Assessing the Impact of ‘People-Oriented Recitation Problems’ on the Interest of First-Year Intro Chemical Engineering Students

Chemical Engineering (ChemE) curricula often don’t demonstrate to students how core engineering concepts are applied in professional practice [1]. This disconnect may negatively impact students’ interest and intention to pursue ChemE, particularly in their first year. The purpose of this study is to determine the effects of a recitation intervention on students in a R1 private university’s introductory ChemE course. The researchers define a recitation problem as ‘People-Oriented’ if it is introduced by a current faculty member or alum who relates the problem’s content to their field of work. The study’s primary research questions are to determine if ‘People-Oriented Recitation Problems’ impact students’: 1) interest in ChemE and specific topics therein?; 2) intention to pursue ChemE? To answer these questions, mixed methods will be used, analyzing data from students’ academic performance, a pre- and post-semester survey, and student focus groups. The quantitative survey questions are modeled after the STEM-CIS instrument [2] and apply Social Cognitive Career Theory as a theoretical lens to understand students’ career interest, choice goals, and outcome expectations. If ‘People-Oriented Recitation Problems’ are shown to increase students' interest in and intention to pursue ChemE, it may be a good learning activity to improve student retention.

[1] New Directions for Chemical Engineering. Washington, D.C.: National Academies Press, 2022. doi: 10.17226/26342.

[2] M. W. Kier, M. R. Blanchard, J. W. Osborne, and J. L. Albert, “The Development of the STEM Career Interest Survey (STEM-CIS),” Res Sci Educ, vol. 44, no. 3, pp. 461–481, Jun. 2014, doi: 10.1007/s11165-013-9389-3.