Comparison of Problem-Solving Skills on Textbook and Youtube Problems across Two Cohorts

Problem solving is a vital skill of engineers. Previous studies have introduced a novel teaching strategy that replaces homework problems from textbook problems with student-written problems inspired from watching YouTube videos. Replacing textbook problems with YouTube problems, this research focuses on examining the rigor of YouTube problems as well as students’ problem-solving skills on textbook and YouTube problems. A quasi-experimental, treatment/control group design was employed and data was collected and evaluated using multiple measurement instruments. Tailoring focus on a topic involving material and energy balance for reacting systems, rigor of problems was examined using the NASA Task Load Index. Also, problem solving was assessed using a previously-developed rubric called PROCESS: Problem definition, Representing the problem, Organizing the information, Calculations, Evaluating the solution, Solution communication, and Self-assessment. PROCESS was modified to independently measure completeness and accuracy of student responses, as well as identify errors committed in material and energy balances. New results comparing two cohorts solving YouTube and Textbook problems will be explored.