Organizational Behavior in the Classroom: Project Based and Experiential Learning in the Construction Management Curriculum

This paper sets out to address the "thesis" that there is a correlation between organizational behavior in the classroom and student's learning dynamics.What is Organizational Behavior and how does it apply to the classroom in a technical teaching environment and how does it affect the way students learn?Also, what disciplines contribute to organizational behavior and how do they affect the classroom learning experience?When a college student joins a class to study a particular technical subject today, he or she moves into a new world of project based learning.Today, students must participate in self learning, critical (outside the box) thinking, team skills including managing the team, and individual as well as team ethics.The student has moved into the "new" learning arena of group dynamics called experiential learning.The student's level of participation has been greatly raised and he/she will be required to participate in active and self learning while developing enhanced communication skills.The Industrial Advisory Committee at Farmingdale State College has set enhanced communications, both written and oral, as their primary learning outcome.This paper will set out the results of case studies in the field of teaching Construction Management at Farmingdale State College and how they differ based on class size, class make-up, and student maturity (Freshman vs. Senior).We will address the success and failure of each of these situations, including the male dominated population in Construction Management courses and the effect of female students in the curriculum.We will consider the results of "individual" vs. "team" work assignments and team make-up.Also, we will look at the foundations of "Organizational Behavior in the classroom" and how they differ from the "Organizational Behavior in the office"We will attempt to consider learning parameters such as student's individual personalities, and values and how they fit into team rather than individual dynamics.We'll consider cultural background and how it affects teamwork, including team communication, and team dynamics such as leadership.We'll look at the effects of peer review in this arena.q