Improving the Perceived Utility Value of Teamwork and Collaboration among STEM Undergraduates

Abstract

Teamwork and collaboration are twenty-first century skills valued by STEM employers for addressing the most urgent problems in society. To prepare undergraduate STEM students, they must graduate valuing teamwork and collaboration. The Integrated Concentration in STEM (iCons) program aims to meet this goal by utilizing interdisciplinary team-based learning to address complex real-world problems. In doing so, the program provides students with a learning experience that demonstrates the authentic value of teamwork and shows how collaboration can be useful for solving problems. The purpose of this study was to examine whether students who participated in iCons developed more positive values related to teamwork and collaboration than similar students who did not participate in the program. Framed by Expectancy Value Theory (EVT)—specifically the concept of utility value, which is how practically useful students find teams in helping them fulfill their objectives or to solve problems—we investigated the iCons program with a mixed methods design that analyzed survey and interview data from students. Overall, iCons had a positive effect on students’ perceptions of the utility value of teamwork and collaboration. Qualitative results helped to explain these findings in more depth, including students’ positive perceptions of the interdisciplinary design of the program. Findings suggest that more resources should be put into creating and expanding opportunities in STEM that utilize a combination of pedagogical strategies focused on team-based learning and an interdisciplinary design. Further research is needed to understand these effects in more detail.