Evaluating a motivational freshman course

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute has developed an elective laboratory course intended to motivate freshmen for further study of engineering in general and to spur interest in electrical and computer engineering in particular. The course philosophy is that hands-on laboratory and design experiences will build strident confidence, stimulate curiosity, and demonstrate the relevance of engineering work. These, in turn, should increase motivation and retention. To assess the impact of this course, a multi-dimensional evaluation process has been conducted consisting of: attitudinal surveys of the students at the end of the course; structured interviews with students in the course; surveys of the students in a subsequent design course; and pretests and posttests of student creativity. Evaluation results indicate that carefully structured hands-on experience is an effective way of motivating freshmen for further engineering study. The results also indicate that the course has increased student creativity and confidence in their abilities. Furthermore, the improvements in motivation and confidence can still be measured in subsequent semesters. Thus, since the new course is just a one-credit laboratory, it appears possible to address the problem of motivating engineering freshmen with only a modest impact on already crowded first-year programs.