Developing an Observation Tool to Measure Preschool Children’s Problem-Solving Skills

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (12) ◽  
pp. 779
Author(s):  
Florencia K. Anggoro ◽  
Mia Dubosarsky ◽  
Sarah Kabourek
Keyword(s):  
Preschool Children ◽  
Problem Solving ◽  
Intervention Group ◽  
The United States ◽  
Engineering Problem ◽  
National Standards ◽  
Unique Problem ◽  
Problem Solving Skills ◽  
Problem Solving Process ◽  
K 12

In the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS), problem-solving skills are part of science and engineering practices for K–12 students in the United States. Evaluating these skills for the youngest learners is difficult due to the lack of established measures. This paper reports on our process of developing an observation instrument to measure preschool children’s learning and their application of problem-solving skills, namely, the steps of the engineering design process (EDP). The instrument, Engineering Preschool Children Observation Tool (EPCOT), was intended to evaluate the frequencies of problem-solving behaviors and use of EDP-related vocabulary by observing preschoolers engaged with the Seeds of STEM eight-unit curriculum in the classroom. In this paper, we describe the development process and revision of EPCOT, its current constructs, and present descriptive findings from using the tool in a pilot study with sixteen classrooms: eight intervention classrooms who received the entire curriculum, and eight comparison classrooms who received only the eighth unit of the curriculum (to enable comparison). We found that, out of 34 possible behaviors across the problem-solving process, children in all classrooms engaged in 31 unique problem-solving behaviors, suggesting that preschool children are indeed capable of meaningfully engaging in solving problems. We also observed a trend that children who were exposed to more of the curriculum (the intervention group) produced more novel vocabulary words than those in the comparison group, who tended to repeat vocabulary words. Since EPCOT was developed in alignment with state and national standards, we believe it has the potential to be used with other early childhood engineering/problem-solving curricula.

Influence of Cognitive, Affective, and Conative Elements in Promoting Engineering Problem Solving Skills

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Norasyikin Omar ◽  
◽  
Mimi Mohaffyza Mohamad ◽  
Marina Ibrahim Mukhtar ◽  
Aini Nazura Paimin ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Problem Solving ◽  
Engineering Problem ◽  
Problem Solving Skills ◽  
Engineering Problem Solving

Diagramming and Algebraic Word Problem Solving for Secondary Students With Learning Disabilities

2018 ◽  
Vol 54 (4) ◽  
pp. 212-218
Author(s):  
Gloria A. Carcoba Falomir
Keyword(s):  
High School ◽  
Learning Disabilities ◽  
Problem Solving ◽  
Secondary Students ◽  
Word Problem ◽  
Conceptual Knowledge ◽  
The United States ◽  
Students With Learning Disabilities ◽  
Word Problem Solving ◽  
Problem Solving Skills

Algebra is considered an important high school course because it is recognized as the gateway to higher mathematics, college opportunities, and well-paying jobs. In the United States, most secondary schools require students to be proficient in algebra to be able to graduate from high school. One major component of algebra is word problem solving, which is used in algebra courses to teach students mathematical modeling and applied problem-solving skills. However, word problem solving is often a significantly challenging area for students with learning disabilities because it involves computing mathematical equations and implementing a myriad of cognitive processes that require conceptual knowledge. Diagrams are considered an effective and powerful visualization strategy because they help students see the hidden mathematical structure of the problem. The use of diagrams is recommended as students work toward more complex math concepts in middle school and high school.

scholarly journals A Detailed Characterization of the Expert Problem-Solving Process in Science and Engineering: Guidance for Teaching and Assessment

2021 ◽  
Vol 20 (3) ◽  
pp. ar43
Author(s):  
Argenta M. Price ◽  
Candice J. Kim ◽  
Eric W. Burkholder ◽  
Amy V. Fritz ◽  
Carl E. Wieman
Keyword(s):  
Problem Solving ◽  
Disciplinary Knowledge ◽  
Science And Engineering ◽  
Detailed Characterization ◽  
Problem Solving Skills ◽  
Problem Solving Process

A study of the problem-solving process used by skilled practitioners across science, engineering, and medicine revealed that their process can be characterized by a set of 29 specific decisions. They select and use frameworks of disciplinary knowledge to make those decisions. This work will enable better assessment and teaching of problem-solving skills.

