Impact of critical thinking instruction on first year engineering students

2014 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter Weiss ◽  
Jason Bazylak
Keyword(s):  
Critical Thinking ◽  
Engineering Students ◽  
First Year ◽  
Critical Thinking Instruction

Critical Thinking in the Design Classroom: An Analysis of Student Design Reflections

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Emmeline Evans ◽  
Jessica Menold ◽  
Christopher McComb
Keyword(s):  
Critical Thinking ◽  
Clustering Analysis ◽  
Cognitive Process ◽  
Engineering Students ◽  
Procedural Knowledge ◽  
First Year ◽  
Reasoning Abilities ◽  
Different Levels ◽  
Insight Into ◽  
Future Growth

Abstract Within the domain of education, the term “critical thinking” is widely understood to mean the various skills that comprise an individual’s logical and reasoning abilities. It is critical that designers possess these abilities so that they can solve the complex problems of an increasingly interconnected world. In order to better understand patterns in engineering students’ critical thinking, this research applies the classifications of the 2001 revision of Bloom’s Taxonomy to 49 reflections written by first-year engineering students on a two-hour design practicum. Reflections were thematically coded to identify when students operated in different levels of the cognitive process and knowledge dimensions. Using k-means clustering analysis, genres of reflection were then determined. Four unique clusters of responses were identified. Notable trends in clusters included application and evaluation of procedural knowledge. Additionally, a difference was observed between the two largest clusters regarding deviance from the design process. While one cluster of responses generally minimized discussion of deviance, the second largest cluster emphasized this deviance, highlighting it as an opportunity for future growth. This work provides insight into how students learn design and how they communicate their learning, providing insight for instructors hoping to encourage deeper critical thinking in design courses.

First-year engineering students' computational reasoning abilities

2022 ◽  
Vol 1 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Concepcion Rebollar ◽  
Carolina Varela ◽  
Olatz Eugenio
Keyword(s):  
Critical Thinking ◽  
Problem Solving ◽  
Engineering Students ◽  
Computational Thinking ◽  
First Year ◽  
Reasoning Abilities ◽  
New Students ◽  
Measurement And Evaluation ◽  
Computational Reasoning ◽  
Algorithmic Thinking

Computational thinking is an essential skill set for today's students, given the digital age in which we live and work (CT). Without a precise definition, it is generally understood to be a collection of abilities and attitudes required to deal with difficulties in any aspect of life, whether or not a computer is involved. Measurement and evaluation of students' progress in CT abilities are critical, and this can only be done using instruments that have been tested and shown to work before. New students at the Basque Country's University of the Basque Country's Engineering Degrees are tested for critical thinking, algorithmic thinking, problem solving, cooperation and creativity using a previously proven tool.

scholarly journals Board 137: Critical Thinking Skills in Non-calculus Ready First-year Engineering Students

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lizzie Santiago ◽  
Anika Pirkey ◽  
Mustapha Animashaun ◽  
Melissa Morris
Keyword(s):  
Critical Thinking ◽  
Engineering Students ◽  
Thinking Skills ◽  
Critical Thinking Skills ◽  
First Year

scholarly journals A Systematic Approach To Teaching Critical Thinking Skills To Electrical And Computer Engineering Undergraduates

2015 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 113-124 ◽  
Author(s):  
Karla Conn Welch Conn Welch ◽  
Jeffrey Hieb ◽  
James Graham
Keyword(s):  
Critical Thinking ◽  
Engineering Students ◽  
Thinking Skills ◽  
Computing Methods ◽  
Critical Thinking Skills ◽  
Computer Engineering ◽  
Implicit Instruction ◽  
Incoming Freshmen ◽  
Critical Thinking Instruction ◽  
Pilot Implementation

Coursework that instills patterns of rigorous logical thought has long been a hallmark of the engineering curriculum.  However, today’s engineering students are expected to exhibit a wider range of thinking capabilities both to satisfy ABET requirements and to prepare the students to become successful practitioners.  This paper presents the initial results from a systematic effort to incorporate broader critical thinking instruction and assessment into electrical and computer engineering education as part of a university-wide quality enhancement program.  All incoming freshmen are given explicit and implicit instruction in critical thinking in ENGR 100: Introduction to Engineering and other engineering fundamentals courses, using the Paul-Elder framework of critical thinking to define and operationalize critical thinking.  This critical thinking foundation is reinforced later in the disciplinary courses so that students integrate critical thinking with the basic principles and practices of engineering.  In the Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE) program, at the sophomore level, students use critical thinking skills which were developed during their engineering fundamentals courses, to analyze requirements and constraints which would apply in real-world design projects.  At the junior level, similar use of critical thinking is applied in an introductory computing methods course; and at the senior level, critical thinking skills are again strengthened and assessed in the capstone design course and in the professional issues and current topics seminar.  The latter course emphasizes understanding of professional ethics and current topics in electrical and computer engineering.  Initial data from this pilot implementation indicates statistically significant improvement in critical thinking skills in ECE students who have progressed through this sequence, and as a side benefit, it appears that writing skills also improve.

scholarly journals Investigating the Impact of Model Eliciting Activities on Development of Critical Thinking

2013 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brian Frank ◽  
Jake Kaupp ◽  
Ann Chen
Keyword(s):  
Critical Thinking ◽  
Engineering Students ◽  
Thinking Skills ◽  
Critical Thinking Skills ◽  
Learning Assessment ◽  
First Year ◽  
First Year Students ◽  
Problem Solving Skills ◽  
Model Eliciting Activities ◽  
The Impact

This paper presents a portion of a study on how model eliciting activities (MEAs) impact critical thinking development in first year engineering. Model eliciting activities (MEAs) are realistic problems used in the classroom that require learners to document not only their solution to the problems, but also their processes for solving them. Studies have shown MEAs to be valuable in helping students to develop conceptual understanding, knowledge transfer , and generalizable problem--‐solving skills. This study is investigating the impact of the MEA- integrated course on students’ development of critical thinking skills. Ultimately, the team aims to determine whether the MEA-integrated course facilitates students’ critical thinking. During the fall semester of the 2012/2013 academic year three instruments will be used to evaluate the critical thinking skills (CTS) of first year engineering students. These instruments will be used as both a pre--‐ and post--‐test in order to benchmark CTS of the incoming first year students, and determine the effectiveness of MEA instruction on developing student critical thinking ability. These instruments are the Cornell Critical Thinking Test Level Z (Cornell Z), the International Critical Thinking Essay Test (ICTET) and the Collegiate Learning Assessment (CLA). This paper will present the preliminary findings from analysis of the MEA results and pre and post tests from the study.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document