Student Engagement: Promoting Better Learning

1. Student Engagement:Promoting Better Learning Rick Vaz Associate Dean Interdisciplinary and Global Studies Worcester Polytechnic Institute Worcester, Massachusetts, USA Polytechnic of Namibia, 3 May 2006

2. What Really Matters in College? The research is clear: students who are actively involved in both academic and out-of-class activities gain more from the college experience than those who are not so involved. Ernest T. Pascarella & Patrick T. Terenzini How College Affects Students Worcester Polytechnic Institute

3. Finding Evidence of Educational Quality • Deep student learning is difficult and expensive to measure directly • Extensive research has linked certain behaviors and activities to learning • These behaviors and activities are easier to measure Worcester Polytechnic Institute

4. Student Engagement • Educational involvement that leads students toward significant learning outcomes • “Engaged students are good learners and effective teaching stimulates and sustains student engagement.” —Handelsman et al. • An indicator of educational effectiveness Worcester Polytechnic Institute

5. Indicators of Engagement • Time on task • High expectations • Student-faculty contact • Writing and revision • Prompt feedback • Cooperation among students • Respect for diverse talents and ways of learning Worcester Polytechnic Institute

6. National Survey ofStudent Engagement • Started in 1999 with 12 institutions – grown to over 500 in NSSE 2005 • Over a half million students (first-year students and seniors) at 850 colleges and universities (2000-2005) • Focus on undergraduate quality and institutional improvement • Research-based and extensively tested to ensure validity and reliability • Assesses the extent to which students are engaged in educational practices related to high levels of learning and development Worcester Polytechnic Institute

7. NSSE Benchmarks for Educational Practice • Level of academic challenge • Active and collaborative learning • Student interactions with faculty members • Enriching educational experiences • Supportive campus environment Worcester Polytechnic Institute

8. Student Engagement Quiz What percentage of US college students study two hours or more for every hour in class? (a) 12% (b) 20% (c) 31% (d) 39% (e) 49% (a)12% Worcester Polytechnic Institute

9. Time on Task Worcester Polytechnic Institute

10. How Students Spend Their Time Worcester Polytechnic Institute

11. Variations in Student-Faculty Interaction by Discipline Worcester Polytechnic Institute

12. Student-Faculty Gap Analysis Worcester Polytechnic Institute

13. What WPI Learned from NSSE • 4th year students highly engaged • Project work and research • Interactions with faculty • Collaboration with peers • 1st year students unengaged • Not working very hard • Not much writing • Not much thinking Worcester Polytechnic Institute

14. Pedagogies of Engagement Association of American Colleges and Universities • Collaborative inquiry • Service learning • Experiential learning • Integrative learning • Project-based learning Worcester Polytechnic Institute

15. Enhancing WPI’s First Year: Strategies • Interdisciplinary seminars • Societal awareness • Peer learning • Faculty development • Connect academic and social life • More project work in courses Worcester Polytechnic Institute

16. What Constitutes Project Work? • “Open-ended” problems • Many possible solutions • Goal, methods chosen by learners • Complexity, ambiguity • Real and messy Worcester Polytechnic Institute

17. Key Learning Outcomes of Projects • Communication and teamwork • Research, analysis, synthesis • Problem solving • Critical thinking • “Real world” skills Worcester Polytechnic Institute

18. Where Do Project Ideas Come From? • Faculty—choose project(s) based on experience, challenge, support • Students—design a project within some parameters • External sponsors—community organizations, local gov’t and schools, corporations, nonprofits, NGOs Worcester Polytechnic Institute

19. Case Study: Introduction to Design • Sophomore level course ( 7 weeks) • Preparation for senior design projects • Solving open-ended technical problems • Research, experimentation, simulation, synthesis • Human factors: ergonomics, ethics, economics Worcester Polytechnic Institute

20. Example Project: Solar Lighting You are to design a solar-powered lighting application. Your design must be suitable for use in the developing world. Your completed prototype design must cost US$50 or less. Worcester Polytechnic Institute

21. Faculty and Student Roles (30 Students) • Students are in teams of “design engineers” • 10 teams of 3 students on each • Graduate assistant or undergraduate tutor acts as “senior engineer” • Primary source of technical guidance • Coaches students in teamwork • Faculty act as “engineering managers” • Consult, critique Worcester Polytechnic Institute

22. Structured Activity • 4 classes per week: process of design • Market analysis, user requirements • Brainstorming, teamwork • Project management, documentation • Standards, safety, ethics, quality • 3-hour design review each week • Presentation of interim results • Feedback and critique • Mandatory team meetings with “senior engineers” • Summary report to faculty Worcester Polytechnic Institute

23. Assignments and Grading • Six weekly reports: 30% • Revised for final report • Final design: • Final report: 15% • Presentation: 10% • Functionality: 15% • Three exams: 30% • Mostly to make sure they come to class Worcester Polytechnic Institute

24. A Different Type of Dialogue • Old scenario: • Student: “Prof, how do I solve this problem?” • Prof: “Here, watch me do it…” • New scenario: • Student: “Prof, how do I solve this problem?” • Prof: “I don’t know. What have you tried?” • S: “I think X or Y might work, but I’m not sure…” • P: “How could you test your ideas?” • P: “What are the most important criteria?” • P: “What do your partners think?” Worcester Polytechnic Institute

25. Student Course Evaluations Overall, how much did you learn from this course? • Almost nothing 1% • A little 10% • Quite a lot 57% • More than any course I’ve taken 32% Worcester Polytechnic Institute

26. Impressions from the Faculty • Worth the effort • Basic knowledge applied and reinforced • The design process learned and applied • A wake-up call for students • Engagement, commitment • Teamwork, responsibility, pride • Suggests future work • Improve previous courses • Develop a remediation strategy Worcester Polytechnic Institute

27. Our Students Are Not Like Us • Most faculty learn by reading and writing • Most students learn by doing • Universities reward academic abilities • The real world rewards practical abilities Worcester Polytechnic Institute

28. Part of this presentation was based on: “How the National Survey of Student Engagement is Used to Stimulate Effective Educational Practices” John Hayek National Survey of Student Engagement Jillian Kinzie NSSE Institute for Effective Educational Practice AAC&U Pedagogies of Engagement Conference April 2004

29. Questions for Discussion • Are projects feasible for large courses? • Are projects appropriate at all levels? • Must projects be “real”? • Is group work essential? Worcester Polytechnic Institute