Cognitive Functionality of Multimedia in Problem Solving

2008 ◽  
pp. 1233-1247
Author(s):  
Robert Zheng
Keyword(s):  
Information Retrieval ◽  
Problem Solving ◽  
Cognitive Load ◽  
Mental Representation ◽  
Cognitive Functions ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Interactive Multimedia ◽  
Problem Solving Skills ◽  
Teaching Problem ◽  
Problem Solving Process

Teaching problem solving can be a challenge to teachers. However, the challenge is oftentimes not due to a lack of skills on the part of learners but due to an inappropriate design of media through which the problem is presented. The findings of this study demonstrate that appropriately designed multimedia can improve learners’ problem solving skills because of the cognitive functions such media have in facilitating mental representation and information retrieval and maintenance, as well as reducing cognitive load during the problem solving process. Suggestions were made on how to apply interactive multimedia to teaching and learning.

The effect of psychoeducation on anger management and problem solving skills of the patients with post-traumatic stress disorder

2016 ◽  
Vol 33 (S1) ◽  
pp. S216-S216
Author(s):  
M. Senyurt ◽  
M. Demiralp ◽  
N. Ozmenler ◽  
C. Acikel
Keyword(s):  
Problem Solving ◽  
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder ◽  
Traumatic Stress ◽  
Anger Management ◽  
Stress Disorder ◽  
Intervention Group ◽  
Trait Anger ◽  
Post Traumatic Stress ◽  
Problem Solving Skills ◽  
Post Traumatic

This study was conducted as pre-test and post-test experimental design with the control group in order to identify the effect of psychoeducation on anger management and problem solving skills of the patients with post-traumatic stress disorder. This study was carried out in Gülhane Military Medical Academy, the department of Military Psychology and Battle Psychiatry between May 2012 and May 2013. The study sample included 22 control and 22 intervention group patients with PTSD who admitted to participate in the study and who were asked to receive the drug treatment by staying in the clinic. Psychoeducation was only performed on the intervention group. In the collection of research data, “Sociodemographical Information Form”, “Trait-Trait Anger Expression Inventory”, “Problem Solving Inventory” and “The Impact of Event Scale” were used. Data were assessed by Repeated Measures Variance Analysis via SPSS (15.0). Problem solving skills of the patients who had high-school and up to the level of high-school education were identified to be more insufficient than the ones having undergraduate and graduate educations. Before receiving psychoeducation, it was identified that the levels of trait anger of the patients were high, and that they perceived themselves as mild insufficient individuals in problem solving skills. It was identified that trait anger increased the anger control and problem-solving skills while it decreased inward and outward anger levels in the intervention group of psychoeducation. As a consequence, it has been recommended that the continuity of psychoeducations the psychiatry nurses applied have been provide in psychiatry clinic.Disclosure of interestThe authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.

scholarly journals AN INTERNATIONAL COMPARISON OF INCOME DISPARITIES BY PROBLEM-SOLVING SKILLS, GENDER, AND AGE

2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. S4-S5
Author(s):  
Nader Mehri ◽  
Takashi Yamashita ◽  
Roberto Millar ◽  
Phyllis Cummins
Keyword(s):  
Problem Solving ◽  
Northern Ireland ◽  
Adult Life ◽  
Developed Countries ◽  
Income Group ◽  
The United States ◽  
Policy And Practice ◽  
Problem Solving Skills ◽  
Persistent Problem ◽  
Income Disparities

Abstract Income disparities by gender have been a persistent problem in economically-developed countries for decades, with income gaps often widening over the adult life course. We use data from the 2012 Program for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC) to examine relationships among problem solving skills in technology-rich environments (PSTRE), income, sex, and age in Australia, Canada, England/Northern Ireland and the United States. Women age 35 to 44 in the middle-to-high (i.e., 50th - 75th percentile) income group had significantly higher PSTRE scores than their male counterparts in Australia and Canada. For the same income group, women ages 55 to 65 had significantly higher. PSTRE scores than men in Canada and England/Northern Ireland. These results suggest that women with similar skills lagged their male counterparts in income in specific sub-populations in specific countries. We provide possible explanations for these differences and conclude with implications for policy and practice.

