Impact of modelling and simulation in solving complex problems in first year engineering course

Abstract

Introduction of modelling and simulation experiences has been a widely accepted practice in the engineering education system. One of the key motivation to provide students with modelling and simulation opportunities is to equip them with the knowledge and skills to utilize modern tools, which are widely used in the industry for complex problem solving. There have been many studies conducted to understand the student’s ability to solve complex problems by adopting various practices and technology tools at 2nd or 3rd year of undergraduate engineering program. In this study, one such experience for first year undergraduate students was conducted. Modelling and simulation was introduced in to a course named engineering exploration, to try and understand its effect in complex problem solving. This course is offered to all first-year students at KLE Technological University. An experimental design for the study was used where 64 multidisciplinary projects were assigned to the control and experimental group. The experimental group was introduced with MATLAB-Simulink tool. At the end of the semester, each of the projects in both the groups were analysed to calculate the complexity of the projects. Descriptive statistics was used to compare the mean score of the complexity of the projects between these groups and to understand the effect of modelling and simulation experiences on students’ complex problem solving ability. The results from the study would be helpful for undergraduate engineering educators to develop the problem -solving skills among first-year engineering students.