Panel: Education on Simulation Model Simplification – Beyond Rules of Thumb

Abstract

Most management problems addressed by simulation studies can be characterized as complex and difficult to analyze. Simplification is instrumental in creating and employing simulation models that are usefulby focusing on those system elements that matter, and feasibleby reducing study efforts. Although simplification is considered a fundamental modelling activity, simulation educational support for mastering associated modelling skills is limited. Main textbooks either do not address this topic or tend to restrict their guidance to a few rules of thumb. This reflects how the topic of simulation model simplification is underdeveloped, despite the field of simulation being around 50 years of age. The purpose of this panel is to initiate a discussion about the way we teach simulation model simplification with the view to identifying improvements. This paper addresses the motivation for the panel, and presents panelists' "positions" about the way forward for education on simulation model simplification. 1 Van der Zee, Tako, Fishwick, Robinson, and Rose various drivers of model complexity, for example, problem size being (too) large (Morris 1967), unclear modelling objectives (Innis and Rexstad 1983), his/her own limitations with respect to domain knowledge (Nance et al. 1999), and common pitfalls like assuming model detail as inherently good for increasing realism (Chwif et al. 2000). Clearly, analysts need to be appropriately educated to undertake model simplification. In this panel session simulation educational support on model simplification will be addressed, by assessing the current situation and research needs. More specifically, we consider courses offered by academia. This paper is structured as follows. In Section 2 we consider the motivation for this panel. Next, in Section 3 panel set up is discussed. In Section 4 panelists state their positions. Finally, in Section 5, we summarize main issues based on the position statements. 2 MOTIVATION FOR THE PANEL After introducing the focus of this panel session, we now provide some observations from existing literature on model simplification that underlie the topic of this panel: Van der Zee, Tako, Fishwick, Robinson, and Rose 4.5.4 What Should the Modelling and Simulation Community Do? Our community should stop talking about modeling as an art. Of course, models become better and simpler the more experience a modeler has. On the other hand, there are more than enough textbooks, courses, guides, best practices, etc. about the basic principles of good modeling (see alone the references of this paper) that we should rather talk about modeling as an engineering task and set up research accordingly.

Can we learn from simplified simulation models? An experimental study on user learning

“…This is confirmed in a recent review on approaches for simulation model simplification (Van der Zee, 2017;2019). Furthermore, van der Zee et al (2018) identify that simulation educational support for mastering associated modelling skills is limited.…”