Collaborative course development: A comparison of business and non-business students' perceptions of class experience

Prior research has demonstrated significant increases in student engagement and learning outcomes when faculty and students share course development and implementation practices. This study is an empirical investigation of collaborative course development (CCD) effects on four dependent variables, specifically: student's felt engagement, perceived learning, course satisfaction, and ratings of instructors. It utilized an interdisciplinary course and teaching method comparison conducted over one academic year. The experimental study included six courses that were each taught with one control-group class that employed traditional, instructor-led course designs and one experimental class for a total of twelve control and experimental conditions (in business and non-business courses). Courses were selected for inclusion in the study based on the availability of a course having two sections offered during the academic year for the participating faculty. Each CCD experimental course carefully employed six student-centered CCD techniques, namely: student-faculty collaborative syllabus and assessment building; elective choice assignments; competitive experimentation; flexible lectures; and creative theory building. We hypothesized that an emphasis on faculty-student collaboration facilitated through student empowerment and choice would positively influence the four dependent variables across all subjects. However, the findings revealed an interdisciplinary-contextual effect. The CCD techniques were significantly more effective in business courses compared to non-business courses. These findings enhance our understanding of teacher collaboration with students and student preferences for collaborative education approaches in business (but not in the non-business courses).