In Search of Alignment: A Review of Impact Studies in Entrepreneurship Education

Abstract

This study uses the concept of alignment as a framework to examine empirical research on the impact of entrepreneurship education interventions on students. Alignment assumes that effective instruction requires congruence between three instructional components: intended outcomes, instructional processes, and assessment criteria. Given the extant diversity and complexity of entrepreneurship education impact, scholars have not been able to explain how teaching approaches and methods are being adjusted to the variety of expected outcomes. In order to address this gap, we critically reviewed the published empirical studies on entrepreneurship education impact in 20 journals over a 15-year period (2000)(2001)(2002)(2003)(2004)(2005)(2006)(2007)(2008)(2009)(2010)(2011)(2012)(2013)(2014)(2015). We found 16 empirical studies that met our inclusion criteria. Our findings revealed that teaching objectives, teaching methods, and teaching content receive scant attention from researchers. This study will be of value to scholars researching the impact of heterogeneous entrepreneurship education practices and approaches on individuals. Our analytical framework could contribute to less contradictory findings of entrepreneurship education impact studies. We also identify research limitations and suggest avenues for future research.

Gamification in learning process and its impact on entrepreneurial intention

“…It is also well implemented that learning with peers' interaction will transfer the feelings of experiments into a real context (Hamari, 2013;Ryan & Deci, 2000). Furthermore, most studies of entrepreneurship training are unable to develop longitudinal approach and direct relationship between training and entrepreneurship behaviors (Fayolle et al, 2016;Kamovich & Foss, 2017). This study, therefore, focuses on the development of entrepreneurial intention as part of entrepreneurship behavior (Carr & Sequeira, 2007;Kautonen et al, 2009;Kautonen et al, 2015;Schwarz Erich, 2009).…”

Educating for self‐interest or ‐transcendence? An empirical approach to investigating the role of moral competencies in opportunity recognition for sustainable development

“…Overall, practitioners, policy makers and also scientists seem to be convinced about the positive impact of EE; EE seems to be beneficial for the development of all sorts of early stage entrepreneurial outcomes, for instance entrepreneurial intentions, skills and attitudes (Bae, Qian, Miao, & Fiet, ; Martin, McNally, & Kay, ). However, meta‐analyses and systematic reviews also highlight methodological weaknesses (e.g., lack of control groups) in EE studies and, from an educational sciences point of view, lack of detailed reporting on alignment between teaching/learning objectives, delivery mode and impact assessment mode (Kamovich & Foss, ). Moreover, Kamovich and Foss () clearly conclude in their systematic review that research on the impact of EE has raced ahead of the theory necessary to confirm and explain it.…”

“…However, meta‐analyses and systematic reviews also highlight methodological weaknesses (e.g., lack of control groups) in EE studies and, from an educational sciences point of view, lack of detailed reporting on alignment between teaching/learning objectives, delivery mode and impact assessment mode (Kamovich & Foss, ). Moreover, Kamovich and Foss () clearly conclude in their systematic review that research on the impact of EE has raced ahead of the theory necessary to confirm and explain it. One area—which informs EE on a practical as well as theoretical level—in which much progress has been made during the last 5 to 10 years is that of the development of competence frameworks.…”

Measuring impact through experimental design in entrepreneurship education: A literature review and research agenda

“…RESEARCH CONTEXT: MEASURING THE IMPACT OF EE Impact studies on EE aim to establish whether a pedagogical intervention has caused any change in specific outcome variables. The outcomes measured need to be carefully aligned with the intended learning outcomes for the EE course (Kamovich and Foss, 2017) and may address changes in students' hearts, minds and behaviour (Souitaris et al, 2007). The importance of evaluating the outcomes of EE has been widely acknowledged (Mets et al, 2017), and different frameworks have been suggested for categorizing entrepreneurship learning outcomes.…”