Influences on engineering students’ choices of higher-level mathematics

A longitudinal study traced changes in students` understanding of Nature Of science (NOS) through the public secondary science education in Ontario Canada. Although the concepts of NOS are complicated, and students` understandings are not easy to change, not many longitudinal studies have been done across the world. The current study tried to identify the changes of participating students` understandings of NOS for two and half years of public secondary science education in Ontario Canada. Pretest was administered using Views of Nature of Science (VNOS-C) when six participants graduated from a middle school of Toronto. Two and half years of secondary education, the posttest was carried out using the same instrument. After pre and posttest, probing interviews were performed. The analysis of the data was founded on the Standards and the conceptual framework for this study. The findings were that the initial views have little changed. Most examples and explanations the participants provided were from their science classes. Lab activities for confirming the existing laws and theories and observable photos in science textbooks made students regard the knowledge as a truth. Naturally, their knowledge has been expanded for 2 and 1/2 years, but this expansion of scientific knowledge led students toward Universalist views on science. On the other hand, when science was presented with a historical approach or was networked with other concepts, students acknowledged science and scientific knowledge had been induced from inferences as well as observations and experimental results. Based on the findings the authors of this research suggest that educating the knowledge of science should be historical and networked approaches rather than teaching the knowledge as concise and true statements of the nature.

