Expectation Shock in Education: Utilising Industry SERVQUAL to Enhance Student Perception of STEAM and STEAM Careers

in International Journal of Technology Enhanced Learning (in press)

In industry, an Expectation Shock occurs when a customer has a post-experience Perception that greatly exceeds their prior Expectation. In our study, the customers are students and teachers. An ... [more ▼]

In industry, an Expectation Shock occurs when a customer has a post-experience Perception that greatly exceeds their prior Expectation. In our study, the customers are students and teachers. An Expectation shock might occur when, for example, a student ‘just did not expect to find STEAM so interesting’. The objective of this research was to determine how Expectation Shock might be used in schools to enhance student Perception of STEAM and STEAM careers. It was found that Expectation shock in the form of Hothousing intensive, collaborative workshops can be used in schools to greatly enhance student Perception of STEAM and STEAM careers and give them experience of Industry practice valuable for their future careers. Educational practice should focus on enhancing student or teacher Perception rather than stated Importance. It is essential to examine Perception post-experience versus prior Expectation to identify benefits (or not) from the activity. [less ▲]