Exploring the Impact on Neurocognitive Process and Motivation Caused by Problem Modality

Abstract Design based curriculum has been identified as a vital component for engineering education. In the decade since ASME Vision 2030 Project (V2030) strides have been achieved in the implementation of these guidelines into post-secondary institutions. Such is seen in the criteria for accreditation by ABET, which includes an explicit requirement for design to be present in engineering programs. This study is a continuation of previous work examining the effect of design problem modality. Design problem modality describes the method in which design problems are presented to the students. For this study, design problems were presented to the students through either an auditory description or a kinesthetic (hands-on) example. Participants are gathered from an engineering design cornerstone course at Florida Polytechnic University. The tool utilized to examine neural oscillations in this study is the electroencephalograph (EEG). To further examine the effects of these modalities, a modified version of the Motivated Strategies for Learning Questionnaire (MSLQ) and the learning style questionnaire VARK are utilized to extend the comprehension of the impact. Including demographic data of the participants, an encompassing understanding of problem modality on student’s can be achieved. The results showed differences in neural oscillations in the beta high frequency range with differing design problem modality, however the order in which the design problems were presented showed no such correlation. Further examination found a correlation between the perceptions of a design problem, such as difficulty, and the design problem modality, as well as a participant’s satisfaction with the design problem order.