Why do we have practicals anyway?-a focus on the essential engineering skills

Teaching engineering is expensive. Laboratory and practical work is the most expensive component of engineering courses. Progressive reductions in funding per student have been coupled with an increase in student numbers, often achieved by increasing the number of engineering courses on offer. Many institutions have reached the situation where it has become impossible to fit every student into the laboratory without overcrowding and its associated problems. In most cases, lab splits mean that students carry out a practical many weeks after covering the associated theory in class, or vice versa. A common response has been to reduce, or even eliminate, practical teaching from some courses. This paper suggests a set of aims which are appropriate for engineering practicals and then suggests methods of ensuring that educational institutions can meet these aims in a economical and effective manner