Factors Influencing Student Engagement in Public Universities of Pakistan
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.61841/0spp2087Keywords:
Assessment, Student Engagement, University Management, Higher Education, Influential FactorsAbstract
This qualitative study explores students’ perceptions toward factors influencing student engagement in public universities of Pakistan. In-depth interviews were conducted with nine undergraduate students from three public universities in Pakistan. These students were nominated by their respective universities and known as the most actively engaged with their campuses. The interview sessions were guided by the interview protocol, and each interview session lasted for 40-45 minutes, which was recorded and later transcribed verbatim. Each interview transcript was then emailed to respective participants for validation. The validated interview transcripts were analyzed thematically using NVivo12 software. The initial analysis revealed a total of 59 codes (nodes) were discovered, which later were grouped into 22 categories. Further analysis of the 22 categories revealed five advanced themes called behavioral, cognitive, emotional, psychological, and social engagement. This study discovered that behavioral, emotional, cognitive, social, and psychological were the first to fifth dimensions that were mostly stated by the students. The findings of this study indicated that student engagement was a dynamic component for student development and quality learning outcomes, while it was the most avoided component from the perspective of Pakistani public universities. The five dimensions revealed from this study can become core dimensions to develop a quantitative instrument to measure student engagement in public universities of Pakistan.
Downloads
References
[1] Kuh, G. D. What student affairs professionals need to know about student engagement? Journal of College
Student Development, 50(6), 2009, pp. 683-706.
[2] Dunleavy, J. and Milton, P. What did you do in school today? Exploring the concept of fostering learning.
Learning Environment Research, 3, 2009, pp. 135-158.
[3] Kuh, G. D. What student engagement data tell us about college readiness? Peer Review, 9(1), 2007, pp. 4-8.
[4] Krause, K. L. and H. Coates, H. Students‟ engagement in First‐year University. Assessment & Evaluation
in Higher Education, 33(5), 2008, pp. 493-505.
[5] Hu, S. and Kuh, G. D. Being (dis)engaged in educationally purposeful activities: The influences of student
and institutional characteristics. Research in Higher Education, 43(5), 2001, pp. 555-575.
[6] Higher Education Funding Council for England. Tender for a study into student engagement. Higher
Education Funding Council for England, Bristol, 2008.
[7] Lewis, A. D., Huebner, E. S., Malone, P. S. and Valois, R. F. Life satisfaction and student engagement in
adolescents. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 40(3), 2011, pp. 249-262.
[8] Carini, R. M., Kuh, G. D. and Klein, S. P. (2006). Student engagement and student learning: Testing the
linkages. Research in Higher Education, 47(1), 2006, pp. 1-32.
[9] Almarghani, E. M. and Mijatovic, I. Factors affecting student engagement in HEIs-it is all about good
teaching. Teaching in Higher Education, 22(8), 2017, pp. 940-956.
[10] Gunuc, S. The relationships between student engagement and their academic achievement. International
Journal on New Trends in Education and Their Implications, 5(4), 2014, pp. 16-231.
[11] Murray, J. Student-led action for sustainability in higher education: A literature review. International
Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education, 19(6), 2018, pp. 1095-1110.
[12] Van, N. T., Said, H., Rameli, M. R. M., Karim, N. A., Tajuddin, N. and Chai, T. T. Role of academic
advising in mitigating the challenges of ethnic minority students at Universiti Teknologi Malaysia.
International Education Studies, 8(13), 2015, pp. 52-59.
[13] Van, N. T., Said, H., Awang, Z. and Khan, A. Student perspective on learning and development outcomes
of academic advising at Universiti Teknologi Malaysia. Man in India, 96(1-2), 2016, pp. 675-688.
[14] Van, N. T., Said, H. and Khan, A. Components of an academic advising program standard for Malaysian
public universities. Man in India, 96(6), 2016, pp. 1691-1702.
[15] Van Nguyen, T., Said, H., Khan, A. and Ghani, F. A. Academic advising models and practices of two
Asian universities. Man in India, 97(19), 2017, pp. 33-41.
[16] Said, H., Pemberton, C. L. A. and Ahmad, I. Effectiveness of leadership training programs in public
universities of Malaysia in developing students‟ knowledge of leadership. World Applied Sciences Journal,
28(1), 2013, 1-8.
