In higher education, e-learning technology such as Blackboard (Bb) is widely used and has become a popular tool worldwide. It helps reduce the communication gap between students and tutors, without time and location constraints. The study of student engagement and the impact on performance is a key issue in higher educational research, so identifying how students use e-learning technology can help contribute to how to design e-learning materials that further support student engagement. This quantitative research study examined two undergraduate engineering modules. Utilising the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences, the number of clicks students made on Bb was assessed against their classroom attendance, engagement with activities and their performance in the final grade in the module assessment. The outcomes contribute to the developing literature on students' interaction with online learning, by providing an insight into the way students' use of e-learning materials influences their performance in their studies.

is a Senior Lecturer in Business Management, Programme Leader and Centre Leader for Transnational Education Partners at the University of Sunderland. Linda worked in administration and senior management in the public and private sectors before a career change into FE and HE where she has gained over thirty years experience of teaching, supervision and research. Her research interests are in issues in widening participation, academic literacy and 2 learning and teaching. She is currently collaborating with colleagues on research into students' research skills.

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PurposeThe purpose of this article is to examine the role of social capital and higher order meta-skills in developing the employability of marketing students at a UK university.Design/methodology/approachThis conceptual article, bolstered by illustrative primary data, provides a broader conceptualisation of employability. This is to address the specific research question on how social capital (contacts and connections) is deployed (via capability-based higher order meta-skills) in a UK university developing the employability of a specific group of students. The article is situated in the highly fraught context of teaching excellence measurement schemes [such as the teaching excellence framework (TEF) in the UK].FindingsThe research findings highlighted the role of social capital and higher order meta-skills in developing the employability of marketing students at a UK university.Research limitations/implicationsWhile the illustrative primary data are not generalisable, as they are limited to one group of marketing students in one UK university; the conceptual development, including a new social capital based definition of employability that incorporated the capabilities, provided by higher-order meta-skills, is widely applicable.Practical implicationsThe article has highlighted how the impact of social capital, etiquette and meta-skills, while being “between the lines” of the employability discourse and the metrics of the TEF, explains the differing perceptions of the value of employability initiatives. The article highlights the grey area of between the reasons given as to why some candidates are valued over others. Perhaps no rhyme or reason sometimes, just the “hidden” perception/interpretations of the interview panel of the “qualities” of one candidate over another.Originality/valueThe difficulty in ascertaining the influence of social capital (and how it can be deployed through higher-order meta-skills as capabilities) results in challenges for universities as they endeavour to respond to the data requirements of “learning gain” within teaching excellent measurement schemes such as the UK teaching excellence framework.

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