The structure of student engagement in online learning: A bi‐factor exploratory structural equation modelling approach.

Enhancing student engagement plays a critical role in reducing student drop‐out rate in online learning as students usually feel isolated and disconnected in this learning environment. This requires a clear conceptualization of the student engagement construct and its underlying structure. However,...

Descripción completa

Detalles Bibliográficos
Publicado en:Journal of Computer Assisted Learning Vol. 37; no. 4; pp. 1141 - 1154
Autores principales: Hoi, Vo Ngoc, Le Hang, Ho
Formato: questionnaire/scale research tables/charts Journal Article
Publicado: Wiley-Blackwell Aug2021
Acceso en línea:Ver este registro en EBSCOhost
fields @attributes:
  recordID: 1
pdfLink:
plink: https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ccm&AN=151329637&site=ehost-live
header:
  @attributes:
    shortDbName: ccm
    uiTerm: 151329637
    longDbName: CINAHL Complete
    uiTag: AN
  controlInfo:
    bkinfo:
    dissinfo:
    jinfo:
      jid:
        02664909
        6M1
      jtl: Journal of Computer Assisted Learning
      issn: 02664909
      maglogo: Y
    pubinfo:
      dt: Aug2021
      vid: 37
      iid: 4
      pid: 480
      pub: Wiley-Blackwell
      place: Malden, Massachusetts
    artinfo:
      ui:
        151329637
        149754444
        151329637
        151329637
        10.1111/jcal.12551
        151329637
      ppf: 1141
      ppct: 13
      formats:
      tig:
        atl: The structure of student engagement in online learning: A bi‐factor exploratory structural equation modelling approach.
      aug:
        au:
          Hoi, Vo Ngoc
          Le Hang, Ho
        affil: Department of Foreign Languages, Quy Nhon University, Quy Nhon, Vietnam
      sug:
        subj:
          Consumer Participation Evaluation
          Education, Non-Traditional
          Learning Methods
          Student Attitudes
          Human
          Female
          Male
          Exploratory Research
          Structural Equation Modeling
          Conceptual Framework
          Surveys
          Questionnaires
          Summated Rating Scaling
          Convenience Sample
          Data Analysis Software
          Descriptive Statistics
          Confidence Intervals
          Goodness of Fit Chi Square Test
          Female
          Male
      ab: Enhancing student engagement plays a critical role in reducing student drop‐out rate in online learning as students usually feel isolated and disconnected in this learning environment. This requires a clear conceptualization of the student engagement construct and its underlying structure. However, the conceptual understanding of the student engagement construct has long been impeded by the inconsistency in its multidimensional structure and the conceptual ambiguity among its components. This study aims to examine the underlying structure of student engagement in online learning based on the bi‐factor exploratory structure equation modelling framework (B‐ESEM). Four competing models representing the underlying structure of student engagement in online learning were compared based on their degree of fit to survey data from 363 students in an online undergraduate program. Students' responses to the online learning engagement questionnaire were best represented by a B‐ESEM model that provided simultaneous assessment of a global engagement factor and specific factors of behavioural, cognitive, affective and social engagement while controlling for item cross‐loadings. However, behavioural engagement only retained limited specificity once the global engagement factor was taken into account. The study findings offer a solution to reconcile the inconsistency in the multidimensional structure of student engagement and reduce the conceptual ambiguity among its components, thus contribute to better measuring student engagement in online learning. Lay Description: What is currently known about the subject matter?: Student engagement is an important indicator of online learning outcomes and an early sign of student disengagement and dropout.Understanding student engagement in online learning is a critical endeavour that requires adequate conceptualization and operationalization of the construct.The conceptual understanding of student engagement is impeded by the inconsistency in its dimensional structure and the conceptual ambiguity among its components. What does this paper add to the existing body of research?: We adopt a bi‐factor exploratory structural equation modelling approach to examine the underlying structure of student engagement in online learning.Students' responses to the online student engagement questionnaire were best represented by a bi‐factor model.The global factor of student engagement and specific components of behavioural, cognitive, affective and social engagement can be simultaneously assessed. Implications of study findings for practitioners: The bi‐factor exploratory structural equation model has potential to address concerns about the inconsistency in the multidimensional structure of student engagement in online learning and the conceptual ambiguity among its components.Self‐report items might not be appropriate for the assessment of behavioural engagement as they better represent the global engagement factor.Self‐report items are more suitable for assessing internal psychological processes associated with cognitive, affective and social engagement components.
      pubtype: Academic Journal
      doctype:
        questionnaire/scale
        research
        tables/charts
        Journal Article
      ougenre: Article
    language: English
    refInfo:
    holdings:
      @attributes:
        islocal: N