This study focuses on the investigation of the effects of computer simulation and animation (CSA) on students' cognitive processes in an undergraduate engineering course. The revised Bloom's taxonomy, which consists of six categories in the cognitive process domain, was employed in this study. Five of the six categories were investigated, including remember, understand, apply, analyze, and evaluate. Data were collected via a think‐aloud protocol involving two groups of student participants: One group learned a worked example problem with a CSA module, and the other group learned the same problem with traditional textbook‐style instruction. A new concept called frequency index was proposed for use in qualitative research that involves the quantitative comparison of the overall popularity of a particular mental activity performed by two groups of students. The results show that as compared to traditional textbook‐style instruction, CSA significantly increases students' activities in the understand category of the revised Bloom's taxonomy during learning and significantly increases students' activities in the understand, apply, analyse, and evaluate categories during subsequent problem‐solving. That learning via CSA has a profound impact on subsequent problem‐solving is attributed to intensive human–computer interactions built in the CSA learning module.

Moe Tajvidi is a PhD student in engineering education at Utah State University. His BSc and MS degrees are in civil and structural engineering and he has a sixteen year long career experience in structural engineering along with four years of college instruction of both basic and advanced civil engineering courses. In his teaching experience he has been committed to introducing real life engineering problems to the learning environment. The subjects he has taught include engineering mechanics (statics, dynamics, and mechanics of material), soil mechanics and foundation engineering. His research areas of interest include: use of computer simulation in engineering education, project-based learning and innovative teaching techniques in interdisciplinary topics. He is also a member of ASCE and ASEE. Prof. Ning Fang, Utah State UniversityNing Fang is a Professor in the College of Engineering at Utah State University, USA. He has taught a variety of courses at both graduate and undergraduate levels, such as engineering dynamics, metal machining, and design for manufacturing. His areas of interest include computer-assisted instructional technology, curricular reform in engineering education, the modeling and optimization of manufacturing processes, and lean product design. He earned his PhD, MS, and BS degrees in mechanical engineering and is the author of more than 60 technical papers published in refereed international journals and conference proceedings. He is a Senior Member of the Society for Manufacturing Engineering, a member of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, and a member of the American Society for Engineering Education.c American Society for Engineering Education, 2015Page 26.221.1 Application of Computer Simulation and Animation (CSA) in Teaching and Learning Engineering Mechanics AbstractUse of computer simulation and animation (CSA) in higher education is growing rapidly and has become a major trend in undergraduate engineering education. This paper conducts a comprehensive and critical literature review regarding the use of CSA as a learning aid to teach engineering mechanics courses. The paper addresses two main topics: (1) pedagogical innovations in the instruction of engineering mechanics, and (2) using CSA as a learning tool in engineering mechanics education. Representative pedagogical innovations are clustered into three categories: (1) altering the engineering mechanics curriculum, (2) active learning strategies, and (3) the application of enhancement resources. Focusing on CSA as an effective enhancement tool, this literature review summarizes the main characteristics of CSA modules that impact student learning: visualization enhancement, interactive features, and straightforwardness. Major theoretical, methodological issues and practical implications as well as the strengths and weaknesses in the published studies within cognitive learning domain are reviewed. The literature review show that although all studies justify the practical effectiveness of CSA modules in improving learnin...

Moe Tajvidi is a PhD candidate in engineering education at Utah State University. His BS and MS degrees are in structural engineering and he has a sixteen year long career experience in structural engineering along with four years of instruction of civil engineering courses. In his teaching experience he has been committed to introducing real life engineering problems to the learning environment. The subjects he has taught include engineering mechanics (statics, dynamics, and mechanics of material), structural analysis and design, soil mechanics and foundation engineering. His research areas of interest include: use of computer simulation in engineering education, project-based learning and innovative teaching techniques in interdisciplinary topics. He is a licensed P.E. in the state of California and a member of ASCE. He is also an adjunct lecturer in University of Wisconsin, Platteville. Dr. Kurt Henry Becker, Utah State University, Center for Engineering Education ResearchKurt Becker is the current director for the Center for Engineering Education Research (CEER) which examines innovative and effective engineering education practices as well as classroom technologies that advance learning and teaching in engineering. He is also working on National Science Foundation (NSF) funded projects exploring engineering design thinking. His areas of research include engineering design thinking, adult learning cognition, engineering education professional development and technical training. He has extensive international experience working on technical training and engineering educaton projects funded by the Asian Development Bank, World Bank, and U.S. Department of Labor, USAID. Countries where he has worked include Armenia, Bangladesh, Bulgaria, China, Macedonia, Poland, Romania, and Thailand. In addition, he teaches undergraduate and graduate courses for the Department of Engineering Education at Utah State University.c American Society for Engineering Education, 2017 Assessing the Need for Professional Development in Engineering Among Rural High School Science Teachers (Fundamental) AbstractThe Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) for K-12 science instruction, released in 2013, were developed to address lagging student achievement and to improve scientific and technological literacy in the United States educational system. To accomplish this goal, the NGSS integrate standards on engineering design and application at an equal level with standards on scientific literacy.