Mini-Hints for Improved Spatial Visualization Training

Nathan Delson; Lelli Van Den Einde; Elizabeth Rose Cowan; Bob Mihelich

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Conference: 2019 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition
Location: Tampa, Florida
Publication Date: June 15, 2019
Start Date: June 15, 2019
End Date: June 19, 2019
Conference Session: Engineering Design Graphics Division Technical Session 3 - Spatial Visualization Topics
Tagged Division: Engineering Design Graphics
Page Count: 12
DOI: 10.18260/1-2--33112
Permanent URL: https://peer.asee.org/33112
Download Count: 845

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Paper Authors

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Nathan Delson University of California, San Diego

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Nathan Delson’s interests include mechatronics, biomedical devices, human-machine interfaces, and engineering education. He isCo-founder and Past President of Coactive Drive Corp., which develops novel actuators and control methods for use in force feedback human interfaces. Medical device projects include an instrumented mannequin and laryngoscope for expert skill acquisition and airway intubation training. He received his undergraduate degree in mechanical engineering from the University of California, San Diego, and then went on to get a doctorate in mechanical engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1994. He was a lecturer and Director of the Design Studio at Yale University for four years, and then returned to his alma matter, UC, San Diego, in 1999. He is now a tenured lecturer and Director of the Design Center in the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering. He teaches hands-on design courses, including an introductory design class, a mechatronics class, and a capstone design class. His interests in design education include increasing student motivation, teamwork, and integration of theory into design projects.

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Lelli Van Den Einde University of California, San Diego

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Van Den Einde is a Teaching Professor in Structural Engineering at UC San Diego and the President of eGrove Education, Inc. She incorporates education innovations into courses (Peer Instruction, Project-based learning), prepares next generation faculty, advises student organizations, hears cases of academic misconduct, is responsible for ABET, and is committed to fostering a supportive environment for diverse students. Her research focuses on engagement strategies for large classrooms and developing K-16 curriculum in earthquake engineering and spatial visualization.

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Elizabeth Rose Cowan eGrove Education Inc.

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Elizabeth Cowan is a User Experience Researcher and Designer for eGrove Education, Inc., which develops Spatial Visualization Training software. Her degree is in Cognitive Science and Human-Computer Interaction from the University of California San Diego.

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Bob Mihelich McHenry County College

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Mr. Mihelich is a tenured faculty member teaching applied technology at McHenry County College, a suburb of Chicago, teaching within the areas of engineering technology, construction and manufacturing technology and management, and CAD/BIM technologies. Mr. Mihelich is also a licensed architect in the State of Illinois having worked on numerous building typologies including advanced manufacturing, mission critical, and data centers. His pedagogical emphasis is to bring real-world experiences to the classroom, and demonstrate best practices for his students to model to be successful.

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Abstract

The pedagogical approach of Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD) is based on the belief that effective learning occurs when students are challenged just beyond the level they can do on their own. An expert teacher looking over the shoulder of a student would give just the right amount of hints; too much hinting gives away the solution which deprives the student of the productive struggle that is needed for learning new concepts. Alternatively, no hinting may leave the student frustrated to the point where they give up. A key challenge with online learning is how to provide the right level of hints as if an expert teacher were there. This paper describes the evolution of hints for spatial visualization training using a mobile app. Students sketch orthographic and isometric sketches, which are automatically graded by the app. When a student draws an assignment incorrectly, they are provided with the option of a hint or peeking at the solution. This paper discusses the development of the app feedback and how it has impacted student behavior in using the app. In a first implementation, some students who excessively peeked at the solution without trying very hard on the assignments, did not significantly improve their spatial visualization ability as measured by the standardized PSVT:R test. To address the over-use of peeking, gamification was added that rewarded students to try on their own before looking at a hint or peek. In this paper, we look at a classroom trial that used a version of the spatial visualization mobile app with gamification. In general, gamification increased the post PSVT:r test scores. However, there was also a partial negative effect that and we see instances where the gamification lead to student frustration and waste of time because they avoided using hints to maximize their gamification points. We realized that the encomposing the knowledge of an expert teacher in providing hints just when needed, is difficult to implement in an algorithm. Specific examples are presented along with proposed improvements to the in-app hints. The final paper will include data comparing results of a class in January 2018 that used the original hints, with a class in January 2019 that will use the newer hints.

Citation
Format

Delson, N., & Van Den Einde, L., & Cowan, E. R., & Mihelich, B. (2019, June), Mini-Hints for Improved Spatial Visualization Training Paper presented at 2019 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition , Tampa, Florida. 10.18260/1-2--33112

TY - CPAPER
AB - The pedagogical approach of Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD) is based on the belief that effective learning occurs when students are challenged just beyond the level they can do on their own. An expert teacher looking over the shoulder of a student would give just the right amount of hints; too much hinting gives away the solution which deprives the student of the productive struggle that is needed for learning new concepts. Alternatively, no hinting may leave the student frustrated to the point where they give up. A key challenge with online learning is how to provide the right level of hints as if an expert teacher were there. This paper describes the evolution of hints for spatial visualization training using a mobile app. Students sketch orthographic and isometric sketches, which are automatically graded by the app. When a student draws an assignment incorrectly, they are provided with the option of a hint or peeking at the solution. This paper discusses the development of the app feedback and how it has impacted student behavior in using the app. In a first implementation, some students who excessively peeked at the solution without trying very hard on the assignments, did not significantly improve their spatial visualization ability as measured by the standardized PSVT:R test. To address the over-use of peeking, gamification was added that rewarded students to try on their own before looking at a hint or peek. In this paper, we look at a classroom trial that used a version of the spatial visualization mobile app with gamification. In general, gamification increased the post PSVT:r test scores. However, there was also a partial negative effect that and we see instances where the gamification lead to student frustration and waste of time because they avoided using hints to maximize their gamification points. We realized that the encomposing the knowledge of an expert teacher in providing hints just when needed, is difficult to implement in an algorithm. Specific examples are presented along with proposed improvements to the in-app hints. The final paper will include data comparing results of a class in January 2018 that used the original hints, with a class in January 2019 that will use the newer hints.

AU - Nathan Delson
AU - Lelli Van Den Einde
AU - Elizabeth Rose Cowan
AU - Bob Mihelich
CY - Tampa, Florida
DA - 2019/06/15
PB - ASEE Conferences
TI - Mini-Hints for Improved Spatial Visualization Training
UR - https://peer.asee.org/33112
DO - 10.18260/1-2--33112
ER -