Document Type
Article
Disciplines
Educational Assessment, Evaluation, and Research | Educational Methods | Higher Education | Mechanical Engineering | Scholarship of Teaching and Learning
Abstract
In engineering, kinematics is widely regarded as a fundamental topic with the literature agreeing that students possess a wide range in understanding of the topic. This study aims to take a second-order approach by understanding and exploring the qualitatively different ways in which students approach solving kinematics problems. Phenomenography was used to collect data through ten semi-structured interviews with early-stage mechanical engineering students. Following data analysis, four distinct categories of students’ approaches were identified; unstructured, framing the problem, strategic, and conceptual. It was found that these categories could be arranged in a hierarchy and were also supported by secondary epistemic factors in determining why students employed a particular approach. The findings emphasise the need for approaching instruction from multiple perspectives and suggest a more comprehensive learning experience can be supported by linking practical laboratory observations with real-world concepts, use of visual aids, dry labs, active and peer-to-peer learning.
Recommended Citation
Andrew Cashman & Tom O’Mahony (2022) Student understanding of kinematics: a qualitative assessment, European Journal of Engineering Education, DOI: 10.1080/03043797.2022.2073200
Included in
Educational Assessment, Evaluation, and Research Commons, Educational Methods Commons, Mechanical Engineering Commons, Scholarship of Teaching and Learning Commons
Publication Details
Published online in European Journal of Engineering Education on 9th May 2022.
© 2022 SEFI
Note: The author can be emailed for access to the pre-print, post-print and final published version of the article.
The post-print will be available to download from this site on 9th May 2023.