The Effects of Solid Modeling and Visualization on Technical Problem Solving.

Technology education and many other fields are placing increased emphasis on problem solving. The Standards for Technological Literacy (STL) state that “Problem solving is basic to technology” (ITEA, 2000, p. 90). Jonassen (2000, p. 63) contends that “most psychologists and educators regard problem solving as the most important learning outcome for life.” “Problem solving is a critical process skill that involves virtually all aspects of existence” (Wu, Custer, & Dyrenfurth, 1996, p. 56). “Virtually everyone, in their everyday and professional lives, regularly solves problems” (Jonassen, 2000, p. 63). All problems are not the same and must be approached differently than rote or component skills (Westberry, 2003). The fields of Technology and Technology Education place strong emphasis on problem solving and application, as teachers strive to promote technological literacy. Many would contend that technology education and related fields have been teaching and employing problem solving since their inception(McCade, 1990; Todd 1999). Few will argue the importance of problem solving, yet little is known about it. It is unclear how to define problem solving. There are many definitions for problem solving, and it can be conducted through various means (Hill, 1997). To further complicate the matter, problem solving takes on many different meanings, depending on the type of problem or the specific problem being addressed. There is also a myriad of problem solving models and terminology currently in use (Flowers, 2010). STL (ITEA/ITEEA, 2000/2002/2007, p. 5) considers design the primary problem solving approach in technology education. Few, if any, technology education processes have received as much attention in the literature in recent years as problem solving has, particularly design, although design is not the only problem solving method. Custer (1995) considers design a major subset of technical problem solving. One unique aspect of design problems is that the designer “typically, does not know in advance what the goal state will be, although he [sic] usually has criteria to evaluate potential goal states” (Carroll, Thomas, & Malhotra, 1980, p. 143). For teaching problem solving and design, Williams (2000) suggested focusing on activities. The problem and the student