How visualization effects undergraduate students understanding of electrostatic problem solving

In this study, the effect of spatial visualization skills of collage students on problem solving and whether or not the spatial visualization skills of these students varies with demographic data, were examined. The test scores were compared for each student according to their demographical data; gender, college entrance scores, GPA, some spesific course gredes, by using the correspondence analysis and CHAID analysis methods. To see the effects of students spatial visualization skills on problem solving and to reduce the data analysis to minimum, the interviews made with 8 randomly selected students accoding to different spatial visualization scores were recorded. Scores show that, the PUGT results of the students from food engineering constitute vary only for their tecnical drawing course grades. For the students from physics department, the spatial visualization scores only vary with gender. The data obtained from semi-structured interviews, there was no relation between, on spatial visualization and their ability to use spatial visualization solving a problem.