Exploring Student Engagement Factors in a Blended Undergraduate Course
Date
2020
Authors
Edwards, Rebecca L.
Davis, Sarah K.
Hadwin, Allyson F.
Milford, Todd M.
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
he Canadian Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning
Abstract
Student engagement is an important factor in academic performance and comprises four dimensions: behavioural, cognitive, emotional (Fredericks et al., 2004), and agentic (Reeve, 2013). Blended courses provide unique opportunities for instructors to use trace data collected during learning to understand and support student engagement. This mixed-methods case study compared the student engagement of two groups of students with a history of low prior academic achievement. The groups were (a) students who ultimately did well in the course and (b) students who did poorly. Data came from two primary sources: (a) log file data from the course LMS, and (b) trace data derived from authentic learning tasks. Data represented five indicators: (a) behavioural engagement, (b) cognitive engagement, (c) emotions experienced during learning, (d) agency or proactive approaches to studying, and (e) overall academic engagement. Findings indicated students who moved achievement groups showed higher levels of behavioural engagement, cognitive engagement, and agentic or proactive approaches to studying and overall engagement. Additionally, students who remained in the low achievement group showed higher levels of positive deactivating emotions (e.g., relief). Implications for future research on student engagement and designing teaching to increase engagement in blended courses are discussed.
Description
Keywords
blended learning, case study, trace data, student engagement, student success, student achievement, apprentissage hybride, étude de cas, données de traces, engagement des étudiants, réussite des étudiants
Citation
Edwards, R. L., Davis, S. K., Hadwin, A. F., & Milford, T. M. (2020). Exploring Student Engagement Factors in a Blended Undergraduate Course. The Canadian Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, 11(3). https://doi.org/10.5206/cjsotl-rcacea.2020.3.8293