Devising an early childhood engineering habits of mind scale

Abstract

Engineering education aims to equip children with the skills to solve and apply complex problems. Problem-solving processes in engineering require high-level thinking and mind habits. Habit is a term used to describe various aspects of intelligence. Engineering habits of mind are the values, attitudes, and thinking skills associated with engineering. This research aimed to develop a scale to assess the engineering habits of mind of children ages 5-8. The study involved 417 children in two provinces in the southwest and northwest of Türkiye. We performed Explanatory Factor Analysis (EFA) and Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) for the scale's construct validity. The scale consisted of 35 items and six factors and explained 59.2% of the total variance. We called the factors "system thinking," "creativity," "optimism," "collaboration," "communication," and "attention to ethical considerations." According to the CFA result, the construct we obtain is reasonable (χ2/sd= 1.97, RMSEA= 0.068, CFI= 0.93, TLI= 0.91, SRMR= 0.062). The item total correlations range from 0.43 to 0.66. We determined the Cronbach Alpha coefficient of the scale to be 0.94 and the test re-test reliability to be 0.87. According to the results, it can be said that the scale obtained can be used validly and reliably to determine the engineering habits of mind children according to teacher reports. The study contributes to the ever-increasing engineering habits of mind literature. © (2023), (Ekip Buro Makineleri A.). All Rights Reserved.