Problem-Solving Skills of the U.S. Workforce and Preparedness for Job Automation

2019 ◽  
Vol 30 (3) ◽  
pp. 111-120 ◽  
Author(s):  
Phyllis A. Cummins ◽  
Takashi Yamashita ◽  
Roberto J. Millar ◽  
Shalini Sahoo
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Problem Solving ◽  
The United States ◽  
Learning Systems ◽  
Problem Solving Skills ◽  
The United Kingdom ◽  
Advanced Technologies ◽  
International Assessment ◽  
The U.S ◽  
Skill Category

Automation and advanced technologies have increased the need for a better understanding of the skills necessary to have a globally competitive workforce. This study used data from the Program for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies to compare problem-solving skills in technology-rich environments among adults in South Korea, Germany, Singapore, Japan, Canada, Estonia, the United Kingdom, the United States, and Australia. Overall, the United States had the lowest scores among all countries, and in all countries scores declined with age. The United States had higher proportions of survey participants in the lowest skill category and lower proportions in the top-skill categories. The results of this study suggest changes in the U.S. educational and lifelong learning systems, and policies may be necessary to ensure all adults have the necessary skills in a competitive workforce.

A problem-solving process for developing capabilities: the case of an established firm

2019 ◽  
Vol 23 (4) ◽  
pp. 713-727
Author(s):  
Ei (Emily) Shu
Keyword(s):  
Problem Solving ◽  
New Product Development ◽  
Dynamic Capabilities ◽  
Dynamic Capability ◽  
Capability Development ◽  
Unique Problem ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Different Types ◽  
Problem Solving Process ◽  
Development Literature

Purpose Current research has theorized that developing dynamic capability can be viewed as a problem-finding and problem-solving process in terms of a firm’s resource reconfiguration. However, there continues to be a scarcity of empirical research on how firms and managers solve innovation problems to develop capabilities. Building on the theoretical lens of problem-solving perspective (PSP) and dynamic capability literature, the purpose of this paper is to address this gap by examining how a large automobile company developed different types of capabilities (combining capability, replacing capability and evolving capability) and their underlying problem-solving processes. Design/methodology/approach An inductive multi-case design was used to investigate the problem-solving process in different types of capability development in the context of NPD. This methodology has a number of benefits, including accommodation of the rich data used to compare the inferences among cases, thus enabling researchers to extend the emergent theory. Findings The findings of a multi-case study show that managers tend to direct their attentions to searching for solutions among external resources when the problem is framed as a combination of existing capabilities. Conversely, managers direct their attention to facilitating organizational learning when the problem is framed as an extension of an existing capability. However, managers need to direct more attention to gaining legitimacy when the problem is framed as a replacement of existing capabilities. The findings thus respond to increasing calls for more investigations into the microfoundations underlying firms’ capabilities, by revealing different instances of PSP, and their connections with different actions that take to capability development. Originality/value By comparatively examining the unique problem-solving process underlying an established firm’s innovative challenges in developing capabilities, the findings identify different instances of PSP, and their connections with different actions that take to capability development. Thus, the findings respond to increasing calls for more investigation into the microfoundations of dynamic capabilities for organizational outcomes. The findings also add to the new product development literature by examining how a product innovation can be framed differently depending on the attributes of an innovation problem. As PSP is particularly useful in offering guidance to firms’ innovative search, it is important for managers to pay attention to the attribute of each product and its domain of solution in considering the effectiveness of value creation.

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