Assessing Studio-based Learning in Material/Energy Balance Classes

Abstract

Richard Zollars has been on the faculty at Washington State University for 36 years. He has had numerous educational grants, including two in support of an on-going investigation of the use of studio-based learning techniques in regular classroom settings.

The Design and Experimental Evaluation of a Scaffolded Software Environment to Improve Engineering Students' Disciplinary Problem‐Solving Skills

“…Though an iterative, learner-centered design process (e.g., Soloway et al, 1996) , we developed ChemProV (Chemical Process Visualizer) to assist chemical engineering students in solving material balance problems. Our design process began with a preliminary study of student problem-solving with pen-and-paper (Zollars, Hundhausen, & Stefik, 2007). Aside from illuminating learners' problem solving processes, the study uncovered several common errors that learners commit when solving material balance problems, including (a) omitting critical components of process flow diagrams, (b) symbolizing material streams as processing units, (c) adding components beyond those that were described in the problem statement; (d) incorrectly expressing the contents of material streams; and (e) incorrectly formulating material balance equations.…”

“…Another possibility, based on past research into differences in novice and expert problem-solving (Chi, Glaser, & Rees, 1982;Gick, 1986;e.g., Bransford, Brown, & Cocking, 1999), is that deficiencies in students' problem-solving processes contribute to their failure in gateway courses. In order to explore how students go about solving disciplinary problems, and why they fail, we conducted an exploratory empirical study in which we recorded four pairs of introductory chemical engineering students as they solved material balance problems (Zollars, Hundhausen, & Stefik, 2007). This process involves three key steps: (a) creating a process flow diagram that models the chemical process described in the material balance problem; (b) creating a corresponding system of mathematical equations; and (c) solving the equations for the unknowns.…”