The Use of Student Consulting Projects as an Active Learning Pedagogy: A Case Study in a Production/Operations Management Course

Abstract

Active learning has attracted considerable attention in higher education in response to concerns about how and what students are learning. There are many different forms of active learning, yet most of them are classroom based. We propose an alternative to active learning in the classroom through active learning outside of the classroom in the form of student consulting projects. While the literature on student consulting has largely focused on projects to assist small business owners, this research demonstrates the potential for using student-consulting projects in the Production/Operations Management course. We use a case study to describe the use of a student-consulting project as an alternative to the other types of active learning described in the Operations Management education literature.

A Survey of Research in Field-Based Education: A Summary of Process, Best Practices, and Lessons Learned

“…Team formation and assignment: From Table 1, we can see that projects are rarely carried out by an individual student; exceptions include Ahire (2001), Heriot et al (2008), Fish (2008), and Shearer and Whitaker (2012). Most project teams have 3-5 students, depending on instructor preference, project scope, and the number of projects relative to the number of students.…”

“…In four cases from Table 1, the source of the project depended on the student (Ahire 2001, Fish 2008, Grossman 2002, Heriot et al 2008, Shearer and Whitaker 2012. Of course, student-based projects reduce the load on the faculty.…”

“…Heriot et al (2008) and Gorman (2010) discuss background research on client and industry. Heriot et al (2008) includes a second "background reading" section after the proposal is submitted. Armacost and Lowe (2003) includes background research, after the proposal is submitted.…”

“…Some authors write about student preparation as part of the course offering. In any introductory course, (e.g., Ahire 2001, Heriot et al 2008, Hillon et al 2012) the introduction to topics obviously takes place before any field work. Bak and Boulocher-Passet (2013) discusses preparing the students for an international experience.…”

“…Hillon et al (2012) developed a relationship with a local Small Business and Technology Development Center, which is supported by the federal Small Business Administration. Heriot et al (2008) leveraged a federally funded Small Business Institute until funding ran out, then leveraged an advisory organization, the Small Business Institute Directors Association on an independent basis. Giauque (1980) refers to an association with the National Advisory Council.…”