Abstract
In tertiary mathematics education for engineers (hereafter called service mathematics education, SME), there is a long-lasting controversy on what and how to teach. The goal of SME is to provide a base for engineering-specific courses and to develop mathematical competencies needed for academic success and professional practice. A leading question in engineering education is how to take mathematical competencies into account when designing content. Mathematical competencies are employed to understand, judge, do, and use mathematics in a variety of mathematical contexts and situations in which mathematics could play a role [1]. Although mathematical competencies have been introduced for about two decades, Alpers [2] noted that research in engineering higher education had focused chiefly on the modelling competency and less on other competencies. By means of a scoping review, the current study aims to examine how mathematical competencies are investigated in higher education research. The main research question is “To what extent and in what ways have mathematical competencies been examined in higher engineering education research?” Papers were retrieved and qualitatively reviewed using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta- Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. A systematic search yielded 166 records, of which, 65 unique records were relevant to engineering education and screened for eligibility. A synthesis of 23 studies reviewed showed that problem-solving and modelling were the most investigated mathematical competencies and were often investigated together or with other mathematical competencies. The inconsistencies in the terminologies used suggest a need for clearer conceptualizations to advance research and inform practice on mathematical competencies.
Original language | English |
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Title of host publication | SEFI 2022 - 50th Annual Conference of the European Society for Engineering Education, Proceedings |
Editors | Hannu-Matti Jarvinen, Santiago Silvestre, Ariadna Llorens, Balazs Vince Nagy |
Pages | 2288-2292 |
Number of pages | 5 |
ISBN (Electronic) | 9788412322262 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 2022 |
Event | 50th Annual Conference of The European Society for Engineering Education - Barcelona, Spain Duration: 19 Sept 2022 → 22 Sept 2022 Conference number: 50 |
Publication series
Name | SEFI 2022 - 50th Annual Conference of the European Society for Engineering Education, Proceedings |
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Conference
Conference | 50th Annual Conference of The European Society for Engineering Education |
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Abbreviated title | SEFI 2022 |
Country/Territory | Spain |
City | Barcelona |
Period | 19/09/22 → 22/09/22 |
Keywords
- Reflection
- implementation
- co-creation
- local embedding
- longevity