Determination of factors influencing student engagement using a learning management system in a tertiary setting

Determining the key factors that affect student engagement will assist academics to improve the student motivation. The Quality Indicators for Learning and Teaching (QILT) reports have shown low engagement levels in higher education students [21, 22, 23]. While factors such as online education, lack of attendance and poor design of course content have been attributed to this cause, it is still not clear as to the determination of those factors influencing student engagement in a higher education setting. In the modern tertiary settings, Information and Communication Technology (ICT) plays an essential role in disseminating the course related information with a Learning Management System (LMS) which become the platform to communicate crucial course-related information. Academics can develop course materials on these LMS’ to engage students beyond the classrooms and students need to interact with those LMS’ to get apprehend the transmitted knowledge. Since LMS’ are operated on a computer platform, academics and students require strong ICT skills which are further utilized in preparation of course materials. Their relevance, appropriateness, the way various tasks are prepared, how communication is facilitated, the role and utilization of discussion forums and other social media structures available to students to interact with, and the way in which assessments are conducted, providing a Just in Time (JIT) type of knowledge students require. The investigation into these major factors forms the basis of this study. Thus, understanding how various factors related to LMS’ in a tertiary setting influence student engagement and then determining those factors that contribute to this engagement are the main objective of this study. To pursue the main objective of this study, a hybrid method mainly involving a pseudo meta-analysis to unearth additional evidence required for the study, a comprehensive qualitative component to understand the sector factors and perhaps a small quantitative component to confirm the sector views will be employed

Determination of factors influencing student engagement using a learning management system in a tertiary setting

Determining the key factors that affect student engagement will assist academics in improving students’ motivation. The Quality Indicators for Learning and Teaching (QILT) reports have shown low engagement levels in higher education student cohorts (QILT 2016, 2017). While factors such as online education, lack of attendance, and poor course content design have been attributed to this cause, it is still not clear as to the determination of those factors influencing student engagement in a higher education setting. It is widely accepted that the selection of appropriate learning resources is an essential phase in the education process. In contrast, an incompatible range of course materials can demotivate a student from engaging in the course (Quaye & Harper 2014). In the modern tertiary setting, Information and Communication Technology (ICT) plays an essential role in disseminating information with a Learning Management System (LMS) as the platform to communicate crucial course-related information. Academics can develop course materials on these LMSs to engage students beyond the classrooms, and students need to interact through the same platform to comprehend the transmitted knowledge. Since LMSs are operated on a computer platform, academics and students require strong ICT skills which are further utilised in the preparation of course materials. The knowledge required is dependent on the relevance and appropriateness of materials, the way various tasks are prepared, how communication is facilitated, the role and utilisation of discussion forums and other available social media structures, and the way in which assessments are conducted. This cumulatively leads to the development of a Just in Time (JIT) type of knowledge, which can be challenging to measure. The investigation into these major factors forms the basis of this study. Thus, understanding how various factors influence student engagement through the use of LMS platforms in a tertiary setting is the focus of this study. This study used a hybrid method involving a qualitative component to understand the factors that influence the student engagement in an LMS driven learning setting and a quantitative component for confirmation of various factors identified through the literature review. The study developed five specific hypotheses for testing, and the following table shows the outcomes of hypotheses testing: H1: Students are influenced by teaching resources in order to realise engagement in classroom activities - ACCEPTED H2: Academics influence engagement in classroom activities through their involvement in various teaching and management aspects - REJECTED H3: An academic’s activities influence the management of teaching activities, resulting in improved engagement by students in the class - ACCEPTED H4: Learning Management Systems (LMS) are a key part in improving students’ engagement - REJECTED H5: Management of various study-related activities to reach focus in the study will positively influence students’ engagement - ACCEPTED The outcomes of the study indicate that students and associated classroom activities, teaching resources, management of teaching, the way LMSs are established, and students’ requirements and needs play a key role in assuring engagement. This study also found that an academic’s activities play a less significant role in fostering engagement as there appears to be a shift from teaching to teaching management, as evidenced in the qualitative discussion. Further, the participants expected academics to have superior technology communication skills as this is essential in an LMS driven setting. Interestingly, this study correlated with a number of standards dictated by the Tertiary Education Quality Standards of Australia (TEQSA), a regulatory body that enforces standards in Australian tertiary education. This correlation was observed despite the fact that students that participated in this study had limited awareness of these TEQSA standards. The main contribution of this study is in highlighting the fact that academics and other support services in tertiary settings should focus on how the LMS is presented as participants expressed that clear navigation of the system is essential for engagement. This has profound implications in the way the recruitment of academics is conducted. In terms of practice, TEQSA standards are key in assuring quality in tertiary settings, and this study has provided strong evidence as to the needs for support systems, the way learning objectives are mapped to deliver learning outcomes, appropriateness of the content, time imposition on students in managing their study-related activities, and integration of technology. These are now a standard part of the TEQSA assessment. The study can be further improved in the future by collecting data from various cohorts: for example, fulltime vs part-time, domestic vs overseas, and mature vs school leavers, to better assess their views in terms of engagement as these cohorts come with varying needs. These can then be encapsulated in the learning materials and systems development. This would then lead to a better alignment of learning management and engagement to realise better outcomes

