Effects of faculty interaction and feedback on gains in student skills

Abstract

Previous research has identified several variables that affect students' course satisfaction and gains in learning outcomes. The purpose of this article is to provide the reader with insights about the relationships between faculty-student interaction and students' perceptions of selected skills and attitudes. This study specifically examined the relationships between engineering faculty teaching practices, classroom climate, and students' perceptions of their gains in communication skills, problemsolving skills, occupational awareness, and engineering competence in a curriculum emphasizing engineering design activities. Data were gathered from more than 1,500 students taking the first-year design course offered at 19 campuses of the Penn State system over a period of two years. The results suggest that faculty interacting with and providing constructive feedback to students were significantly and positively related to students' self-reported gains in several design and professional skills. These relationships remained after controlling for student demographic characteristics and campus location. Recommendations regarding specific teaching practices are provided.

Written feedback provided by first-year engineering students, undergraduate teaching assistants, and educators on design project work

“…In general, providing feedback is a key catalyst for learning (Black and Wiliam 1998), and research specific to engineering design has shown that providing feedback is positively related to improvements in engineering design and professional skills such as communication, teamwork, and critical thinking (Bjorklund, Parente, and Sathianathan 2004;Nilson 2003). Research also suggests that students who evaluate other students' engineering design work and design processes improve their understanding of engineering design (Scott, Atman, and Turns 2001).…”

A Chemical Engineering Success Course for Transfer Students

“…-Usefulness scale (1)(2)(3)(4)(5): not at all useful, slightly useful, moderately useful, very useful, extremely useful -How often used (1-5): almost never, infrequently, occasionally, frequently, almost always Response scale (1-5) *median score was 5.00 for all items…”

“…The availability of a diverse, highly skilled, and welleducated technology workforce is a must for meeting workforce demands and for solving the complex social, environmental, health, and security challenges of the 21st century. Nationally, progress in attracting, retaining, and graduating diverse populations to each of the STEM areas has varied by underrepresented group and by STEM discipline (3,5) . Only 2.4% of college bound African Americans and 1% of Hispanics indicated that they would study computer science in 2008 (6) .…”

“…The academic and career experience for women in STEM has been characterized by isolation, a lack of mentors, and a shortage of role models (26) . Faculty and peer interactions have substantial influence on the satisfaction and retention of students (2,3,32) . Specific faculty influences include the frequency of interaction with faculty, the quality of teaching by faculty and TAs, and the availability of female faculty and TA role models.…”

“…Engineering and computing professionals are an essential ingredient for securing our nation's future economic success (1)(2)(3)(4) . The availability of a diverse, highly skilled, and welleducated technology workforce is a must for meeting workforce demands and for solving the complex social, environmental, health, and security challenges of the 21st century.…”