New doctor in Engineering Education Research
News: Jan 23, 2012
Mary Berge's thesis is the first doctoral thesis at Chalmers University of Technology in Engineering Education Research - an area aiming at developing learning in engineering education and its underlying subjects. The research area is connecting educational science with the science of engineering.
In her dissertation, "Group work and physics - characteristics, learning possibilities and patterns of interaction" Maria Berge explores the group work. Learning in groups is a strongly advocated form of learning and of interest to pedagogical research. Maria Berge draws attention to what really happens within students' interaction during group work to achieve a deeper understanding of the situation.
- By filming engineering students and analyze their interactions, on several levels - when they solve mechanics problems involving force and motion - the thesis illustrates the students' learning opportunities, their patterns of interaction and the characteristics of these group work, says Maria Berge.
- The results show the complexity of group work in higher education. Students' learning opportunities are different and have many levels. It is also clear that each group work as such is both unique and dynamic, the students' various ways of solving problems are very far from a linear process.
The thesis will help to develop and expand the concept of what it takes to learn physics, but also draws attention to the opportunities and difficulties when students learn in groups. Based on these possibilities and difficulties recommendations are made for teachers and tutors in higher education.
Mary Berge continues her research at EER (the Division for Engineering Education Research, former CKK) and is also teaching at the courses offered by the division aiming to develop the competence of Chalmers teachers in the area of teaching, learning and supervision in higher education. She defended her thesis on 9 December 2011.