Understanding Access to Learning Opportunities in Collaborative Projects: Gendered Social Hierarchies in Student Teams

Abstract

Background: Prior research has demonstrated that participation in authentic learning experiences that resemble real-world engineering practice is key to unlocking the benefits of collaborative projects, such as design projects, for students in engineering. However, research has also documented that women are less likely to participate in key learning experiences in engineering design education, undermining the goals of project-based learning. Purpose/Hypothesis: The purpose of this research study was to understand how social power dynamics shape the types of tasks allocated to students in teams and, by extension, students learning in collaborative engineering design projects. Drawing on the Model of Inequitable Task Allocation in Project-Based Learning, this work examines the role of prior experiences and skills, self-efficacy, and students’ motivation in the process by which design tasks allocation is negotiated in student teams. Design/Method: This ethnographic study entailed three data collection strategies: (a) ongoing observations of three focal design teams in a cornerstone design course, (b) one-on-one, semi-structured interviews with focal design team members, and (c) reflections from peer mentors who worked with focal and non-focal teams. Results: Students reflected on their prior experiences and skills, and the confidence they gained or lacked as a result, when negotiating their roles in their teams. Importantly, students’ valuation of their skills was gendered, where masculinized notions of engineering skills might lead women to underreport their skills during the role-negotiation process. Finally, while gendered patterns of marginalization and exclusion were apparent, I discuss the strategies women employed to exert influence over their team dynamics. Conclusions: Ensuring equitable participation in collaborative projects is key to support learning for all students in collaborative projects. Understanding how students negotiate their roles and learning opportunities is an important step in supporting students’ learning in collaborative projects.

Keywords

• design based learning
• gender
• equity
• teamwork
• team dynamics
• team roles