Value of Informal Learning Environments for Students Engaged in Engineering Design

A focus group study was conducted with purposefully sampled student participants solving an engineering design challenge during a one-week engineering summer camp held at a research-intensive university in the southeast. The goal of the study was to further understand the student experience and ascertain the perceived value of an informal learning environment for students engaged in an engineering design challenge. Emergent themes are provided to illustrate the primary challenges related to the engineering design challenge and the aspects of the engineering summer camp that were beneficial to the student participants. It is anticipated that the results of this study will constructively add to the literature on learning and teaching in engineering design across informal and formal learning environments.