Friday, May 27, 2022

Understanding Student Engagement

7 minute read

Student Engagement

Student engagement is an important aspect of education. Research has shown that there are a number of factors that contribute to satisfactory academic outcomes and overall learning experiences. It is crucial that educators create and promote engagement in classrooms and eLearning.

The Importance of Student Engagement

Student engagement is the level of attention, interest, motivation, and enthusiasm paid in learning environments. Engaging students has become a necessity in educational spaces in order to improve practices. Student engagement is important because it supports learning outcomes and experiences amongst students. Studies have shown that students are more involved with classroom activities when positively engaged. Discovering and developing new methods to engage students and improve teaching approaches are actions educators need to take to meet academic goals, promote knowledge retention, and increase satisfaction amongst students.

Creating and Supporting Engagement

It is an educator’s job to engage students in the most appropriate and effective ways to encourage learning and a general sense of self and others. Social aspects of learning are extremely important, this goes for children and adults alike. The Longitudinal Model of Student Departure, theorized by Vincent Tinto, suggests that social and intellectual elements are crucial to the success and retention of students. Students need to be stimulated and engaged in order to be receptive to instructional materials.

Engagement that benefits instructional efforts can be created by first engaging the student in a general sense, then moving on to connecting your engagement endeavors with course content and expanding on this as time goes on. Promoting and maintaining engagement in virtual and in-person classrooms can be done by investing time and energy into the lives and experiences of your students. It is easier to reach students when you have a good idea of what they are going through. Preservation of student engagement is important because, without student engagement, there is a risk of students being unsuccessful academically and socially.

Organic and Non-organic Engagement

It is crucial to be mindful of multiple contextual influences on engagement. Let’s learn more about organic and non-organic engagement! Organic engagement is natural and can benefit students in ways that aren’t anticipated. Non-organic engagement is organized to benefit the student. It is debatable whether non-organic engagement is as effective as organic because educators and students have their own opinions and experiences that may contradict those of others.

Educators may believe that non-organic engagement efforts can be just as effective as organic ones, however, students may prefer a more organic engagement. For example, if a student chooses to be part of the debate team, they might be more inclined to be attentive and present in the activities this club has to offer. On the other hand, if this student is forced to be part of the debate team, educators and peers may be met with resistance from this student. In some cases, students in this predicament may find that becoming part of the team was a blessing in disguise. In other cases, students may not ever get acclimated to the team and resent the obliged or “non-organic” engagement.

Engagement in Online Environments

The topic of engagement being fostered in eLearning environments is widely controversial. There are millions who take advantage of engagement opportunities in online environments, and if they don’t have them, they are creating them. There are others that believe online learning environments are sorely lacking in positive engagement experiences and outcomes. Though it depends on who you ask, there are instances of true engagement being fostered in online educational environments.

There are a number of educational technology tools that can help you foster engagement in online learning environments. Sometimes this can be achieved through video conferencing, text-based activities like blog posts and discussion boards, instructional videos, direct teacher-student and peer-to-peer communications, etc. Educators must know how to effectively implement thoughtful engagement initiatives in their lessons and supplemental activities online. For instance, studies have shown that learning outcomes and motivation among students increased once introduced to mobile-based assessments.  

True engagement can be fostered in online learning environments as long as practices are thoughtful and instruction-related, making engagement beneficial to learning initiatives. Engaged students are more likely to understand and retain information than those who are not engaged. Studies are increasingly taking a look at how students perceive online educational technology tools and researchers are putting emphasis on various tools like learning management systems (LMS), online portfolios, virtual labs, video lectures, podcasts, and more. Studies found positive attitudes amongst students regarding the use of online educational technology tools.

Promoting Student Engagement

There are plenty of approaches educators can take to promote student engagement. Resources for promoting student engagement can be acquired through networking with peers and mentors, educational websites, professional organizations, and most importantly, students. It is crucial to know who your students are and understand how to engage them to be an effective educator. It is also important to understand that not all students are the same and it is beneficial to have a good amount of engagement methods handy at all times.

Some of your engagement methods should include fostering social and cultural development, making students aware of their options as it relates to academic and general support services, as well as creating environments for learning that are exciting, enriching, equitable, and inclusive. It is beneficial to also make students aware of their abilities – sometimes students may not recognize their potential. Being a facilitator between students and academic success is a large responsibility that should not be taken lightly. Educators should always strive to provide their students with the skills necessary to achieve their academic goals.

Student Engagement from a Biblical Perspective

Educators must take similar approaches to those Jesus Christ took to appropriately engage and instruct people. Jesus has always been engaging in his various attempts to teach others and knew how to effectively tailor His engagements to each person he encountered through assessing their individual needs. If educators use similar approaches, there are increased chances of them reaching out and engaging more students than expected. Our Lord has commanded us to walk in His footsteps and live in His image, not departing from His teachings. Educators who wish to provide students with the best methods of engagement should follow the Lord’s example.

Christ understood that it was His job to take initiative as the educator. He was also interested in meeting people where they were, literally and figuratively. The Lord went where he had to mentally, physically, and emotionally, to put Himself in the position of others to better understand their circumstances in order to know how to assist them in the most effective way. “For even the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give His life as a ransom for many.” - Mark 10:45 (KJV). Educators using a selfless, learner-centered approach have a better chance of reaching students, especially those that are difficult to engage.

Implications for Educators

These elements of student engagement propose various implications for educators. Educators must work to create and promote student engagement in all learning environments. Today, students have many distractions at their fingertips including social media, texting, television, and family, which can reduce educational productivity. Getting students to engage in learning activities can be like pulling teeth if educators don’t educate themselves on a variety of successful engagement methods. Educators must also recognize how detrimental an unengaging learning environment can be to a student’s cognitive, social, and emotional development. Implications for Christian educators involve providing engaging learning environments that also exemplify the teaching and learning methods that were close to and constructed by Christ.

Conclusion

Research supports the idea that student engagement can be improved by a number of factors. The factors suggested here, can benefit student engagement in a variety of ways and encourage positive academic outcomes and overall experiences. Educators must take advantage of opportunities to engage students whether organic or not. There are things students aren’t aware of in learning environments, that educators are privy to, so it is important for educators to take initiative in developing the student. Educators must acknowledge students’ individual educational needs and design instruction with the student’s cognitive, social, and emotional development in mind. Educators who take appropriate and effective approaches to engaging students will see the most favorable outcomes.