All scholars know that preparing a manuscript of new research work for scholarly publication is a lot of work. Shepherding a submitted manuscript to its eventual publication among meritorious peers in JMD is also a lot of work. This shepherding, formally referred to as the publication process, happens only because of the untiring volunteer efforts of the JMD Editorial Board. The Board consists of the (Technical) Editor and Associate Editors. The Editor serves for five years, and the Associate Editors for three years with the possibility for one time renewal. All appointments must be approved by the ASME Design Engineering Executive Committee and the ASME Publications Committee.The JMD publication process follows closely the society guidelines of ASME, summarized here.1A manuscript or other work is submitted to the journal.2The Editor reads the work and determines if it is appropriate and worthy of review.3The Editor assigns the work to an Associate Editor, who oversees the review process.4The Associate Editor assigns the work to qualified reviewers.5The work is reviewed in accordance with ASME standards and requirements.6Based on the reviews, the Associate Editor makes a recommendation to the Editor, who makes the final determination of acceptance or rejection.7Accepted works are processed for publication; rejected works are returned to the authors.The primary responsibility of the Editor is to oversee the technical content and operation of the journal. In overseeing the technical content, the Editor is responsible fordetermining acceptance or rejection of all materials considered for publication;managing the Associate Editors and overseeing their roles and responsibilities in coordinating the review process;maintaining commitment to standards of high quality;enrolling and maintaining qualified reviewers to consistently contribute and support the journal by judging the technical merit of potential material;maintaining the health of the journal and inspire new growth;maintaining technical currency in the overall journal subject matter.In overseeing the operation of the journal, the Editor is responsible forencouraging and supporting the Associate Editors;nominating potential Associate Editors to the Publications Committee for approval;cooperating with the ASME Technical Publishing Department staff to ensure timely publication of journal issues and implementation of state-of-the-art technologies in the production process;staying current with publishing technologies to assist and support authors, Associate Editors, and reviewers;overseeing the management of the editorial office and related journal administrative functions;participating in meetings and activities of the Board of Editors.The primary responsibility of the Associate Editor is to oversee the peer review process of the technical works assigned. Associate Editors are responsible forenrolling and maintaining qualified reviewers to consistently contribute and support the journal by judging the technical merit of potential material;ensuring the review is completed in a timely manner and in accordance with Society policy and standards;recommending acceptance or rejection of all materials considered for publication to the journal Editor;maintaining active communication with authors and reviewers during the peer review process;ensuring authors address review comments and prepare and complete their work in accordance with Society guidelines and standards;maintaining commitment to standards of high quality;assisting and supporting the Editor in maintaining the health of the journal and inspiring new growth;maintaining technical currency in the overall journal subject matter and in a personal specialty area;staying current with publishing technologies to assist and support authors;cooperating with the ASME Technical Publishing Department staff to ensure timely publication of journal issues and implementation of state-of-the-art technologies in the production process.As a design educator, I am fond of checklists. It is the simplest way to get you to think in a focused way without limiting you. The checklists above provide daily guidance to all of us on the JMD Editorial Board, as we strive to serve our community. The list below provides names and short biographies of the current members of the JMD Editorial Board, and two associate editors who just completed their second term of service: Shapour Azarm and Larry Howell. You can follow editorial board composition changes in www.asmejmd.org.On behalf of our community, I would like to thank all of our associate editors, past, present, and future, for their selfless, competent service.Panos Y. Papalambros, Ph.D., P.E., is the Donald C. Graham Professor of Engineering and Professor of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. He also holds faculty appointments in the College of Architecture and Urban Planning, and the School of Art and Design. He holds a diploma in mechanical and electrical engineering from the National Technical University of Athens, and M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in mechanical engineering from Stanford University. He has co-authored the textbook Principles of Optimal Design: Modeling and Computation (1988, 2000). He is a Fellow of ASME and SAE, and recipient of the JSME Systems and Design Achievement Award, ASME Design Automation, ASME Machine Design, and ASME Spira Outstanding Design Educator Awards. Areas of interest: design optimization, design scienceJanet K. Allen, Ph.D., is Professor of Mechanical Engineering in the George W. Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering at Georgia Tech Savannah. She received her S.B. degree from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and her Ph.D. from the University of California, Berkeley. She is a Fellow of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, a Senior Member of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics and an Honorary Member of Pi Tau Sigma, the mechanical engineering honor society. Areas of interest: systems design, robust design, intellectual foundations of design Email: janet.allen@me.gatech.eduDiann Brei, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor in the Mechanical Engineering Department at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. She received her BSE degree in Computer Systems Engineering and her Ph.D. degree in Mechanical Engineering from Arizona State University. She co-directs the General Motors/University of Michigan Smart Materials and Structures Collaborative Research Laboratory. She is currently the Technical Chair of the ASME Conference on Smart Materials, Adaptive Structures and Intelligent Systems. She serves on the ASME Adaptive Structures and Material Systems Technical Committee and has been the chair of the AIAA Adaptive Structures Technical Committee. She has over 90 publications in the area of Smart Material Device Innovation with several best paper awards and is a holder of 3 US patents. She is an AIAA Associate Fellow and recipient of the Hartwell Award, UM Ruth and Joel Spira Outstanding Teaching Award, and National Multiple Scierosis Society Da Vinci Award. Areas of Interest: device innovation, smart materials and structures, actuationJonathan Cagan, Ph.D., P.E., is the George Tallman and Florence Barrett Ladd Professor in Engineering, in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Carnegie Mellon University, with appointments in the School of Design and Computer Science. At Carnegie Mellon, Cagan co-directs the Master in Product Development program and co-directs the Center for Product Strategy and Innovation. He is the co-author of Creating Breakthrough Products (with Craig Vogel) and The Design of Things to Come (with Craig Vogel and Peter Boatwright), and the co-editor of Formal Engineering Design Synthesis (with Erik Antonsson). He is the recipient of the engineering college's Outstanding Research Award. Cagan is a Fellow of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers and serves on the Advisory Board for The Design Society. Dr. Cagan received his Bachelor of Science in 1983 and Master of Science in 1985 from the University of Rochester, and his Ph.D. in 1990 from the University of California at Berkeley. All of his degrees are in Mechanical Engineering. Areas of interest: product development, computational innovation, cognitive-based engineeringThomas R. Chase is a Professor and Morse-Alumni Distinguished Teaching Professor of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Minnesota. Dr. Chase received his Ph.D. from the University of Minnesota in 1984. He chaired the Design Engineering Division in 2002–2003, the Mechanisms