Applying Problem Solving Heuristics To A Freshman Engineering Course

Abstract

Many students enter undergraduate engineering programs lacking basic problem solving skills. We have adapted the problem solving heuristics originally used in a computer science environment to an introductory engineering class to help freshman engineering students develop these skills. The introductory Engineering Design and Graphics course at Penn State -Berks Campus exposes students to conventional drafting techniques, computer graphics and engineering design.

Using a Problem-Solving Heuristic to Teach Engineering Graphics

“…A student who can produce such a plan should do better on a test than a student who cannot, though a more complete study still needs to be done to better determine the value to the student of these problem-solving exercises. Since splitting up a larger problem into smaller subproblems is the essence of creating solid models, students were asked to provide a written solution design for several solid modeling assignments before implementing them on the computer [3]. By separating the solution procedure from the implementation in AutoCAD, students could concentrate on the problem-solving aspect of the assignment before worrying about exact AutoCAD commands and syntax.…”

“…Though problem solving is considered an important aspect of the design process, it is often perceived as an abstract concept which is difficult to teach and assess. However, a problem-solving heuristic, which has proven successful in helping students learn to evaluate and solve computer programming problems [2], has been extended to help students understand and evaluate engineering design problems [3]. In engineering graphics and design textbooks, problem solving is typically mentioned only in introductory chapters about design; however, students should be able to apply relevant parts of this method to graphics problems in order to better understand how these types of problems are solved.…”