Tygron for Urban Analysis

Use-case 1: “Urban Water Course”

For the second year now, Van Hall Larenstein has successfully implemented Tygron in its Water Management specialization, as part of the "Urban Water" HBO course. This university of applied science has collaborated with the Municipality of Lelystad as part of a long-term agreement for maintaining selected neighborhoods. For this course, students work in groups to suggest solutions for improving the neighborhoods livability, climate and water systems. They do that by modeling the neighborhoods using Tygron and running different stress tests. The working groups should also consider Aveco de Bondt and the water board Zuiderzeeland as clients, in addition to the municipality. Last year (2020) the second part of the course was conducted online, of course with many challenges due to the sudden shift to online learning. However, this year (2021), the students attended the entire course from home.

Content of the course

General information

• Name of the course: "Urban Water"

• Study-block: "Water Management"

• Study Programme: Land and Water Management

• Educational Institute: Van Hall Larenstein University of Applied Sciences

Target students

• The students taking this course are at an HBO level (Bachelor level).
• The students are expected to have prior knowledge of GIS, CAD, Hydrodynamic Modeling, and SOBEK 2 & 3.
• The students do not have any prior knowledge of Tygron.

Objectives and desired outcome

This course focuses on the sustainable design of an urban area using vulnerability assessment, modeling and solution recommendation.

The main learning objectives are to:

1. Assess vulnerability to the effects of climate change
2. Model an urban water system
3. Develop a vision for sustainable urban design
4. Use digital resources efficiently to recommend actions for sustainable design
5. Determine sustainable solutions for climate issues

To reach the above learning objectives, students are expected to produce the following outcomes:

1. An individual 'reference study' to provide insight into sustainable solutions for climate issues, focusing on urban water management.
2. A 'model using Tygron', showing the current situation of the selected area, as well as potential sustainability solutions.
3. An individual 'storymap' showcasing the challenges of the area, the vulnerabilities as well as the proposed solutions and their effects.

Design of the Course

Syllabus and time distribution

Schedule of the urban water course.

The course is delivered in Dutch and is spread over 8 weeks, with an average of 5-7 hours per week, with an additional exam week (week 9).

The following steps explain how the course goes:

1. The assignment is briefly introduced.
2. An excursion to the municipality is organized. During the Covid-19 lock-down, students went on a digital virtual excursion.
3. Then students choose a topic for the reference-study (individually). For example, it could be a specific technology / measure / instrument, a special approach / process or a specific exemplary street or neighborhood in the country.
4. Instructors deliver an average of 2 hours/week of theory lectures about:Climate effects / Spatial adaptation / National Adaptation Strategy / Guide principle and guide models / Green-blue networks climate effects
5. A guest lecturer provides 2 hands-on workshops about Modeling with Tygron. These tutorials take place in weeks 2 and 5.
6. Students also learn how to create StoryMaps with tutorials (around 1 hour per week)
7. While learning Tygron, students form themselves into groups of 3 (6 groups) to model their selected area. For that they have to:
   • Create a working model.
   • Validate the model.
   • Calculate the effectiveness of measures.
   • Reflect critically on model assumptions.
8. The students present their reference-study through a 10-minute-digital presentation in week 7.
9. Students are given around 2 -3 hours per week for self-study
10. Students are also given continuous support using question-sessions, online consultation and feedback sessions.
11. At the end of the course, students have to individually showcase the stress tests and proposed solutions using StoryMaps.

Guidance and resources

Lectures and assignments

• There are two instructors who guide the students through this course by providing lectures, counseling and feedback.
• Throughout the course, students work in groups of 3 or 4 on a case study in Lelystad.
• Each group is assigned a neighborhood with an area of maximum of 1000 x 1000 meters.
• Each neighborhood has its own social and environmental issues that students should focus on.

Modelling with Tygron

• Two Tygron workshops are organized with a guest lecturer from Aveco de Bondt.
• Students use their own laptops to create their models.
• Students refer back to Tygron's wiki while creating their models.
• The instructors have some experience with Tygron.

Other tools

• Students learn how to use ArcGIS StoryMaps during this course.
• Students are also introduced to the spatial adaptation portal [www.ruimtelijkeadaptatie.nl Ruimtelijke Adaptatie] as a major source of information.

Outcome and Assessment

Outcomes of the course

The urban water course is concluded with a portfolio. The portfolio consists of:

1. an individual reference study
2. a group model of the planning area
3. a StoryMap that include the individually proposed measures.

Below are some examples of the StoryMaps that students produced last year (April 2020).

Assessment

• The assessment rubric is based on the 5 different learning objectives, with 20% for each.
• The reference study is assessed separately in week 7 through a digital presentation. The presentations are assessed by the teacher and the students taking into account the following criteria
  1. Broad perspective
  2. State-of-the-art
  3. Content / technical elaboration
  4. Requirements

• The modelling and the StoryMaps are assessed orally (80%).

The rubric table below explains how the outcomes relate to the learning objectives:

Rubric for Urban Water

Learning objective	Type of assessment	%	1	2	3	4
1. Assess vulnerability to the effects of climate change	R1C2	R1C3	R1C1	R1C2	R1C3	R1C3
2. Modeling an urban water system	R2C2	R2C3	R2C4	R2C5	R2C6	R2C7
3. Develop a vision for sustainable area design	R3C1	R3C1	R3C1	R3C1	R3C1	R3C1
4. Efficient use of digital resources for advice on sustainable design	R3C1	R3C1	R3C1	R3C1	R3C1	R3C1
5. Determining sustainable solutions for climate issues	R3C1	R3C1	R3C1	R3C1	R3C1	R3C1

20% for the reference study (individual 20% for the oral asssessment of the por

Feedback and recommendations

<<Previous page

Next page>>