Higher-Order Thinking via Mathematical Problem Posing Tasks among Engineering Students

Abstract

This study characterizes engineering students’ higher‐order thinking (HOT) skills through two problem posing strategies, namely "What..., if not?" and "Modifying Given". Problem posing tasks were designed based on integral concepts from calculus textbook problems. The data were collected through students’ responses to test and semi‐structured interview. Twenty-six participants in the test session were selected among moderate and high achievers first year engineering students. After the test, 5 of the students were purposefully selected for the semi‐structured interview. The results reveals that the HOT skills via problem posing tasks can be characterized into "Interpreting the problem condition and demand in term of mathematics communication", "Manipulating information for constructing new problems in flexibility method", "Analysing the constructed problem regard to solvable or unsolvable", "Create new and different problem which are solvable", "Conclude a significant pattern or structure", and "Finding the differences and similarities between two parts of tasks strategies". The results confirm that problem posing tasks posses all criteria of a practical task for enhancing HOT skills among engineering students.