[17] Said, H., Ahmad, I., Hassan, Z. and Awang, Z. Service learning as critical pedagogy: Implications for
student community awareness and citizenship development. Mediterranean Journal of Social Sciences,
6(2), 2015, pp. 471-478.
[18] Said, H., Ahmad, I, Mansor, S. S. S. and Awang, Z. Exploring different perspectives on limitations and
promises of service-learning as an innovative pedagogy: Review of literature. Mediterranean Journal of
Social Sciences, 6(4S1), 2015, pp. 311-317.
[19] Ahmad, I. and Said, H. Application of Astin's theory of students' involvement in service learning at higher
education. Man in India, 96(1-2), 2016, pp. 231-245.
[20] Ahmad, I., Said, H., Janan, M. J. M. and Sholihan, S. Assessment of service-learning in higher education:
Challenges and possibilities. Man in India, 96(6), 2016, pp. 1623-1633.
[21] Ahmad, I., Said, H. and Mohamad Nor, F. Exploring service-learning practices: Evidence from Pakistan
vocational education. Malaysian Journal of Learning and Instruction, 16(2), 2019, pp. 125-154.
[22] O'Brien, M. K. Factors influencing the academic engagement of upper-division undergraduate international students: A case study of the University of Minnesota-twin cities. PhD Dissertation, University of
Minnesota, 2015.
[23] Clark, T. The impact of urbanicity on student engagement at small, residential, liberal arts colleges. PhD
Dissertation, University of Nebraska, 2014.
[24] Hu, Y. L., Ching, G. S. and Chao, P. C. Taiwan student engagement model: Conceptual framework and
overview of psychometric properties. International Journal of Research Studies in Education, 1(1), 2012,
pp. 69-90.
[25] Kahu, E. R. Framing student engagement in higher education. Studies in Higher Education, 38(5), 2011,
pp. 758-773.
[26] Lee, S. (2014). An exploration of learning environmental factors affecting student cognitive engagement:
Implications for instructional design research. Educational Technology International, 15(2), 2014, pp. 143-
170.
[27] Pather, S., Norodien-Fataar, N., Cupido, X. and Mkonto, N. First year students' experience of access and
engagement at a University of Technology. Journal of Education (University of KwaZulu-Natal), 69, 2017,
pp. 161-184.
[28] Russell, B. and Slater, G. R. Factors that encourage student engagement: Insights from a case study of „first
time‟ students in a New Zealand university. Journal of University Teaching & Learning Practice, 8(1),
2011, pp. 1-15.
[29] Senior, R. M., Bartholomew, P., Soor, A., Shepperd, D., Bartholomew, N. and Senior, C. The rules of
engagement: Student engagement and motivation to improve the quality of undergraduate learning.
Frontiers in Educational Psychology, 3(32), 2018, pp. 48-56.
[30] Vaca, M. E. Student engagement: Factors affecting the academic performance and persistence of Hispanic
women in STEM. EdD Dissertation, University of Miami, 2016.
[31] Schreiber, B. and Yu, D. (2016). Exploring student engagement practices at a South African university:
Student engagement as reliable predictor of academic performance. South African Journal of Higher
Education, 30(5), 2016, pp.157-175.
[32] Sarwar, M. and Ashrafi, G. M. Students' commitment, engagement and locus of control as predictor of
academic achievement at higher education level. Current Issues in Education, 17(3), 2014, pp. 1-10.
[33] HEC. Six key challenges faced by the education sector in Pakistan. Retrieved from website Higher
Education Commission of Pakistan at
https://www.hec.gov.pk/english/news/Documents1/NewsViews/2018/JulyAugust-2018.pdf, 2018.
[34] Shaukat, S. and Iqbal, H. M. Teacher self-efficacy as a function of student engagement, instructional
strategies and classroom management. Pakistan Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology, 9(3), 2012, pp.
82-85.
[35] Astin. A. W. Student involvement: A developmental theory for higher education. Journal of College
Student Development, 40(5), 1999, pp. 518-529.
[36] Pascarella, E. T. and Terenzini, P. T. How college affects students: A third decade of research. JosseyBass, San Francisco, 2005.
[37] Kashif, M. and Basharat, S. Factors impacting university students‟ engagement with classroom activities:
Qualitative study. International Journal of Management in Education, 8(3), 2014, pp. 209-224.
