Comparison of Required Competences and Task Material in Modeling Education

Abstract

The reform of the European academic landscape with the introduction of bachelor's and master's degree programs has brought about several profound changes for teaching and assessment in higher education. With regard to the examination system, the shift towards output-oriented teaching is still one of the most significant challenges. Assessments have to be integrated into the teaching and learning arrangements and consistently aligned towards the intended learning outcomes. In particular, assessments should provide valid evidence that learners have acquired competences that are relevant for a specific domain. However, it seems that this didactic goal has not yet been fully achieved in modeling education in computer science. The aim of this study is to investigate whether typical task material used in exercises and exams in modeling education at selected German universities covers relevant competences required for graphical modeling. For this purpose, typical tasks in the field of modeling are first identified by means of a content-analytical procedure. Subsequently, it is determined which competence facets relevant for graphical modeling are addressed by the task types. By contrasting a competence model for modeling with the competences addressed by the tasks, a gap was identified between the required competences and the task material analyzed. In particular, the gap analysis shows the neglect of transversal competence facets as well as those related to the analysis and evaluation of models. The result of this paper is a classification of task types for modeling education and a specification of the competence facets addressed by these tasks. Recommendations for developing and assessing student's competences comprehensively are given.