Summary - Dr Aftab is a lecturer of the Bachelor of Engineering Technology (Civil) program. He is an engineering educator having qualifications and experience both in engineering and education. He applies contemporary high-impact learning and teaching pedagogies to educate engineering students to meet current industry expectations.
Dr. Aftab has over 20 years of academic and industry experience and he has been working as a lecturer of the Bachelor of Engineering Technology (Civil) program since 2014. Prior to his appointment to Melbourne Polytechnic, he worked at Monash University and RMIT University.
Dr. Aftab possesses a global and mature approach to teaching and learning. His learning and teaching styles connect with the students and provide them the opportunity to empower themselves as confident and independent learners. He has implemented evidence-based high-impact teaching strategies and lesson delivery models using a wide range of age-appropriate resources and contemporary pedagogies to include a diverse range of learners and learning styles. His assessment and reporting practices are of the highest order and he designs assessment tasks to support students' further learning and encourage them to monitor and take responsibility for their own learning. He has also meticulously incorporated educational technologies in delivering lessons to enrich student learning experience in alignment with MP's strategic goal of ‘Learning is the Heartbeat’. He is the winner of the Melbourne Polytechnic Excellence Award 2021 in the category of teaching in higher education in recognition of his excellent performance in teaching and outstanding contributions to student learning.
Dr. Aftab’s research focuses on public transport planning, travel pattern assessment, urban planning, and development. His research has been published in internationally recognised peer-reviewed journals and conferences. One of his papers has got a very high ‘Research Interest Score’ and was read/downloaded by more than 10,000 researchers (as per ResearchGate statistics). He has successfully supervised many students in their completion of Final Year Engineering Research Projects. In addition, Dr. Aftab has played a pioneering role in engineering education research. He has a strong track record of scholarly publication as an engineering education researcher and has regularly presented at the engineering education conferences. He is a role model for his MP colleagues in applying the Melbourne Polytechnic Blended Learning Model (MPBLM) in his engineering classroom. His submission/ presentation on the delivery of flipped classroom learning approaches was nominated for the inaugural TAFE Directors Australia Practitioner Scholarship Award in the 26th National Vocational Education Research Conference 2017.
Dr. Aftab possesses a wide range of membership with professional bodies and industry groups. He has invited industry experts as guest lecturers to his classroom, liaised with industry to arrange site visits for his students, and encouraged students to participate in a wide range of industry-engagement activities to connect the classroom learning programs and the expectations of the industry and the broader community. He was awarded an International Specialised Skills (ISS) Institute Fellowship (sponsored by Victorian Department of Education Page 2 of 3 and Training 2015) to conduct research and training on ‘industry skills need assessment’ at The Ohio State University. He demonstrated his shared commitment and contributed to improving the operational excellence of Melbourne Polytechnic by collaborating both with institute-wide internal stakeholders and with external organizations and industry partners. He worked closely with other team members to get the initial accreditation of Bachelor of Engineering Technology (Civil) program from Engineers Australia. He also contributed to the documentation of institute-wide re-accreditation process of the Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency (TEQSA). His participation in academic governance at Melbourne Polytechnic encompasses his membership in different committees and panels such the Curriculum Committee, the Faculty Higher Education Committee, the Course Advisory Committee, and the Industry Focus Group.
Dr Aftab was awarded a PhD in Civil Engineering from Monash University in 2012. He obtained his Graduate Diploma in teaching from La Trobe University in 2012. He completed a Master of Engineering Degree from the University of Tokyo in 2001 and a Bachelor of Civil Engineering with Honours from Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology in 1999.