ConnectingOntheJob

ProblemSolvingtothe
EngineeringClassroom

byKevinJ.B.Anderson,SandyCourter,ThomasMcGlamery,
TraciNathansKelly,andChristineNicometo

ThroughthecourseofafouryearNSFproject,we
interviewedover140engineersandconductedcase
studiesofsixengineeringfirmsfromvarying
industries.Over2000engineersorengineering
graduatesalsorespondedtosurveys.Allofthisdata
enabledustodrawconclusionsaboutthewaysof
thinking,skills,valuesandidentitiesofpracticing
engineers.Thisreportonproblemsolvingisoneofa
seriesofbriefreportsonideasforfurtherenhancing
theconnectionbetweenengineeringcoursesand
engineeringpractice.

Definingproblem
Teamproblemsolving
Creativity
Technicaldesign
Workingwithclient
Businesselements
0

Theprocessofsolvingproblemsalsoincludedagreat
dealofcoordinationamongpeopleandprocesses.
Actuallydesigningtheproductonlymadeupaminor
portionofthefullprocess,asdescribedinthisquote
fromanengineer:

Inourresearchwerepeatedlyheardengineers
describethemselvesasproblemsolvers.Inone
survey,whenengineersrankedthetopskillsof
effectiveengineers,agreater%ofengineersranked
problemsolvingasthetopskillthananyother(see
chartbelow).
Problemsolving
Communication
Technicalcompetence
Bigpictureunderstanding
Creativity

Whenengineersrankedthefrequencyofdifferent
elementsoftheirproblemsolvingwork,defining
problemsandworkingasateamonthemcameupthe
mostfrequently(seechartabove,scaleof0neverto
5always).

Thisfrontpagedetailsdatafromengineering
graduatesontheimportanceofproblemsolvingand
whatitmeanstothem.Thebackprovidespractical
suggestionsforincorporatingtheseideasincourses.

4.51
4.37
4.05
3.94
3.68
3.26

Itsnotjustdesigningofproductseighthoursa
day.Thatsacoupleweeksofasixmonthor
oneyearproject.Therestofityouarespending
developing,writingspecifications,detailing
theproducts[and]writingtestplans.
PracticingEngineer

27%
25%
21%

19%
9%
0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30%

Conclusion

Engineersdescribedproblemsolvingasmuchmore
thanatechnicalprocess.Forexample,theynoted
thatitisusuallydoneasateam:

Theothernicethingaboutthiscompanyis...
itslarge.Youdonthavetolookfartofindother
peoplewhohavebeenthroughthesamething
youaregoingthrough...Itisnotjustco
workershere.Youcanturntothesupplier...
Forthisparticularproblemthefirstthingwedid
waswehadahandfulofpeoplecollecting
information.
PracticingEngineer

Acrossallsixoftheorganizationswestudiedand
throughoutthesurveysandinterviews,engineers
continuallydescribedthecomplexnatureofreal
worldproblems.Theseproblemshavenoclear
answerandinvolvenumerousgroupsofpeoplefrom
widelyvaryingbackgrounds.Engineersrarelyactedas
onlyatechnicalexpertinsolvingtheseproblems.
Theymoreoftenhadtoleadorhelpleadtheeffortof
coordinatingthedifferentperspectives,desires,and
constraintsinthesystem.Thus,whenaskedwhat
theywouldliketoseemoreofinundergraduate
education,theymostcommonlysaidrealworld
problemsolvingandcoop/internshipexperiences.

DefiningProblemSolving

Themostvaluablepartofmyundergraduate
educationwasactuallytheclubThehands
onworkIdidtheretaughtmemorethanany
classItook.
EngineeringAlumnus

Whatisrealworldoronthejobproblemsolving
andhowcanitbeconnectedtoengineeringcourses?
JamesTrevelyannotesinReconstructingEngineering
fromPracticethatengineeringproblemsolving
harnessesthepowerofdistributedexpertise.
Coursesandgroupprojectscouldbedesignedsothat
studentseachhaveapieceoftheoverallknowledge
picturethattheymustshare.
Whiledesignisonlyoneportionofengineering
problemsolving,studentsshouldstillhaveaclear
conceptionofthedesignprocess.Dym,etal,
emphasizetheuseofprojectbasedlearningtoteach
thisprocess.
ResearchbyJonassen,StrobelandLeeemphasizes
thatworkplaceengineeringproblemsarecomplexand
illstructuredduetomultiplepossiblesolutions,non
engineeringconstraints,conflictinggoals,varying
measuresofsuccessandunanticipatedproblems.For
example,openendedcourseprojectscouldinclude
constraintssuchastimeandbudgetlimitationsaswell
asengineeringandnonengineeringmeasuresof
success.
Inourconversationswithpracticingengineering,they
constantlyemphasizedtheimportanceofclear
communicationforsolvingproblems,particularlyas
realworldproblemsarerarelysolvedindividually.
Refertoourreportsonteamworkandcommunication
forfurtherconnectionstoengineeringwork.
PurdueUniversityenhancesitsfirstyearstudent
experiencebyincludingModelElicitingActivities
whichaskstudents,likepracticingengineers,tobetter
understandanopenended,clientdrivenproblemby
mathematicallymodelingitsparameters.

ValueofRealWorldActivities
Courseactivitiesthatconnecttorealworlddesignand
problemsolvingfromdayoneinengineeringhave
beenshowntoincreaseretentionandengagementof
engineeringstudents.

Assessment
StudentportfoliosofworkPortfoliosand
presentationsoftheseportfoliosallowfacultyto
assessstudentworkandproblemsolvingabilitiesina
moreauthenticwaythantraditionalpresentationsof
writingtasks.
ViewthisposterbyDocktorandHellerforideason
usingarubrictoassessstudentsproblemsolving
stepsinatechnicalcourse.
Togetatimprovingtechnicalproblemsolvingwithin
courses,theStanfordCenterforTeachingand
Learningsuggests,Ratherthansimplyrequiring
studentstodoanumberofproblemsforhomework,
theinstructorasksstudentstosolveaproblemand
alsotowritedownstepbystepwhattheywere
thinkingateachstageoftheproblemsolvingprocess.
Readingthroughthesesolutionsgivesaninstructora
senseofhowwellthestudentsaredevelopingtheir
problemsolvingskillsandcanhelptheinstructor
determinehowmuchclassorsectiontimeshould
focusonimprovingthisacademicskill.

LinkstoRelatedArticles
EngineeringStudentsMathematicalProblemSolving
Strategies,byCardella&Atman
Designorproblemsolving,byHolt,Radcliffe&
Schoorl
LearningtoThinkMathematically:ProblemSolving,
MetacognitionandSensemakinginMathematics,by
Schoenfeld
Casestudiesprovideonemethodofconnectingto
realworldproblemsandallowingstudentstotransfer
knowledgetonewarenas,byJensen.

LinktoOnlineVersion
Linktoourprojectforonlineresourcesandlivelinks