Learning Activities to Promote the Concept of Engineering Design Process for Grade 10 Students’ Ideas about Force and Motion through Predict-Observe-Explain (POE)

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to learning activities for promoted the concept of engineering design Grade 10 students’ ideas of engineering design process on the problem based about force and motion. The force and motion unit provided the problem based activities through predict-observe-explain (POE). Participants included 60 Grade 10 students who were studying in Khon Kaen University Demonstration Secondary School (suksasart). Methodology regarded interpretive paradigm. The Hynes et.al. (2011) framework of engineering design process (EPD) was applied as reference of students’ existing ideas of engineering design process. The Hynes et.al. (2011) EPD consists of 9 steps including (1) identify need or problem, 2) research need or problem, 3) develop possible solutions, 4) select the best possible solution, 5) construct a prototype, 6) test and evaluate solution, 7) communicate the solution, 8) redesign, and 9) completion decision. The force and motion POE problem based was provided in order to allow students to design the possible solutions of inclined plane problem based. The 13 students’ tasks of solutions were interpreted to clarify students’ existing ideas of EPD. The findings revealed that all group could be interpreted that they held 9 steps of Hynes et.al. (2011) EPD to design their solutions. The paper will discuss the details of students’ existing ideas of engineering design process. The paper may have implication for STEM education teaching and learning.