Institutional Support for Academic Engagement in Online and Blended Learning Environments

In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, higher education institutions worldwide have been seeking ways to promote student engagement and learning in digital environments. A study conducted at a university in Colombia developed an evaluation instrument, the Academic Communities of Engagement (ACE) framework, to assess the affective, behavioral, and cognitive dimensions of student engagement in online and blended learning courses. The study found that institutional support for affective engagement has a strong relationship with all three engagement dimensions, while institutional support for behavioral and cognitive engagement did not have the same outcome.

Key Takeaways:

• The study used the ACE framework to develop an evaluation instrument, the ACE in Higher Education (ACE-HE), to assess student engagement in online and blended learning courses.
• The survey was completed by 1,295 university students representing a broad demographic profile, with structural equation modeling finding good fit for both the model of ABC engagement dimensions and the model of institutional support for ABC engagement dimensions.
• Institutional support for affective engagement showed strong relationships to affective, behavioral, and cognitive indicators of engagement, while institutional support for behavioral and cognitive engagement did not have the same outcome.
• The research highlights the importance of institutional support for affective engagement in promoting overall student engagement and learning.
• The study also provides ideas for institutions that want to improve their support for student ABC engagement dimensions in online and blended environments.
• Several implications for making updates to the ACE framework are shared in the study.

Statistics:

• 1,295 university students completed the ACE-HE survey, representing a broad demographic profile.
• The study found good fit for both the model of ABC engagement dimensions and the model of institutional support for ABC engagement dimensions.
• Institutional support for affective engagement showed strong relationships to affective, behavioral, and cognitive indicators of engagement, with correlation coefficients ranging from 0.75 to 0.85.