Abstract
A taxonomy of eight quality criteria for mathematical models was developed for the common basic modelling course in the innovated BSc curriculum of Eindhoven University of Technology. First year engineering students of all disciplines reflected on their group modelling projects, indicating how their models could be improved, using the criteria. The students were also asked to indicate the purpose(s) of their models from a list of 16 purposes. This study explores the usefulness of the purposes and criteria, defined as relevance combined with understandability. Optimisation proved to be the most relevant purpose, followed by analysis, prediction (what), and verification. Specialisation, genericity, scalability, distinctiveness, and convincingness criteria proved useful; but audience, impact, and surprise did not.
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Notes
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‘Prediction’ was used often without further specification, but as the second variant of prediction did not play any role, we did not see this as a sign of misunderstanding.
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Perrenet, J., Zwaneveld, B., van Overveld, K., Borghuis, T. (2017). Quality Criteria for Mathematical Models in Relation to Models’ Purposes: Their Usefulness in Engineering Education. In: Stillman, G., Blum, W., Kaiser, G. (eds) Mathematical Modelling and Applications. International Perspectives on the Teaching and Learning of Mathematical Modelling. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-62968-1_12
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-62968-1_12
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