Ryan T's Senior Project Blog

Project Title: 3D Printing Calculus: Exploring the efficacy of 3D printed teaching aids in learning Calculus AB. BASIS Advisor: Daniel Reich Internship Location: Virginia Tech Innovation Campus Onsite Mentor: Jim Egenrieder, Engineering and Education Research Faculty and Director

Project Abstract

Students learn better when using a physical object to understand an abstract concept. In this Senior Project, I examined if this finding applies to certain Advanced Placement Calculus AB (“Calculus AB”) topics which involve 3D spaces. If so, 3D printing could be used to provide relatively cheap teaching aids to assist Calculus AB students. Through my internship at Virginia Tech at Potomac Yard, I practiced 3D printing skills, gained experience in various software, and accessed engineers for ideation and guidance. I used the software FreeCAD to 3D model Disks, Washers, and Volume Cross-Sections -- the Calculus AB topics being studied. I carried out a comparison across multiple classes of Calculus AB students at BASIS Washington DC high school. The experimental groups received both video instruction in the calculus topics and the opportunity to physically touch 3D printed teaching aides regarding the topics. The control groups watched the same video but did not touch the 3D teaching aides. I compared the scores between these two groups to evaluate the efficacy of the physical models. Researching the best ways to teach students Calculus AB topics is important as a solid mathematical education prepares students for studying science, technology, engineering, and mathematics in higher education.