Board # 7 : Engineering Student Motivation and Attitudes Towards Self-Regulated Learning

Abstract

Lisa Benson is a Professor of Engineering and Science Education at Clemson University, with a joint appointment in Bioengineering. Her research focuses on the interactions between student motivation and their learning experiences. Her projects involve the study of student perceptions, beliefs and attitudes towards becoming engineers and scientists, and their problem solving processes. Other projects in the Benson group include effects of student-centered active learning, self-regulated learning, and incorporating engineering into secondary science and mathematics classrooms. Her education includes a B.S. in

Developing a Learning Module to Enhance Motivation and Self-Efficacy of Students Participating in Multinational Design Projects

“…Prior research by Matusovich et al found that attainment value can play a critical role in students' choices to persist in engineering, and suggest that educators strive to increase students' attainment value by focusing on factors such as identity that contribute to value beliefs 17 . The findings of this study complement this prior work, as they reinforce the need to examine the temporal orientation of students' beliefs 13 . To understand the full influence that value and identity can have on student persistence, we need to be clear whether present or future perceptions or values are under consideration.…”

“…Achievement motivation, which encompasses students' attitudes about their abilities and tasks, can elucidate student choices related to persistence in engineering, solving problems, and the value of tasks encountered in an engineering environment 12 . Achievement motivation serves as a useful framework for the examination of research questions related to students' attitudes about pursuing engineering, and how these factors affect students' learning experiences 13 .…”

“…and "I have to work harder than other students". The relationship between students' cognitive output and their motivation was examined 13 using their solutions to first year engineering problems. The observed decrease in expectancy over first year is similar to results found by other researchers 14 .…”

“…Yet Benson et al reported increases in students' perceptions of the future and present, which were important in terms of what a first year program offered to students and what students were expecting from their education. The first year courses aim to introduce students to different fields of engineering through contextual problems, guest speakers, tours with engineering departments on campus, and various career-related activities that would inform students' perceptions of their futures as engineers 13 .…”

“…The "open" path is where short-term goals are connected to other future goals and the "end" of the goal path is not specified. Raynor and others have demonstrated that open goal paths provide stronger motivational incentives for achieving the short term goals on that path than closed goal paths 13 . This study provides similar evidence: if students are overly focused on tasks or goals in the present, they are on a "closed" goal path as described by Raynor; if they are focused on both present and future tasks and goals, they are on an "open" goal path.…”