Learning From Freshman Perspectives: A Two Dimensional Approach To Increasing Student Satisfaction

Improving retention of engineering students often depends on their experiences in core mathematics and science courses during their freshman year of college. For this research, freshman students enrolled in an introductory engineering design course at a large midwestern university were asked to identify five ways in which their Calculus or Chemistry course could be redesigned. Herzberg’s motivation-hygiene theory (1966) is used as an interpretive framework to examine the student’s perspectives on how to improve these core courses within the engineering curriculum. The student’s suggestions for course redesign were classified into motivation and hygiene factors. The results show that a majority of the suggestions involved extrinsic hygiene factors such as reducing class size, and providing more comfortable chairs and larger tables. Fewer responses were received related to intrinsic motivation factors such as course content. This finding points to the need for a two-dimensional approach to increasing student satisfaction. Although Herzberg cautions that the effects of improved hygiene are of short duration, educators should not disregard their role in student satisfaction by focusing exclusively on intrinsic motivation factors.