A qualitative study to improve the student learning experience
| Date | 04 September 2017 |
| Published date | 04 September 2017 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/QAE-06-2016-0031 |
| Pages | 462-474 |
| Author | Raid A. Jastania,Gehan F. Balata,Mohamed I.S. Abd El-Hady,Ahmad Gouda,Mohamad Abd El-Wahab,Abeer Temraz,Nashwa M. Ibrahim,Eman Beshr,Abeer Y. Mahdi,Rabab Mousa,Batool F. Tag,Hadeel Hisham,Ibtehal El-Sofiani |
| Subject Matter | Education,Curriculum, instruction & assessment,Educational evaluation/assessment |
A qualitative study to improve the
student learning experience
Raid A. Jastania
College of Medicine, Umm-Al-Qura University, Makkah, Saudi Arabia, and
Gehan F. Balata,Mohamed I.S. Abd El-Hady,Ahmad Gouda,
Mohamad Abd El-Wahab,Abeer Temraz,Nashwa M. Ibrahim,
Eman Beshr,Abeer Y. Mahdi,Rabab Mousa,Batool F. Tag,
Hadeel Hisham and Ibtehal El-Sofiani
College of Pharmacy, Umm-Al-Qura University, Makkah, Saudi Arabia
Abstract
Purpose –For any educational institution, studentsatisfaction is an important goal. Thus, the purpose of
the study is to use a structured improvement process, define–measure–analyse–improve–control (DMAIC)
methodology, to improve students’satisfaction regarding their learning experience at the College of
Pharmacy/UmmAl-Qura University.
Design/methodology/approach –The study first definesthe problem and develops the project charter.
Then the study visualizes the students’learningexperience process that is defined using a flow chart and a
value streammap. Students’voices were captured througha modified version of a survey developed by Levitz
(2015-2016) that covered different aspects of the students’learning experience. Next, Pareto analysis and
cause-and-effect diagramswere used to identify the few vital factors affecting students’satisfaction. The net
promoter score was chosen as a primary metric to measure students’satisfaction regarding their learning
experience.
Findings –The analysis results revealed that there were eight areas of dissatisfaction: poor catering
services, improper physical environment, students’feedback being overlooked, inappropriate measures for
course delivery,absence of appropriate advice about future career, inefficientfield experience and finally and
poor academic support.Based on these results, an improvement plan was prepared and the firststage of the
plan was implemented.The success of the plan was investigated by measuringthe net promoter score which
was increasedby about 11.9 per cent afterimplementation of the first stage of the plan.
Originality/value –The study emphasizes that the DMAICmethodology can be applied successfully to
improve students’learningexperience and to discoveradditional value for students.
Keywords Loyalty, Satisfaction, Six Sigma, Learning experience, Net promoter score
Paper type Research paper
Introduction
Currently, universitiesbelieve that higher education is a service industry, and have set great
emphasis on meeting the needs of their students who are considered to be “customers”.
O’Neill and Palmer, 2004 define service quality in higher education as “the difference
between what a student expects to receive and his/her perceptions of actual delivery”.
Donaldson and Runciman (1995), considered service quality as a key performance measure
for excellence in education. Hennig-Thurauet al. (2001) mentioned that educational services
play a central role in students’lives, and students require huge amounts of motivation and
Disclosure: There are no conflicts of interest.
QAE
25,4
462
Received 30 August 2016
Revised 3 April 2017
Accepted 10 July 2017
QualityAssurance in Education
Vol.25 No. 4, 2017
pp. 462-474
© Emerald Publishing Limited
0968-4883
DOI 10.1108/QAE-06-2016-0031
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