Committee in 1993–1994, and the Design Engineering Technical Conferences in 1994. Areas of interest: mechanism synthesis, machine element design, hydraulics, the design of apparatus for high energy physics experiments, database design for computer aided engineeringMary Frecker is a Professor of Mechanical Engineering at the Pennsylvania State University. She has a B.S. from the University of Dayton, and an M.S. and Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Michigan. When she joined Penn State in 1997, she was awarded the Pearce Endowed Development Professorship in Mechanical Engineering. Dr. Frecker has also been awarded the GM/Freudenstein Young Investigator Award by the ASME Mechanisms Committee (2002), the Outstanding Advising Award by the Penn State Engineering Society (2002), and the Outstanding Research Award by the Penn State Engineering Society (2005). She is a Fellow of the ASME. Dr. Frecker is an Associate Editor of the ASME Journal of Mechanical Design, and serves as Chair of the ASME Adaptive Structures Technical Committee. She is also a member of the ASME Mechanisms Committee. Areas of interest: compliant mechanism design, medical device design, smart structuresJohn K. Gershenson, Ph.D., is a Professor of Mechanical Engineering at Michigan Technological University and the director of the Product and Process Architecture Alignment Center and heads the center's Life-cycle Engineering Laboratory. He also is the department's Manufacturing/Industrial Area Director. Dr. Gershenson is a graduate of Cornell University and The Ohio State University and holds a doctorate in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Idaho. Areas of interest: product family design, product platforms, modular product design, assembly systems platforming, lean engineering, life-cycle design, lean manufacturing, and systems design for the environmentAshitava Ghosal is a Professor of Mechanical Engineering and the Centre for Product Design and Manufacture at the Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore. He obtained B.Tech, M.S., and Ph.D. degrees in mechanical engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology at Kanpur, University of Florida at Gainesville, and Stanford University, respectively. Prior to joining Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore he had research appointments at Carnegie Mellon University and at Integrated Systems, Inc., Santa Clara. He is interested in various aspects of robotics and multi-body mechanical systems, design of mechanical systems, and product design, and has published over 70 papers in international journals, conference proceedings, and workshops. He has authored the textbook Robotics: Fundamental Concepts and Analysis (Oxford University Press, 2006). More details on his research and other activities are available at http://www.mecheng.iisc.ernet.in/~asitava Areas of interest: robotics and product design Email: ashitava@asmejmd.orgJeffrey W. Herrmann is an associate professor at the University of Maryland, where he holds a joint appointment with the Department of Mechanical Engineering and the Institute for Systems Research. He is the director of the Computer Integrated Manufacturing Laboratory and Associate Director for the University of Maryland Quality Enhancement Systems and Teams (QUEST) Honors Fellows Program. He is a member of INFORMS, ASME, IIE, SME, and ASEE. He was the chair of the ASME Design for Manufacturing Technical Committee. Dr. Herrmann earned his B.S. in applied mathematics from Georgia Institute of Technology. As a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellow from 1990–1993, he received his Ph.D. in industrial and systems engineering from the University of Florida. Areas of interest: engineering design decision-making, design optimization, design for manufacturing, operations researchYan Jin is a Professor of Aerospace & Mechanical Engineering at University of Southern California and Director of USC IMPACT Laboratory. He received his Ph.D. degree in Naval Architecture and Ocean Engineering from the University of Tokyo. Prior to joining the USC faculty in 1996, he worked as a Post-doctoral Research Fellow at the University of Tokyo and as a Senior Research Scientist at Stanford University. He is the recipient of a National Science Foundation CAREER Award (1998), TRW Excellence in Teaching Award (2001), Best Paper in Human Information Systems (5th World Multi-Conference on Systemics, Cybernetics and Informatics, 2001), and Xerox Best Paper Award (ASME International Conference on Design Theory and Methodology, 2002). He is currently an Editorial Board member of International Journal of AI in Engineering Design, Analysis, and Manufacturing (AIEDAM) and International Journal of Advanced Engineering Informatics. He also served as Conference Chair and Program Chair of the ASME Design Theory and Methodology (DTM) Conferences, and Vice Chair of the DTM Committee. Areas of interest: design cognition, conceptual design method and technology, self-organizing and complex systems, and engineering collaborationPierre M. Larochelle, Ph.D., P.E., is the Assistant Dean for Academics & Accreditation and Professor of Mechanical Engineering at the Florida Institute of Technology. At Florida Tech he is the founder and director of the Robotics and Spatial Systems Laboratory (RASSL). He received his Bachelors of Science in Mechanical Engineering from the University of California at San Diego (1989), and his Masters of Science (1991) and Ph.D. (1994) degrees in Mechanical Engineering from the University of California at Irvine. He has over 100 publications, is the holder of one US patent, and has served as a consultant to a number of companies in the areas of robotics, automation, machine design, and computer-aided design. He is a Fellow of ASME and a recipient of the MDI Mechanical Simulation Software Award. Areas of interest: kinematics, robotics, mechanisms, machines, and design of robotic mechanical systemsZissimos P. Mourelatos, Ph.D., is a Professor of Mechanical Engineering at Oakland University in Rochester, MI. Before joining Oakland University, he spent 18 years at the General Motors Research and Development (GM R&D) Center. He holds a diploma in Marine Engineering and Mechanical Engineering from the National Technical University of Athens, Greece, two M.S. degrees (Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering, and Mechanical Engineering) from The University of Michigan, and a Ph.D. degree (Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering) from The University of Michigan. He is active in the dynamics and vibrations as well as design automation communities. Dr. Mourelatos has published over 110 journal and conference publications in the areas of design under uncertainty and structural dynamics. He is the Editor-in-Chief of the International Journal of Reliability and Safety, an Associate Editor of the ASME Journal of Mechanical Design, and a SAE Fellow. Areas of interest: design under uncertainty, probabilistic and non-probabilistic uncertainty theories, structural dynamicsKarthik Ramani is a Professor in the School of Mechanical Engineering and of Electrical and Computer Engineering (by Courtesy) at Purdue University. He earned his B.Tech from the Indian Institute of Technology, Madras, in 1985, an M.S. from The Ohio State University, in 1987, and a Ph.D. from Stanford University in 1991, all in Mechanical Engineering. He has been recognized by Purdue University through a University Faculty Scholars Award (2002), Discovery in Mechanical Engineering Award (2005), Research Excellence Award throughout the College of Engineering at Purdue University in 2007. He serves in the editorial board of Elsevier Journal of Computer-Aided Design. He is also serving on the Engineering Advisory Board for the National Science Foundation (Industrial Innovation and Partnerships) for 2007–2010. He also serves as the technology-business advisor at Imaginestics, that launched the world's first commercial on-line shape-based search engine for the manufacturing supply chain. https://engineering.purdue.edu/~ramani/ Areas of interest: digital and computational geometry, shape design and analysis, shape and ontology search, computational tools for early design innovationJosé M. Rico, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at the Institute of Technology at Celaya. He received a B.S. degree from the Calaya Institute of Technology in 1975 and a Masters from the Monterrey Institute of Technology and Higher Education in 1977, both in Mechanical Engineering. Since his retirement in 2005, he is affiliated with the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Guanajuato, Campus