Engaging Teachers And Students In Problem Based Simulation Activities

This study investigates the perceptions of teachers and students involved in problembased simulation, (PBS) activities used in design engineering curricula to introduce simulation as a design tool to better evaluate design solutions. The presentation demonstrates a clear and concise interpretation of the teacher and students developmental perceptions of the curricula developed at Mott Community College through a grant from NSF to enhance existing design engineering curricula using PBS activities. Through this study it is evident that the PBS activities have enhanced the curricula by providing a tool for students to better understand design concepts. It is also evident, that teachers and students learned to value and trust using simulation software as a beneficial teaching and learning tool to evaluate and validate their own design solutions. The criteria used to determine participant inclusion and sample size is based on the research primarily being a qualitative study in which a relatively small sample size of three school settings have been chosen to test the curriculum. Each of the three schools included at least two of their classes in the study teaching topics of gears, cams and threads in their design engineering classes. One class was a control group that received traditional methods of instruction and the other was the treatment group which participated in the PBS activities. The study was conducted using a quasi-experimental post-test only design as a quantitative component, and a qualitative component comparing prior and post surveys and observations. The curriculum materials produced through the NSF grant are PBS activities related to topics of gears, cams and threads which provide problems for the students to solve using reference material, which they then verify using a CAD generated 3D model that simulates the solution to the problem. The output from the 3D simulation is in the form of a plotted curve on a graph providing the answer to the problem and also providing a 3D motion output for a virtual visualization of the problem. Workshops are scheduled for May through July of 2006 to orient teachers how to utilize the design and simulation software used in the delivery of the PBS activities. After completing the workshops instructors possess the skills and curriculum to deliver summer recruitment camps or teach the topics of gears, cams and threads in their engineering technology classes using the 3D models of mechanisms and simulations. Introduction Simulation of the dynamics of mechanisms used in engineering technology curricula is presently a new concept rarely studied and there is a lack of understanding of how such simulations can be used most effectively in engineering and in education. The following is a quasi-experimental action research study incorporating both quantitative and qualitative data. It investigates the perceptions of teachers and students involved in problem-based simulation activities used in high school design engineering curricula. P ge 11543.2 The purpose of this research is to investigate the potential for problem-based simulation activities to be used as curriculum and instruction aids for engineering educators. The research problem statement is to investigate the perceptions of teachers and students involved in problem-based simulation activities used in high school design engineering curriculum to introduce simulation as a design tool to better evaluate design solutions. There are three main objectives of this study. Firstly, to document the achievement level of one group of technology high school students using the problem-based simulation activities compared to another group using traditional methods of instruction. Secondly, to document, narrate, and interpret technology teachers’ developmental perceptions of the educational effectiveness of using problem-based simulation activities in their lesson plans. And lastly, to document, narrate, and interpret the nature of classroom interactions and discourse when technology teachers use problem-based simulation activities? Simulation in Education Research tells us that learning activities which recreate work situations foster better transfer of learning (Swanson & Holton, 1999) 9 . Games and simulations have been used in education as useful learning tools for years, although computer-based simulations in education have recently been increasingly utilized due to the increased presence of desktop computers and technology in classrooms. Simulation is defined as a representation of the operation or features of one process or system through the use of another; for example, the computer simulation of an in-flight emergency (Hill & Semler, 2001) 5 . Long before computer simulation was possible John Dewey (1916) 4 , advocated an educational system with continued experimentation and vocational training to equip students to solve practical problems. Through the process of experimentation, application of theoretical concepts to the simulated environment and feedback providing important insights impossible through other learning methods, simulations have been proven to enhance the learner’s ability to make quick progress in skill development. Problem-based Learning In problem-based approaches, students clearly define the problem, develop hypotheses, gather information, and arrive at a clearly stated solution, (Allen, 1998) 2 . The problembased activities used in this study are intended to introduce the students to concepts of gears, cams and threads using simulations which offer the students the opportunity to predict results and analyze their predictions while they are also presented information about how to create the drawings and models of these types of parts. For instance, the high schools in this study that include the topic of threads in their curricula traditionally have students create drawings of different thread types and forms, but have not emphasized the effect of thread forms as related to torque or part travel. In problembased learning (PBL) students are presented with an interesting, relevant problem “up front”, so that they can acquire knowledge in the context in which it will be used and be more likely to retain what they learned (Albanese and Mitchell, 1993; Boud and Folletti, 1991) 1,3 . PBL comes in many forms including research, case studies, guided design, design projects, and the McMaster Medical School model of PBL. The problem-based activities used in this study are not intended to be semester long projects to be researched or studied, but rather they are smaller in content involving a student or students P ge 11543.3 predicting a result to a given scenario and then verifying the prediction using the simulation software over the period of two or three class meetings. By utilizing simulations in PBL curricula students can be placed in environments that present dilemmas that can be addressed in a variety of different ways. It is through struggling with issues and solutions to problems that cognitive, affective, and moral growth occurs (Kohlberg, 1979; Piaget, 1963) 7,8 . The PBL activities in and of themselves are not the answer to applying the theories related in this research. Cognitive structuralists and cognitive scientists use developmental psychology, which is the educational basis of PBL. The main supporters of the cognitive theories are Jean Piaget and Robert Gagne. The implementation of the PBL activities involves instructor guidance, reflection and motivation as well. Constructivism is an off chute from cognitivism where theorists believe not all information is known and there isn’t necessarily one truth to all questions. Constructivist philosophy believes knowledge is based on experiences and one must construct their own meanings. John Dewey, born out of a progressive philosophy, believes in social constructivist psychology, because he is concerned with the process rather than the end product of the curriculum (Dewey, 1916) 4 . Cognitive teaching involves problem solving, cooperative learning and discovery learning, where the teacher is a facilitator of information rather than a deliverer of information. The moment when the student is in need of information is where the teacher will guide the student towards the intended outcomes. There is empirical proof that cooperative learning methods are more effective methods than straight lecture formats, where students are actively involved in problem solving activities rather than passively accepting what is being lectured to them, (Johnson, D.W. et al., 1981) 6 . The methods used in cooperative learning are not fully understood and are out of the comfort zone of many instructors who feel that they are not in control of the classroom in an active learning environment. Content and Context of the Study This research is related to the products developed through a National Science Foundation (NSF) Grant to integrate simulation into Design Engineering Technology (DET) associate degree programs. NSF funded the development of Tech Prep/Associate Degree activities that focus on 3D CAD model simulations developed in the State of Michigan by Mott Community College (MCC), in cooperation with Henry Ford, Macomb and Oakland Community Colleges and their K-12 partners. Specifically, the deliverables of the NSF grant are ten modules that can be integrated into the community college Design/CAD curriculum. These modules introduce simulation as a robust design tool that can be used to better evaluate design solutions. The three modules developed for threads, gears and cams were chosen for this study because they were the first three developed and they are most applicable to high school students. The design of the threads, cams and gears simulation activities allow the learners to engage in the activity and to progress to the next step at their own pace. If the learners solve a problem incorrectly they can run the simulation results over and over until they understand the co