativity among students by including STEAM by-design. In this paper, a set of STEAM activities designed for selected courses of this new degree in Civil Engineering Technologies is described. These activities are designed for the sake of promoting Construction 4.0-related skills to broad audiences in civil engineering by means of a learning pathway. This pathway is conceived using several branches of Construction 4.0. Namely, Industrial Production, Cyber-Physical Systems and Digital Technologies. All activities are designed using accessible and affordable Hardware and Software for scalability purposes. The selection includes a broad range of topics that are routinely taught in all academic years (1st to 4th) of the new degree.

This work-in-progress innovative practice describes a set of pedagogical activities designed for students of 1st, 2ndand 3rdyear of civil engineering programs. The pedagogical project has a twofold aim: i) infusing fabrication, coding and instrumentation in civil engineering courses and ii) fostering motivation and creativity among students by merging STEAM and Maths. For this purpose, a set of hands-on activities described herein encompasses concepts of calculus (functions, curves and derivatives), concepts of surveying (construction and measurement using sensors and microcontrollers by means of a fabrication of a low-cost Lidar) and concepts of algorithmic programming in which measurement and programming are blended together. Three workshops coupled with multimedia documents are prepared. Firstly, a workshop related to programming mathematical curves and derivatives in the coding platform Processing whose aim is to reinforce coding skills to our students. Secondly, a workshop related to the development of the Lidar using electronic prototyping boards such as Arduino whose aim is to introduce instrumentation skills to them. Thirdly, a workshop related to the use of algorithmic programming design platforms such as Grasshopper whose aim is to couple measurement and coding together. These activities are conceived for formal infusion in the next generation of civil engineering courses to be deployed at our school from 2020 onwards.