Irapuato-Salamanca. He has been a visiting scholar at the University of Florida, Arizona State University, University of California-Davis, and the French Institute of Advanced Mechanics under the sponsorship of Professor Joseph Duffy, Professor Joseph K. Davidson, Professor Bahram Ravani, and Professor Grigore Gogu, respectively. He has been author or co-author of 40 papers in archival journals and 60 papers in conferences and has been an ASME member since 1975. Areas of interest: theoretical and computational kinematics and applied mathematicsJames P. Schmiedeler, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor in the Department of Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering at the University of Notre Dame. He received a B.S. degree from the University of Notre Dame and M.S. and Ph.D. degrees from The Ohio State University, all in mechanical engineering. He was previously an Assistant Professor at the University of Iowa (2002–2003) and at The Ohio State University (2003–2008). In 2002, he was a summer faculty research fellow at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, CA, and in 2007, he was awarded the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE) for his work in modeling human motor coordination and robot-assisted rehabilitation. Areas of interest: machine design, robotics, biomechanicsTimothy W. Simpson, Ph.D., is a Professor of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering at the Pennsylvania State University in University Park, PA. He also holds faculty appointments in the School of Engineering Design, Technology, and Professional Programs and the College of Information Sciences and Technology. He received a B.S. degree in mechanical engineering from Cornell University and M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in mechanical engineering from the Georgia Institute of Technology. He is the lead editor on the book Product Family and Product Platform Design: Methods and Applications (2005). He is an Associate Fellow of AIAA and is active in ASME and ASEE. He is the recipient of a NSF Career Award, SAE Ralph R. Teetor Educational Award, AIAA Multidisciplinary Design Optimization Technical Committee Outstanding Service Award, and the Pennsylvania State University President's Award for Excellence in Academic Integration. Areas of interest: product family design, product platforms, metamodeling, visualizationAvinash Singh, Ph.D., is a Senior Staff Engineer in the Advanced Power Transfer Group of GM Powertrain, General Motors Corporation. He received his B.Tech. degree from the Institute of Technology, BHU, India in 1990, and his M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Mechanical Engineering from the Ohio State University in 1992 and 1997. Dr. Singh works on power transmission component technology and his research interests are in the areas of gear system design and analysis, gear system dynamics and noise, development and validation of high fidelity models, power losses, rotating system diagnostics, and fatigue life prediction. He currently serves as the Vice Chair of the ASME Power Transmission and Gearing committee of the DED. Areas of interest: transmission component design and analysis, model development and validationAlexander H. Slocum is the Pappalardo Professor of Mechanical Engineering at MIT. Alex has written two books on machine design, Precision Machine Design and FUNdaMENTALs of Design (free download on http://pergatory.mit.edu), published more than 150 papers, and has over seven dozen patents issued or pending. Alex regularly works with companies on the development of new products and has been significantly involved with the invention and development of 11 products that have been awarded R&D 100 awards. Alex is a Fellow of the ASME and the recipient of the Society of Manufacturing Engineer's Frederick W. Taylor Research Medal, ASME Leonardo daVinci Award, and the ASME Machine Design Award. Areas of interest: machine elements, precision machine design, MEMsJanis Terpenny, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor of Engineering Education and Mechanical Engineering and an affiliate faculty of Industrial and Systems Engineering at Virginia Tech. She is the Director of the Center for e-Design, a five-university NSF industry/university cooperative research center. She is an Advance Professor and Diggs Teaching Scholar at Virginia Tech and a Dean's Faculty Fellow in the College of Engineering. Formerly, she was an assistant professor at the University of Massachusetts Amherst and has prior industrial work experience with General Electric (GE) Corporation, including the completion of a two-year corporate management program. She received her B.S. degree in Applied Mathematics from Virginia Commonwealth University (1979). She earned her M.S. degree in Industrial Engineering and Operations Research (1981) and Ph.D. degree in Industrial and Systems Engineering (1996) from Virginia Tech. She is a member of ASME, ASEE, and senior member of IIE. Areas of interest: design process and methods, knowledge engineering, product families and platforms, product obsolescence, student learning and engagement related to design educationKwun-Lon Ting is a Professor of Center for Manufacturing Research and Mechanical Engineering Department at Tennessee Tech University. He has a B.S. degree from National Taiwan University, an M.S. degree from Clemson University, and a Ph.D. degree from Oklahoma State University. During his tenure at Tennessee Tech, he received eight research grant awards from National Science Foundation, Caplenor Faculty Research Award from the university, and Kinslow Engineering Research Award twice from the engineering college. He was the recipient of the South-Pointing Chariot Award and Bernard Roth Award from Applied Mechanisms and Robotics Conference. He is a Fellow of ASME. Areas of interest: kinematics, mechanisms, robotics, linkage mobility, geometric designPhilippe Velex graduated from INSA Lyon (France) in 1984 with Meng. in Mechanical Engineering. He obtained his Ph.D. from the same establishment in 1988. He was appointed Full Professor of Mechanical Engineering in 1998. He is head of the “Mechanical Systems and Contact” research group of LaMCoS (INSA Lyon) and director of the CETIM-INSA joint laboratory on Mechanical Transmissions. His research topics comprise the analysis of interactions between lubricated contacts and the static and dynamic behavior of mechanical systems. He is also the director of the International English-Speaking Undergraduate Section at INSA Lyon. Areas of interest: gear dynamics, power losses, loads and stresses, lubrication in gearsHong-Sen Yan is an NCKU Chair Professor at the National Cheng Kung University (Tainan, Taiwan) in the Department of Mechanical Engineering. He also serves as the Director of the NCKU Museum. He holds a B.S. degree from the National Cheng Kung University, M.S. degree from the University of Kentucky, and Ph.D. degree from Purdue University, all in mechanical engineering. He is the author of two Springer books, Creative Design of Mechanical Devices (1998) and Reconstruction Designs of Lost Ancient Chinese Machinery (2007). He is a Fellow of ASME, and recipient of ASME Best Paper Award (Mechanism Conference) and National Chair Award (Ministry of Education, Taiwan, ROC). And, he collects ancient Chinese padlocks as a Areas of interest: kinematics, conceptual design of and machines, design of ancient Ph.D., P.E., is a Professor of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Maryland College He holds a faculty appointment with the Applied Mathematics and Computation Program at He has M.S., and Ph.D. all in mechanical engineering, from the University of George University, and the University of Michigan, respectively. He is the chair of the ASME Design Design and Design Engineering He is the recipient of the Design Award. He is a Fellow of ASME. Areas of interest: optimization, optimization, analysis, Ph.D., P.E., is a Professor and chair of the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Young University where he holds a University Professor received his B.S. degree from Young University and his M.S. and Ph.D. degrees from Purdue University. Prior to joining in he was a visiting professor at Purdue University, a element analysis consultant for Engineering Inc., and an on the design of the for the He is a Fellow of ASME and chair of the ASME Mechanisms & Robotics Committee. Professor patents and technical publications on compliant and systems. He is the author of the book Mechanisms published by Areas of interest: compliant mechanisms, systems design

