Students’ Time Perceptions on Mastering Construction Content in Different Educational Models

Exploring construction education models, defined by the amount of lab or lecture content, and their characteristics, has been a focal point of many studies in recent years. Researchers investigate different aspects of construction curricula and provide guidelines to improve construction education. The range of factors and variables involved makes it hard to draw a solid conclusion and introduce a best-practice teaching methodology. Construction programs offer a curriculum which covers major subjects of the construction field, yet, the depth and breadth of each subject covered vary among construction programs and, hence, setting a benchmark for construction educators is not a simple process. However, addressing different aspects of construction education models provides educators and administrators with pieces to be utilized in a curriculum development process. One of these factors is students’ perception toward educational variables in the time context. Students’ perceptions strongly impact the outcome of a curriculum development program. This paper reports on a study conducted in the construction programs at Mississippi State University and Central Connecticut State University. The educational model of the construction program is different at these two institutions which creates different perceptions in students and faculty toward the construction educational content, and especially the associated time variable. This paper illustrates the similarities and differences of timing perception between two educational models and correlates the model with a variation of students’ perceptions. The results indicate the importance of time perception in educational models to achieve content excellence.