Development of Mobile Learning integrated with Learning Management System (LMS) on Buffer Solutions Topic

This research aims to develop mobile learning integrated with LMS and test its effectiveness motivation learning on the topic of buffer solutions. The research was conducted at SMA AL-HASRA from November 2020 to June 2021. The research and development method by Borg and Gall was used by modifying five stages, needs analysis; product development; validation; product testing; and implementation. Testing used quantitative method with post-test only control group design and analysis using independent sample t-test. The resulting mobile learning medium is called "LarutanPenyangga.apk" which is compatible with Android devices which provides summaries, video animations, kimi, quiz, and application buffer solutions in daily life. The feasibility test for topic and language resulted 82.25% with a reliability 0.975. The feasibility test for media 75.05% with a reliability 0.960. Trial test have very good criteria. The effectiveness test of motivation learning percentage is 68.4% and has a good category. Based on the t-test, obtained ttable < tcount. It can be concluded that H0 is rejected and H1 is accepted, which means that there is a significant positive effect from the use of integrated mobile learning with LMS to increase students' learning motivation on buffer solutions topic

Factors Influencing Students Engagement in Virtual Classrooms and Their Impact on Satisfaction

During the COVID-19 pandemic, many universities switched to virtual classrooms. Online learning has benefits, but faculty and students have to overcome barriers to adjust to this new educational process. This research explores the factors most influencing students engagement in online tertiary education, and examines their relation to instructors and students satisfaction. Following a broad literature review for the factors that may affect engagement in online learning in general and virtual classrooms in specific, a quantitative descriptive survey was designed and pilot-tested to examine the impact of the extracted factors on students engagement from the faculty and students’ perspectives. This self-reported questionnaire was then distributed via Microsoft Forms to 273 students and 109 faculty members (382 total respondents). The results showed that the most significant factors affecting students engagement from the perspectives of instructors and students are the behavioral and the learning-experience design. The results also revealed that satisfaction can be impacted greatly by only the technical factor and the behavioral factor from the instructors perspectives, however from the students perspectives it can be impacted by the psychological, behavioral, and learning experience deign factors

Exploring the Factors Influencing the College Students’ Engagement in Mobile Learning in Palestine

This study aims to explore the factors influencing students’ engagement in mobile learning at Palestine Technical University Kadoorie. It utilizes a mixed research approach that combines both quantitative and qualitative designs. The study sample consists of 37 college students from two different faculties: Arts and Educational Sciences, and Applied Sciences. Data were collected using a pre-existing scale for engagement and its factors. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 12 students who completed the scales. The findings showed a statistically significant difference in the total engagement scores, specifically in the emotional engagement dimension. However, there was no statistical significance found in the social, cognitive, or behavioral domains. Factors related to instructors are influential factors in student engagement and have been found to be statistically significant. Qualitative findings supported the quantitative results for this question, which showed subthemes of instructor-related factors such as instructor presence, motivation, teaching strategies, and technical environment. Researchers recommend that policymakers and educators prioritize the engagement factors of students in mobile learning. One of the limitations is the generalizability of this study. The participants who were surveyed were exclusively sourced from two departments within one university. To broaden the scope, we suggest that future research include individuals from various disciplines, universities, academic institutions, and students