An abundance of empirical evidence exists identifying a significant correlation between spatial ability and educational performance particularly in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). Despite this evidence, a causal explanation has yet to be identified. Pertinent research illustrates that spatial ability can be developed and that doing so has positive educational effects. However, contention exists within the relevant literature concerning the explicit definition for spatial ability. There is therefore a need to define spatial ability relative to empirical evidence which in this circumstance relates to its factor structure. Substantial empirical evidence supports the existence of unique spatial factors not represented in modern frameworks. Further understanding such factors can support the development of educational interventions to increase their efficacy and related effects in STEM education. It may also lead to the identification of why spatial ability has such a significant impact on STEM educational achievement as examining more factors in practice can help in deducing which are most important. In light of this, a synthesis of the spatial factors offered within existing frameworks with those suggested within contemporary studies is presented to guide further investigation and the translation of spatial ability research to further enhance learning in STEM education.

A core aim of contemporary science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education is the development of robust problem-solving skills. This can be achieved by fostering both discipline knowledge expertise and general cognitive abilities associated with problem solving. One of the most important cognitive abilities in STEM education is spatial ability however understandings of how students use this ability in practice are currently underdeveloped. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate how levels of spatial ability impacted both performance and approaches to problem solving. In the context of graphical education, selected due to its significant overlap with technological, mathematical and engineering knowledge, a repeated cross-sectional study design was implemented to gather longitudinal data of student approaches to problem solving. A battery of psychometric tests of spatial ability was administered to two cohorts and problem solving was examined through a variety of graphical problems. The findings illustrate a relationship between attaining higher levels of spatial ability and performance. Participants with lower levels of spatial ability evidenced the utilisation of models to a greater extend with a particular emphasis on models with the capacity to alleviate the need for spatial reasoning.

A number of key graduate outcomes related to industry-based interventions and work-industry-related activities (WIA’s) are specified by the Swedish Higher Education Ordinance for all Engineering Degree Programmes. A paucity of research regarding student perceptions of these WIAs and their role in student’s motivation for learning motivates the current study. Understanding student perceptions of WIA is critical to ensuring the effective integration of WIAs into engineering education. This study explores the perceived motivational effects of WIAs with which students engage through the lens of self-determination theory. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with nineteen master’s students studying in two research-intensive Swedish universities. Six themes emerged from thematic analysis. The themes describe the impact WIAs can have on student motivation in terms of their perceptions of (1) relevance for the development of knowledge and skills, (2) influence on the student’s future profession identity, (3) utility for gaining industrial experience, inclusive of research experience, (4) relevance to student’s programmes of study, (5) industry marketisation agendas, and (6) alignment with industry needs over the student’s own needs. The motivating and demotivating aspects of WIA’s based on these themes are discussed to improve the collaboration between industry and academia in engineering education.

Background: Substantial research highlights the differences between scientific and technological knowledge. Considering that learning is heavily focused on the acquisition of knowledge, it is important to examine the individual and systematic implications of these types of knowledge. Purpose: The purpose of this study was to examine the impact on overall educational performance as a result of engaging with technology subjects at post-primary level. Sample: A five year cohort study was designed to gather longitudinal data from a total sample of 1761 pupils’ grades from the Irish Leaving Certificate examination. The sample was distributed across four schools. Design and methods: Grades from the Irish Leaving Certificate were selected because the examination is considered high stakes as it serves as the country’s primary mechanism for matriculation into third-level education. Individual examinations are designed externally to schools by a government body ensuring the validity of each examination in capturing the holistic interpretation subject syllabi. Finally, a points system is used to score each examination facilitating comparisons between subjects. Results: The results show that pupils who study the technology subjects are statistically significantly less likely to perform well overall in comparison to pupils who study science and mathematics subjects. They also show that for pupils who study the technology subjects, those subjects are statistically significantly likely to be their best performing subjects. Conclusions: Due to the array of variables impacting subject selection, a definitive causal explanation cannot be deduced from the data for these results. However, it is possible to infer that the variance in knowledge types between the science and technology subjects has an impact on the results. A case is made that a compulsory technological component should be incorporated into educational curricula to provide a comprehensive and general education and to facilitate the holistic development of pupils.

A substantial degree of empirical evidence has illustrated the correlation between spatial skills and performance in engineering education. This evidence has been foundational in the construction of educational interventions which have resulted in both increased levels of spatial ability and increased educational performance and retention. However, the cognitive faculty of spatial cognition is widely recognised as multifactorial and a number of factors exist within this domain which have not been examined as potential influences on educational success. A number of factors have been identified within the pertinent literature which do not appear in any formal framework of spatial cognition. This paper presents a review and synthesis of this work with the amalgam presented as a model to support the further integration of spatial ability into engineering educational practices.