Effectiveness of Learning Transportation Network Growth through Simulation

ASCE Journal of Professional Issues in Engineering Education and Practice Vol. 132, No. 1, January 2006

35 Pages Posted: 10 Feb 2008

Abstract

Computer simulation plays an increasingly important role in engineering education as a tool for enhancing classroom learning. This research investigates the efficacy of using simulation in teaching the topic of transportation network growth through an experiment conducted at the Civil Engineering Department of the University of Minnesota. In the experiment, a network growth simulator program (SONG) was incorporated into a senior/graduate class in transportation system analysis. Results of the experiment show that the use of SONG effectively enhanced students' learning in terms of helping students develop in-depth understanding about the development process of network patterns, and helped them develop some aspects of judgment, problem-solving, and decision-making skills. However the use of SONG may have been more effective had some other barriers to learning been overcome.

Keywords: Simulation, Engineering Education, and Transportation Network Growth

Suggested Citation

Chen, Wenling and Levinson, David Matthew, Effectiveness of Learning Transportation Network Growth through Simulation. ASCE Journal of Professional Issues in Engineering Education and Practice Vol. 132, No. 1, January 2006, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=1091806

Wenling Chen (Contact Author)

VDOT ( email )

1401 E Broad Street
Richmond, VA 23233
United States

David Matthew Levinson

affiliation not provided to SSRN

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