Elements of engagement for successful learning (original) (raw)

Student Engagement: A Multiple Layered Phenomenon

Universities are seeking to actively and strategically manage student engagement through providing opportunities for students to interact and engage with the institution on a range of levels and in different ways. However, this increasingly complex and multi-layered nature of student engagement within a tertiary education environment is not well understood. Through qualitative focus groups and a series of interviews with undergraduate and postgraduate students, this study explores and articulates the cognitive, emotional, behavioural and social dimensions of engagement that depict the nature of student engagement. This is one of the first studies that considers social engagement as a dimension of the broader engagement construct and provides an illustration of social engagement at different levels within a tertiary education setting. Further, we demonstrate that engagement occurs with three key focal objects (or levels) embedded within the university structure; the lecturer, course and the institution itself. Hence, this paper contributes to the literature by providing a multi-layered consideration of student engagement and demonstrating the nested nature of engagement across the broad service system (the university), the narrow service system (the course), and the individual dyadic level of engagement (the student-lecturer interaction). These findings could be further considered and empirically tested in other engagement contexts (e.g. employee engagement, customer engagement).

Student Engagement: Developing a Conceptual Framework and Survey Instrument

Journal of Education for Business, 2015

Student engagement is considered to be among the better predictors of learning, yet there is growing concern that there is no consensus on the conceptual foundation. The authors propose a conceptualization of student engagement grounded in A. W. Astin's (1984) Student Involvement Theory and W. A. Kahn's (1990) employee engagement research where student engagement is built on four components: emotional engagement, physical engagement, cognitive engagement in class, and cognitive engagement out of class. Using this framework the authors develop and psychometrically test a student engagement survey that can be used by researchers to advance engagement theory and by business schools to monitor continuous improvement.

Reconceptualizing Student Engagement

Journal of International Students

International students in the United States have been increasingly attracted to community colleges as a starting point to higher education. Recently, their enrollment has been dropping. Research highlights the importance of student engagement to international students. However, few studies investigate their engagement experiences in community colleges. This study investigated the validity of the Community College Survey of Student Engagement (CCSSE) benchmarks as proxies for international student engagement in community colleges. The original CCSSE benchmarks were a poor fit for international students. Resulting constructs and underlying items differed significantly from the original benchmarks and demonstrated poor reliability. Findings highlight the inapplicability of CCSSE benchmarks in representing international student engagement. Recommendations include adding culturally relevant variables to the CCSSE structure more applicable to international student populations, and accompa...

Comparing Two Frameworks of Student Engagement

Academic Exchange Quarterly, 2012

Student persistence is critical to both individual and national success and is influenced by student engagement. Nonetheless, little work has been done at the individual or course levels to understand connections between student engagement and academic success. This study compared three instruments, one measuring student perceptions of classroom engagement and two measuring student motivation and engagement in learning. Results suggested significant relationships between the instruments and to student GPA and persistence. These instruments have utility as formative assessment measures that benefit both students and instructors.

Measurement and analysis of student engagement in university classes where …

Higher Education Research & …

Students participate more in a classroom and also report a better understanding of course concepts when steps are taken to actively engage them. The Student Engagement (SE) Survey was developed and used in this study for measuring student engagement at the class level and consisted ...

Research On Measuring And Analyzing Student Engagement In Classes Across University

2005 Annual Conference Proceedings

The National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE) was especially designed to measure student engagement as a means of evaluating the impact of education at the university level. However, no such simple tool is available for measuring student engagement at an individual class level. This paper describes a classroom survey of student engagement (CSSE) that was adopted from the original NSSE Survey. The CSSE survey conducted over five semesters examined levels of student engagement in 539 classes from the first year to graduate level. Of 17,660 students enrolled in those 539 courses, 13,441 students completed the survey. Results showed more engagement in higher-level classes and also in those classes with fewer students. The study also compared results with the NSSE. Other instructors can use the instrument and the reported results to measure and compare the engagement levels in their classes.

Student engagement in college : concept and assessment/

1987

A student engagement model is proposed to provide a conceptual framework for understanding the bond between student and college. The impetus for developing this model originated from examining the literature on college student attrition; a literature that is diffuse and negative. The present model focuses attention away from attrition perse and toward a broader array of college outcomes. It also provides a rationale and a method for measuring student engagement. The validity of the model is examined in a study that tracks entering students through their first year in college. The model has two components. First, the engagement schema depicts students' psychological attachment to college. Second, the social context denotes social factors that influence psychological attachment. Four dimensions of engagement are described to facilitate measurement.

Improving student engagement: Ten proposals for action

Active Learning in Higher Education, 2010

Since the 1980s an extensive research literature has investigated how to improve student success in higher education focusing on student outcomes such as retention, completion and employability. A parallel research programme has focused on how students engage with their studies and what they, institutions and educators can do to enhance their engagement, and hence success. This article reports on two syntheses of research literature on student engagement and how this can be enhanced. It first synthesizes 93 research studies from ten countries to develop a conceptual organizer for student engagement that consists of four perspectives identified in the research: student motivation; transactions between teachers and students; institutional support; and engagement for active citizenship. Secondly, the article synthesizes findings from these perspectives as ten propositions for improving student engagement in higher education. It concludes by identifying some limitations with the conceptual organizer and one suggestion for developing a more integrated approach to student engagement.