{"title":"Critical thinking activities in fluid mechanics – A case study for enhanced student learning and performance","authors":"Remo Cossu , Isaiah Awidi , Joseph Nagy","doi":"10.1016/j.ece.2023.10.004","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>We describe the implementation of Critical Thinking Activities (CTA) designed to encourage ‘critical thinking’ in an undergraduate engineering Fluid Mechanics course. Critical thinking can be a vague term both difficult to grasp and even more so to measure. Using a longitudinal case study we analyse quantitative and qualitative data collected over three years to explore the overarching question: “how do we know students have thought critically?”. We investigate and evaluate the quantitative data that emerged from students undertaking the CTA and the impact of this on their performance. The results indicate that students who performed well in the CTA achieved a final grade for the course of 5 or more (Credit, Distinction or High Distinction). Qualitative data from student feedback demonstrated that the CTA was a significant factor in reinforcing student learning, enabling us to identify areas of misconception and areas in which they could improve. While the study is situated in an engineering context at the University of Queensland, the paper is an exemplar of embedded and sustainable practice, is equally transferable to other disciplinary contexts.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":48509,"journal":{"name":"Education for Chemical Engineers","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":3.5000,"publicationDate":"2023-10-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1749772823000519/pdfft?md5=f45e436b2f499e0613937cf3ca4849eb&pid=1-s2.0-S1749772823000519-main.pdf","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Education for Chemical Engineers","FirstCategoryId":"95","ListUrlMain":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1749772823000519","RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"教育学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q1","JCRName":"EDUCATION, SCIENTIFIC DISCIPLINES","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
We describe the implementation of Critical Thinking Activities (CTA) designed to encourage ‘critical thinking’ in an undergraduate engineering Fluid Mechanics course. Critical thinking can be a vague term both difficult to grasp and even more so to measure. Using a longitudinal case study we analyse quantitative and qualitative data collected over three years to explore the overarching question: “how do we know students have thought critically?”. We investigate and evaluate the quantitative data that emerged from students undertaking the CTA and the impact of this on their performance. The results indicate that students who performed well in the CTA achieved a final grade for the course of 5 or more (Credit, Distinction or High Distinction). Qualitative data from student feedback demonstrated that the CTA was a significant factor in reinforcing student learning, enabling us to identify areas of misconception and areas in which they could improve. While the study is situated in an engineering context at the University of Queensland, the paper is an exemplar of embedded and sustainable practice, is equally transferable to other disciplinary contexts.
期刊介绍:
Education for Chemical Engineers was launched in 2006 with a remit to publisheducation research papers, resource reviews and teaching and learning notes. ECE is targeted at chemical engineering academics and educators, discussing the ongoingchanges and development in chemical engineering education. This international title publishes papers from around the world, creating a global network of chemical engineering academics. Papers demonstrating how educational research results can be applied to chemical engineering education are particularly welcome, as are the accounts of research work that brings new perspectives to established principles, highlighting unsolved problems or indicating direction for future research relevant to chemical engineering education. Core topic areas: -Assessment- Accreditation- Curriculum development and transformation- Design- Diversity- Distance education-- E-learning Entrepreneurship programs- Industry-academic linkages- Benchmarking- Lifelong learning- Multidisciplinary programs- Outreach from kindergarten to high school programs- Student recruitment and retention and transition programs- New technology- Problem-based learning- Social responsibility and professionalism- Teamwork- Web-based learning