[38] Gay, L. R. and Airasian, P. Educational research: Consequences for analysis and applications. Pearson,
Upper Saddle River, 2003.
[39] Hodson, D. and Peterson, J. The institutions of the European Union (4th ed.). Oxford University Press,
Luxembourg, 2017.
[40] Hasan, S. A. and Subhani, M. I. Relationship between on-campus student engagement and student
ownership of the institution. The European Proceedings of Social and Behavioural Sciences (p. 458-469),
Future Academy, 2016.
[41] Panhwar. A. H. Using cooperative learning to enhance student engagement with language support classes
in Pakistani higher education. PhD Thesis, Anglia Ruskin University, 2016.
[42] McCormick, A. C. Toward reflective accountability: Using NSSE for accountability and transparency. New
Directions for Institutional Research, 141, 2009, pp. 97-106.
[43] Fredricks, J. A., Blumenfeld, P. C. and Paris, A. H. School engagement: Potential of the concept, state of
the evidence. Review of Educational Research, 74(1), 2004, pp. 59-109.
[44] Linnenbrink, E. A. and Pintrich, P. R. The role of self-efficacy beliefs in student engagement and learning
in the classroom. Reading &Writing Quarterly, 19(2), 2003, pp. 119-137.
[45] Corno, L. and Mandinach, E. B. The role of cognitive engagement in classroom learning and motivation. Educational Psychologist, 18(2), 1983, pp. 88-108.
[46] Richardson, J. C. and Newby, T. The role of students' cognitive engagement in online learning. American
Journal of Distance Education, 20(1), 2006, pp. 23-37.
[47] Walker, C. O., Greene, B. A. and Mansell, R. A. Identification with academics, intrinsic/extrinsic
motivation, and self-efficacy as predictors of cognitive engagement. Learning and Individual Differences,
16(1), 2006, pp. 1-12.
[48] Pintrich, P. R. A motivational science perspective on the role of student motivation in learning and teaching
contexts. Journal of Educational Psychology, 95(4), 2003, pp. 667-686.
[49] Skinner, E. A. and Belmont, M. J. Motivation in the classroom: Reciprocal effects of teacher behaviour and
student engagement across the school year. Journal of Educational Psychology, 85(4), 1993, pp. 571-581.
[50] Sciarra, D. T. and Seirup, H. J. The multidimensionality of school engagement and math achievement
among racial groups. Professional School Counselling, 11(4), 2008, pp. 218-228.
[51] Appleton, J. J., Christenson, S; L., Kim, D. and Reschly, A. L. Measuring cognitive and psychological
engagement: Validation of the student engagement instrument. Journal of School Psychology, 44(5), 2006,
pp. 427-445.
[52] Chapman, E. Alternative approaches to assessing student engagement rates. Practical Assessment,
Research & Evaluation, 8(13), 2003, pp. 1-10.
[53] Gunuc, S. and Dogan, A. The relationships between Turkish adolescents‟ internet addiction, their perceived
social support and family activities. Computers in Human Behaviour, 29(6), 2013, pp. 2197-2207.
[54] Hausmann, L. R., Schofield, J. W. and Woods, R. L. (2007). Sense of belonging as a predictor of intentions
to persist among African American and White first-year college students. Research in Higher Education,
48(7), 2007, pp. 803-839.
[55] Kember, D., Lee, K. and Li, N. Cultivating a sense of belonging in part-time students. International
Journal of Lifelong Education, 20(4), 2001, pp. 326-341.
[56] Voelkl, K. E. Measuring students' identification with school. Educational and Psychological Measurement,56(5), 1996, pp. 760-770.
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2020 AUTHOR
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
You are free to:
- Share — copy and redistribute the material in any medium or format for any purpose, even commercially.
- Adapt — remix, transform, and build upon the material for any purpose, even commercially.
- The licensor cannot revoke these freedoms as long as you follow the license terms.
Under the following terms:
- Attribution — You must give appropriate credit , provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made . You may do so in any reasonable manner, but not in any way that suggests the licensor endorses you or your use.
- No additional restrictions — You may not apply legal terms or technological measures that legally restrict others from doing anything the license permits.
Notices:
You do not have to comply with the license for elements of the material in the public domain or where your use is permitted by an applicable exception or limitation .
No warranties are given. The license may not give you all of the permissions necessary for your intended use. For example, other rights such as publicity, privacy, or moral rights may limit how you use the material.
