Sorby, S. A., & Vieau, S., & Yoon, S. Y. (2021, July), The Relationship Between Spatial Skills and Solving Problems in Engineering Mechanics  Paper presented at 2021 ASEE Virtual Annual Conference Content Access, Virtual Conference. 10.18260/1-2--37886

\bibitem{asee_peer_37886}
  Sorby, S. A., \& Vieau, S., \& Yoon, S. Y. (2021, July), \emph{The Relationship Between Spatial Skills and Solving Problems in Engineering Mechanics}
  Paper presented at 2021 ASEE Virtual Annual Conference Content Access, Virtual Conference.
  10.18260/1-2--37886

Sheryl A. Sorby, Sylvie Vieau, and So Yoon Yoon.  "The Relationship Between Spatial Skills and Solving Problems in Engineering Mechanics".  2021 ASEE Virtual Annual Conference Content Access, Virtual Conference, 2021, July.  ASEE Conferences, 2021.  https://peer.asee.org/37886 Internet.  18 May, 2024

\bibitem{asee_peer_37886}
  Sheryl A. Sorby, Sylvie Vieau, and So Yoon Yoon.
  "The Relationship Between Spatial Skills and Solving Problems in Engineering Mechanics".
  \emph{2021 ASEE Virtual Annual Conference Content Access, Virtual Conference, 2021, July}.
  ASEE Conferences, 2021.
  https://peer.asee.org/37886 Internet.  18 May, 2024

@INPROCEEDINGS{asee_peer_37886
author = "Sheryl A. Sorby, Sylvie Vieau, and So Yoon Yoon"
title = "The Relationship Between Spatial Skills and Solving Problems in Engineering Mechanics"
booktitle = "2021 ASEE Virtual Annual Conference Content Access"
year = "2021"
month = "July"
address = "Virtual Conference"
publisher = "ASEE Conferences"
note = {https://peer.asee.org/37886}
number = {10.18260/1-2--37886}
}

TY  - CPAPER
AB  - Spatial visualization is defined as the “process of apprehending, encoding, and mentally manipulating three-dimensional spatial forms.” Spatial cognition has been widely studied throughout psychology and education from more than 100 years. Engineering students and engineering professionals exhibit some of the highest levels of spatial skills compared to their counterparts in other majors/careers. Numerous studies have shown the link between spatial skills and success in engineering and interventions aimed at enhancing spatial skills have demonstrated a concomitant improvement in student success, as measured by grades earned and retention/graduation. The question remains: How do well-developed spatial skills contribute to engineering student success? One hypothesis is that spatial skills contribute to a student’s ability to solve unfamiliar problems. Recent studies have demonstrated that spatial skills contribute to success in solving problems from mathematics, chemical engineering, and electrical engineering. The study outlined in this paper, extends this work to examine the impact of spatial skills on the ability to solve problems from engineering mechanics. In this pilot study, a total of 47 students from upper division mechanical engineering courses completed a test of spatial skills and also were asked to solve 5-6 problems from introductory statics/physics. Results showed that a statistically significant positive correlation was found between spatial scores and the percent correct on the mechanics test. Individual problems were also examined to determine if spatial skills appeared to play a role in their solution. Some problems appeared to rely on spatial thinking; others did not. Results from this pilot study will be used to conduct an in-depth study examining the relationship between spatial skills and solving problems in engineering mechanics. This paper outlines key findings from this pilot study and makes recommendations for future work in this area.
AU  - Sheryl A. Sorby
AU  - Sylvie Vieau
AU  - So Yoon Yoon
CY  - Virtual Conference
DA  - 2021/07/26
PB  - ASEE Conferences
TI  - The Relationship Between Spatial Skills and Solving Problems in Engineering Mechanics
UR  - https://peer.asee.org/37886
DO  - 10.18260/1-2--37886
ER  -