The use of technology to support the teaching of mathematics in engineering schools has been increasing in recent years, not only restricted to math labs, where certain software was used to develop different practical sessions. The versatility and the power of the current technological tools allow many possibilities of usage and promote new ways of assessing the different competencies to be acquired by the students. In this paper some examples developed in two Spanish universities with first year students of various Engineering degrees are presented. The examples selected were performed under different assumptions and conditions and using different technological tools. The study of the Cornu spiral or clothoid, one of the special curves used in the layout of roads, is carried out by the students of Civil Engineering at the University of Salamanca as team work supervised by the teacher. Mathematica has been the software used in the experience. At the Polytechnic University of Madrid some students of Mechanical Engineering have to research a real problem of their choice and solve it using different methods of systems of linear equations with several procedures implemented with the software MAXIMA. Students of Computer Sciences of the same University participated in a competition organized by math professors. The students, working in teams of two or three people, developed projects freely chosen by them. The mathematical topics and the technology used are free. The winning team has implemented an Android application for the study of graphs.

Background: Varied and complex forms of parental influence may shape young people’s decisions about whether or not to study science once it is no longer compulsory in school. Purpose: This study attempts to identify the role of parents in influencing the choice of science subjects in Mauritius among students at the end of the third year of secondary education, the level up to which science is a compulsory subject, and to see whether such influence depends on students’ social backgrounds. There is a low uptake of science beyond the compulsory level and this is a matter of concern in the present knowledge-based society. Sample: The study was undertaken in four purposely selected schools in Mauritius, two mixed-sex and two girls’ schools. 135 questionnaires were administered to the parents of the students in the four schools. Results: Analysis of the data indicated that parents on the whole believed that they did not influence their children in the choice of subjects or eventual careers, though they held science in high esteem. These findings were independent of students’ social backgrounds. Conclusions: In interpreting these findings, we discuss what is meant by ‘influence’ and propose a new categorisation of this.

