Date of Award:

12-2026

Document Type:

Dissertation

Degree Name:

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Department:

Engineering Education

Committee Chair(s)

Wade Goodridge

Committee

Wade Goodridge

Committee

Oenardi Lawanto

Committee

Angela Minichiello

Committee

Cassandra McCall

Committee

Lisa Boyce

Abstract

Spatial ability-the ability to understand, visualize, and mentally manipulate shapes and objects-is important for learning in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). However, many traditional spatial ability tests rely heavily on drawings and other visual representations and have often been developed and evaluated with populations that do not adequately represent culturally diverse students. As a result, there is a need for assessment approaches that are developmentally appropriate, engaging, and potentially more inclusive for young learners. The Tactile Mental Cutting Test (TMCT) provides one such approach by allowing students to explore three-dimensional objects through touch and physical manipulation while solving spatial reasoning problems.

This dissertation investigates how well the TMCT works with Native American elementary students and examines how children’s spatial ability relates to other important areas of development. The study included 83 Native American elementary students who participated in STEM summer camps during 2024 and 2025. Students completed the TMCT along with activities that measured executive functioning skills, including working memory, cognitive flexibility, and inhibitory control. Social-emotional competence was also measured through a standardized assessment completed by an adult familiar with the child. The study focused on three main questions: whether the TMCT provides reliable measurements of spatial ability, whether spatial ability is related to executive functioning and social-emotional competence, and whether boys and girls differ in these areas.

The findings suggest that the TMCT is a promising tool for assessing spatial reasoning among young Native American students. One part of TMCT, Subtest A, showed particularly strong and consistent reliability, while Subtest B showed more variation and may benefit from further refinement. Analyses of individual test items also indicated that many of the TMCT tasks provided an appropriate level of challenge and were able to distinguish between students with different levels of spatial performance. These findings support continued investigation of the TMCT as a hands-on and developmentally appropriate way to assess spatial reasoning in young children.

The study also found that age played an important role in children’s performance. Older students generally performed better on the TMCT and on measures of executive functioning than younger students. Before accounting for age, several relationships appeared between spatial ability and executive functioning. However, many of these relationships became weaker after age was considered. One relationship remained especially important: performance on TMCT Subtest B was positively related to working memory even after differences in age were considered. This suggests that the ability to hold and mentally manipulate information may be especially important when children solve tactile spatial reasoning problems. In contrast, social-emotional competence was not consistently related to TMCT performance.

The research also examined whether boys and girls differed in spatial ability, executive functioning, or social-emotional competence. Overall, boys and girls performed similarly on the TMCT and on measures of working memory, cognitive flexibility, and inhibitory control. These patterns remained after age differences were considered. Some gender differences were observed in social-emotional competence, particularly in the combined and 2025 analyses, suggesting that gender patterns may differ across developmental areas. Overall, age was more strongly related to spatial and executive functioning performance than gender.

This research is important because Native American children have historically been underrepresented in studies of spatial cognition, educational assessment, and STEM learning. Rather than if assessment tools developed with other populations will work equally well for all children, this study evaluates the TMCT within the population in which it is being used. The tactile and hands-on format of the TMCT may provide an alternative way for children to demonstrate spatial reasoning without relying entirely on traditional paper-and-pencil or visually dominated testing approaches.

In summary, this dissertation contributes to a better understanding of spatial ability, executive functioning, and social-emotional development among Native American elementary students. The findings provide encouraging evidence for the continued development of the TMCT as an accessible and engaging spatial assessment while also showing that children’s age and developmental stage must be carefully considered when interpreting cognitive performance. By expanding spatial ability research to an historically underrepresented population and emphasizing developmentally appropriate and culturally responsive assessment, this work supports broader efforts to create more equitable approaches to educational measurement and early STEM learning.

Download

Share

COinS

Copyright for this work is retained by the student. If you have any questions regarding the inclusion of this work in the Digital Commons, please email us at .