Student Engagement And Marketing Classes

A study is reported that investigates the goals underlying undergraduate students' engagement in their major classes, nonmajor classes, and in extracurricular activities. The qualitative study employs both focus groups and goal-mapping exercises. The results suggest that students tend to focus on utilitarian, attribute-level considerations mainly related to credentialing for purposes of employment. The results are considered from the perspectives of judgment and decision making, learning models, and the emerging service marketing perspective. These model considerations underscore an argument for moving toward models of education delivery focusing on value co-creation instead of the current emphasis on providing value to students. A series of recommendations are offered to help facilitate faculty efforts to increase course engagement, particularly in large-section course offerings. However, the authors ultimately conclude that student engagement with their course-related experiences will best be served in models of value co-creation by a focus on more than intellectual maturity in education. Specifically, an argument is presented for also targeting moral and motivational maturity. The practical and research implications of the study are presented and discussed.