Recently, there have been some criticisms that the same prescriptions are presented to the masses on similar stories about career planning in Türkiye. This qualitative research method is used to investigate the subject through high school guidance counsellors. In particular, the factors that are effective in career planning and the relationship between career and nonpreferred occupational groups, which are described as dirty jobs (cleaning workers, industrialists, etc.) in the research were revealed. This study was designed with qualitative method and the data were analysed using a semi-structured interview form. Interviews were conducted by in-depth interview method. The data of the voice recordings taken in line with the permission of the participants were transcribed and analysed in Maxqda 2020 programme. The analysis of the data was carried out by content analysis method and inductive analysis approach. The criteria sampling method is the sampling method of the study. This study concluded that there is no conscious action in career planning, also the current number of students per guidance counsellor is high, and there are some problems in both academic and practical perspectives on career, especially in lowly professions. It has been emphasised that career planning, whose structure will change and importance will increase in the future, should be handled more accurately.

One of the tasks the development of high school teenagers are prepared to face the world of work or career. This study aims to improve students' career planning through career guidance with the use of media modules in class XII IPA 2 MAN Wonokromo Bantul academic year 2013/2014. This research is action research. The subjects were taken in this study using purposive sampling as many as 12 students who have a low level of career planning. Methods of data collection using questionnaires and observation. Analysis of the data used using the formula t-test to see the differences between the mean pretest and posttest mean. The research shows students career planning class XII IPA 2 can be enhanced through the use of media career guidance module seen from the significant difference from the average prior to career guidance at 105.25 and after a mean of 122.50 and career guidance. It can be concluded "there is increasing career guidance, career planning through the use of media modules in class XII IPA 2 MAN Wonokromo Bantul academic year 2013/2014. The results of this study can be used as reference material for teachers bmbingan and counseling programming and media development of career counseling services to improve students' career planning.

Deciding on the truth value of mathematical statements is an essential aspect of mathematical practice in which students are rarely engaged. This study explored first year engineering students’ approaches to mathematical statements with unknown truth values, taking a perspective that the construction examples is an activity of problem solving. Task-based interviews utilizing the think-aloud method revealed students problem solving processes in depth. The primary data sources were the protocols of 15 students to the questionnaire, three false statements involved basic concepts about derivative and definite integral. Through analysis of the data. The findings suggest that the factors the participants failed to solves problems include: mathematical intuition and prototype example hindered the constructing of counterexamples, there are two dangers in visualizing -figures can induce false conclusions and figures can mislead our reasoning.

