Teaching marketing to non-marketing majors: tools to enhance their engagement and academic performance

Abstract

PurposeWhile there has been a significant amount of work involving marketing education, it is unclear how faculty members can increase the engagement and achievement of non-subject specialists. Accordingly, guided by Bloom's Taxonomy, this current study examines the ways that academics can teach marketing to non-marketing undergraduate majors, with a focus on enhancing their engagement and academic performance.Design/methodology/approachSurvey responses (and related archival information) were collected from 181 non-marketing majors in the United Kingdom (studying marketing modules as part of their undergraduate degrees). Such data passed a series of key robustness checks. The hypothesized and control paths were tested via covariance-based structural equation modeling. In addition, 20 semi-structured interviews were used to explore the underlying issues behind the statistical results.FindingsTwo variables were positive drivers of engaging non-marketing students, namely, discussion-oriented interactions and relating marketing to non-marketing subjects. However, integrating theory with practice produced a negative, but non-significant relationship with engaging non-marketing students. In turn, engaging non-marketing students yielded a positive and significant association with academic performance. The follow-up interviews suggested that to best-engage non-marketing majors, educators should consider hosting guest speakers (e.g. owner-managers) to demonstrate how their university-level studies are applicable to “real-world” subject contexts, like sports management and engineering when they graduate.Originality/valueThis current article strengthens the extant literature by identifying some actionable tools that can be employed to enhance the engagement and academic performance of non-subject specialists. This is important, since faculty members are under increased pressure to become effective teachers and facilitate student satisfaction (alongside their other duties, including research and administration). Hence, this paper assists such individuals to cope with the rapidly changing landscape of the higher education sector. In fact, Bloom's Taxonomy was a relevant pedagogical theory for unpacking how educators can teach marketing to non-marketing majors.

The Role of Adaptive E-Learning Co-Design as Main Solution to Higher Education’s Marketing Performance

“…Marketing co-design is an activity that is no less important than learning at HEIs. Curriculum design, evaluation and learning methods are innovative strategies that can improve academic engagement and performance and ultimately affect marketing performance (Crick & Crick, 2021;.…”

Exploring Students’ Motivation to Participate in Entrepreneurial Marketing Education

“…The second factor of discussion-oriented interactions stems from the long-standing observation that peer and fellow learners are a particularly important learning resource (Brookfield, 1985). Indeed, learning is thought to be enabled at a higher level through student discussions as compared with during lectures (McKeachie, 1984), and in-class discussions allow for the consolidation of how theory can be put into practice (Crick & Crick, 2021). Relating the topic to the student's degree subject is a third pertinent factor stemming from the principle that engagement is enhanced when students can appreciate how concepts apply in certain contexts (Bloom, 1956).…”

“…Indeed, ME, in both a business and non-business student context, suffers from a perceived gap between what is taught and what is practiced (McArthur et al, 2017), and many researchers have lamented its lack of impact on other disciplines (Harrigan & Hulbert, 2011). It is noted that while there has been some research into ME for non-business students, it is relatively limited (Crick & Crick, 2021).…”

“…Complementing and extending the insight that course content is a key factor in course selection and that the level of personal relevance of course components directly affects motivation are pedagogical principles that are understood to affect student learning experiences. Bloom’s Taxonomy (1956), while long-established and subject to revisions, remains a popular lens through which to understand the factors that affect delivery of and reception toward ME (e.g., Berezan et al, 2023; Crick & Crick, 2021; Spiller et al, 2019) and to some extent, EE (e.g., Pepin et al, 2021). Of particular relevance are three central factors that have been found to be pertinent in teaching (in this case, marketing) to non-subject specialists (Crick & Crick, 2021).…”

“…Bloom’s Taxonomy (1956), while long-established and subject to revisions, remains a popular lens through which to understand the factors that affect delivery of and reception toward ME (e.g., Berezan et al, 2023; Crick & Crick, 2021; Spiller et al, 2019) and to some extent, EE (e.g., Pepin et al, 2021). Of particular relevance are three central factors that have been found to be pertinent in teaching (in this case, marketing) to non-subject specialists (Crick & Crick, 2021). These factors are integrating theory with practice, including discussion-oriented interactions and relating the topic to the student’s degree subject.…”