Engineering Students' Learning Styles in Fluid Mechanics

EEnnggiinneeeerriinngg SSttuuddeennttss’’ LLeeaarrnniinngg SSttyylleess iinn
1Centro ALGORITMI, Escola de Engenharia da Universidade do Minho, Guimarães, Portugal
2CIETI-Centro de Inovação em Engenharia e Tecnologia Industrial, ISEP-Instituto Superior
de Engenharia do Porto, Porto, Portugal
Engineering Students’ LLeeaarrnniinngg SSttyylleess iinn
FFlluuiidd MMeecchhaanniiccss
Celina P. Leão1, Filomena Soares1
Anabela Guedes2, Isabel M. Brás Pereira2,
Cristina Morais2, M. Teresa Sena Esteves2
Salamanca, 1-3 October
2014

Overview
• Introduction
• Objective
• Characterization of the Course
• Case Study
• Students Perceptions
• Learning Process Outcomes
• Final Remarks

Introduction
• Bolonha Declaration changed the process
teaching/learning
 Reduction of the contact hours;
 Student is the centre of the process teaching/learning: active
participation;
 Reformulation of teaching methodologies.
•Teaching in Engineering
 “Learning by Doing” is particularly important for engineering
students;
 Introduction of Practical Works about real world cases;
 And others practice that promote motivation and performance. In
their the learning process

Objective
Analyse the impact of the introduction of a Practical
Work (PW) on learning the syllabus of the course
Transport Fluid Systems, Chemical Engineering
degree, Instituto Superior de Engenharia do Porto,
ISEP.
The perceptions of the students were analysed through the
results obtained from a questionnaire (previously validated).

Characterization of the Course
• Degree in Chemical Engineering, ISEP
 Bachelor: 3 years (1st cycle)
 Masters: 2 years (2nd cycle)
• Course – Transport Fluid Systems
 2nd year Bachelor (1st semester)
 1h/week Lectures + 3h/week Practical Classes
 ~ 85 students enrolled in daytime end evening classes

• Objectives
 Acquisition of knowledge in the field of Fluid Mechanics;
 At the end of this Course the students should be able to:
 Perform mass and energy balances, in steady and unsteady state,
for liquids and gases;
 Design systems and select the appropriate equipment.
• Syllabus
 1st Part – Fundamental principles of mass, energy and momentum
transport
 2nd Part – Fluid transport systems: selection and sizing of pipes,
valves, fittings, flow meters, pumps, compressors and fans

• Assessment
2 tests (T1 and T2) + 1 practical work (PW) Final exam + 1 practical work (PW)

Case Study
• Practical work
 Theme proposed by the teacher responsible for the course
“Replacing a centrifugal pump in the water supply system of a
building/independent house”
6m
1
1,5m
2

• Practical work
freedom to choose the type of application system
students may choose to do the work individually or in
groups of 2 or 3 elements
mandatory and developed outside class time
Case Study

• Practical work
discussion of options with the teachers during
practical classes or at other times set for the purpose
diverse bibliography of support (Moodle – site for the
support of the course information)
work starts after 75% of the classes taught
work delivered at the end of the semester as a written
report
Case Study

Students’ Perceptions: Questionnaire
QQuueessttiioonnnnaaiirree
Identify and evaluate the
opinion/perception of the students
about the development of the PW within
the course

Students’ Perceptions :
Characterization
• 162 students
• Mean age = 22.3 years
(sd = 3.52)
day
me
73%
evening
27%
• Gender
• Schedule

Students’ Perceptions: Results
Learning Styles: Kolb Theory
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LLeeaarrnniinngg ssttyyllee:: tthheeiirr oowwnn LLeeaarrnniinngg ssttyyllee:: uusseedd
8888..22%%
AAccttiivvee
EExxppeerriimmeennttaattiioonn
KKoollbb,, 11998844

KKoollbb,, 11998844

7722..66%%
AAccttiivvee
KKoollbb,, 11998844

22nndd ccyyccllee 11sstt ccyyccllee
6633%% AAccttiivvee
7700%% AAccttiivvee
7755%% AAccttiivvee
8833..33%% AAccttiivvee

• TS1 - Rate the PW as an useful tool
in supporting the course;
• TS2 - This PW provides a better
understanding of the course
contents;
• TS3 – In general, I can say that the
accomplishment of the PW helped
me to grasp the concepts
transmitted throughout the
semester;
• TS4 - In general, I can say that the
accomplishment of the PW made
my learning more objective.
TTeecchhnniiccaall SSkkiillllss
75% with 4 - "Good" and 5 - "Very
Good") about the four statements.
PW was a useful tool for supporting
subjects taught on the scope of the
course, improving their
understanding.

TTeecchhnniiccaall SSkkiillllss
• TS5 - The PW motivated me to
learn the contents of the course?
• TS6 - I believe that the PW should
be less driven by the teacher?
Identify why.
94% were motivated by the PW,
although mentioning that the work
should be guided by teachers (98%) .

• On average, there has
been an increase, up to one
value, in the final grade by
considering the PW
comparing to the final grade
without PW
(T (145) = 1.72, p >
0.05).
• Very positive result
showing that the use of
practical works in courses
with a strong theoretical
component in engineering is
quite positive.
Learning Process Outcomes
GGrraaddeess oobbttaaiinneedd aatt tthhee eenndd ooff tthhee sseemmeesstteerr

Final Remarks
• Fluid Transport Systems, course with a strong theoretical
component, use a PW (based on a real world case application)
allowing students to relate theory to practice.
• Students’ perceptions of two different cycles of studies were
analysed (n=162).
• Results show that the learning process became more reflective
making it necessary to think and share opinions.
• Regarding the students assessment, the PW increased the final
grade in at least one value for the majority of students.

Thank you for your attention!
The authors would like to thank the students for their participation in the
study. The authors also thank the Research Centre CIETI (Centro de Inovação
em Engenharia e Tecnologia Industrial) and FCT (Fundação para a Ciência e
Tecnologia) in the scope of the project PEst-OE/EEI/UI0319/2014 for all the
support provided.

Case Study : solutions presented
• The students may present 3 types of water supply
systems
type 1: with reservoir and external centrifugal pump
Independent house Building

systems
type 2: shaft and external centrifugal pump
Independent house / Building
6m
1
1,5m
2

systems
tipo 3: bore/shaft and submersible centrifugal pump
Independent house Building

Students Perceptions: Results
LLeeaarrnniinngg ssttyyllee:: tthheeiirr oonnee vvss.. uusseedd
• em termos médios, ambos os
estilos aprendizagem situam-se
no 2º quadrante (acomodativos):
2.2 e 4.5 próprio
2.8 e 4.1 utilizado
• com o TP os alunos passaram a
ter uma atitude mais reflexiva e
não tão activa em relação ao que
pensam que são .
KKoollbb,, 11998844

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