Addressing the participation rates in senior secondary mathematics courses in Australian schools remains a critically important issue. In this paper, the authors report on quantitative findings from a study in which all year 11 and year 12 (aged 17–18 years) Australian Tertiary Admissions Ranking (ATAR) students in Western Australia were invited to participate. The aim was to explore the perceptions of these students regarding their enrolment in higher-level mathematics courses. Data from 1633 students were collected using a survey instrument comprised of 12, 5-point, Likert-scale items. Data were analysed by applying two statistical procedures: calculating frequencies of the 12 items in the scale and examining associations with demographic characteristics and individual items through generalised linear modelling. Analyses indicated most students agreed that other courses of study were more attractive, with almost half indicating that they did not like mathematics. In addition, approximately half of the students said that they did not need to enrol in any mathematics course for ATAR or for university entrance. Significant findings were also identified for gender, school type, and school gender. The knowledge gained from this research is valuable in understanding students’ reasons for choosing not to enrol in higher-level mathematics courses when they have the option to do so and, more broadly, to address persistently low or declining participation rates in these areas of study.

Educational digital games are games designed for educational purposes. These games are used to provide students with certain knowledge, and designated with a with a view to improving their skills or to shaping their behavior. The aim of this study is to determine the effect of educational digital games Wordwall and Matific used in teaching primary school mathematics course on student achievement and attitude. Pre-test and post-test were applied to the experimental and control groups of the study in which quasi-experimental method was used. The study group consisted of 48 students studying in the 3rd grade of a public primary school. In the experimental group of the study, educational digital games Wordwall and Matific were used in the measurement unit of the mathematics course (length, perimeter, area, and liquid measurement). In the control group, the same subject was presented in accordance with the instructions in the third grade mathematics teacher's guide provided by Republic of Türkiye Ministry of National Education. The data were collected with the 20-question "Mathematics Achievement Test", which was jointly determined by the classroom teachers and the researchers, and the "Mathematics Course Attitude Scale" consisting of 13 items developed by Ayvaz (2010). In the analysis of the data, t-test for independent and dependent groups, which is one of the parametric tests appropriate to the research hypotheses, was applied. The findings of the study show the effectiveness of educational digital games in affecting students' academic achievement and attitudes. Based on this result, it is recommended that teachers should benefit from trainings in order to use educational digital games effectively in lessons.

This book provides a solid foundation to a number of important topics in mathematics of interest to science and engineering students. The authors' approach is simple and direct, the emphasis being on the analytical structure and applications of the material. The text is virtually self-contained, assuming only that the student has received a good basic course in ancillary mathematics. Each chapter contains a large number of worked examples, and concludes with problems for solution, with answers given in the back of the book. There is no comparable text that covers this material in such a concise form. This book will be of great value to undergraduates in physics, chemistry, theoretical biology, and in all engineering disciplines, as a source book of advanced mathematical methods, and also to postgraduate students as a revision text.

Several studies have been conducted to understand the predictors of academic performance of various levels of high school and undergraduate students as quantified by the grade point average. This study focuses specifically on engineering students as they differ from other undergraduate students in their background and expectations. We focus on quantifying essential predictors of the performance of engineering students in an advanced mathematics course. We collected data from 72 participants recruited from engineering students enrolled in the advanced engineering mathematics (AEM) course in a research university. We chose this course to represent a standard engineering mathematics course covering several essential topics. We consider several factors in our analysis, such as cellphone usage and the academic background, e.g., the academic year, number of minors, and majors, performance in prerequisite courses. We perform several regression analyses to understand the effects of cellphone usage, course schedule, and academic background on performance in the AEM course and its prerequisites. In particular, we use the stepwise regression technique using forward selection and backward elimination procedures. We discovered a few interesting findings in this case study. Firstly, for the participants in this study, we find that the daily average “screen time” on their cellphones is not a statistically significant predictor of student performance. This finding contradicts some prior studies on this participant and may indicate adaption and integration of the technology by the new generation of students in recent years. We also found that the lecturing schedule was not an influential factor for their academic performance. These findings are especially relevant during the COVID-19 pandemic, as they suggest that advanced engineering students have adapted to the use of technology and are flexible concerning lecture schedules. Another unexpected finding is that this study brings new evidence that the number of minors taken by the participants is a negative predictor of their grade in the AEM course. This observation may indicate that course-work from non-major classes may adversely impact their performance in mathematical engineering courses.

Higher-level mathematics courses in upper secondary school serve as a critical filter to future educational courses and careers in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM). However, the percentage of senior school students in Australia undertaking higher-level mathematics courses is decreasing. Given that these courses provide students with skills and knowledge integral to STEM disciplines, it is important to discover factors that serve to encourage or detract students in choosing higher-level mathematics courses. Considering that educational and career choices are influenced by personal interests, values, and expectations, the purpose of this study was to design and validate a bipolar format survey instrument to investigate motivational factors on mathematics course choices of Year 10 Australian school students based upon Situated Expectancy-Value Theory (SEVT). A 25-item survey instrument using a bipolar format was developed to measure: Expectancy for success (operationalized as Competence-beliefs); Intrinsic value; Attainment value; Utility value; and Cost in relation to mathematics. Confirmatory and exploratory factor analyses of data collected from Year 10 students ( n = 886) revealed a four-factor model consisting of well-defined factors of Competence-beliefs, Intrinsic value, Attainment value, and Utility value. Unexpectedly, the items designed to measure the Cost factor dispersed variously into the factors of Competence-beliefs, Intrinsic value, and Utility value, and conceptually plausible explanations are offered for this finding. This survey represents a promising instrument for measuring predictors of mathematics course choices in senior school students. The study findings also suggest interrelationships between specific cost dimensions and other factors relevant to the measurement of SEVT constructs more generally.

The advancement of student ability to think critically is a learning outcome shared across a wide range of fields. We are instructors in a first year engineering design and communication course containing critical thinking interventions. We constantly struggle to determine the effectiveness of those interventions. This study is a work-in-progress report on one component of a large multi-institutional study on teaching and evaluating critical thinking in first year engineering students. In this study we describe the pitfalls encountered in the initial iteration of this study, such as difficulty in finding a standard test for critical thinking relevant to engineering students and in securing student participation. We describe the second iteration of the study, designed to avoid these initial pitfalls, and give details about our methodology and the conclusions we hope to draw upon analysis of the data. Finally, and perhaps most importantly for a work-in-progress report is plan for future expansion of data collection and analysis.

Three‐dimensional (3D) modeling provides a suitable context for the improvement of students' higher order thinking skills as it involves challenging and complex learning tasks. For students to succeed in difficult learning tasks, it is necessary to determine the effects of the scaffolding type given to the students in the learning process. This study asserts that reflective and supportive scaffolding has a critical effect on the dependent variables. Reflective scaffolding enables students to explain their reflective processes and clarify their reflective behavior, using personal reflection as a learning tool. Supportive scaffolding provides a process to develop knowledge and guidance on what participants should consider. This study compares the effects of different scaffolding types (reflective or supportive), students' prior knowledge on students' use of metacognitive strategies, spatial ability self‐efficacy, and spatial anxiety in the 3D computer‐aided design course. A pretest and posttest 2 x 2 x 2 factorial quasi‐experimental model was used in the study. This study was carried out with 118 undergraduate mechanical engineering students. Analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) was used in the analysis of the data. The results showed that the supportive scaffolding group scored higher in the metacognitive strategies variable than the reflective scaffolding group. The supportive scaffolding group showed higher spatial ability than the reflective scaffolding group. This study provides engineering educators with an overview of the use of scaffolding types, their effects on the effectiveness of learning environments, and the design of these environments.

Around half of all Australian adolescents combine their final years of secondary education with a part-time job and this may be creating pressure that impacts their mental health. However, there is virtually no national population-based research investigating how work-study conflicts for young people might adversely affect mental health. This study used data from Wave 7 of the Longitudinal Study of Australian Children (LSAC), including 996 adolescents (16–17 years, 44% males) who were working and studying concurrently in secondary school. The extent of work-study conflict was measured using a four-item scale. Depression and anxiety levels were assessed using the Short Mood and Feelings Questionnaire (SMFQ) and the Spence Children’s Anxiety Scale (SCAS). Associations were tested using Linear Regression, adjusting for a range of covariates (including psychosocial job quality and prior wave 6 depression/anxiety). Half of all students reported experiencing at least one indicator of work-study conflict. After adjusting for covariates (including prior depression/anxiety), work-study conflicts were significantly associated with greater depression (β = .33, p < 0.001) and anxiety (β = .26, p < 0.001). Many young Australians are having difficulties balancing their work and study commitments in their final secondary school years, and this is associated with greater depression and anxiety.