Does attending a deeper learning school promote student motivation, engagement, perseverance, and achievement?

Abstract

The evolving economic landscape of the 21st century demands graduates who possess deeper learning (DL) competencies such as critical thinking and collaboration skills. Despite their importance, little work has examined the motivational mechanisms through which DL predicts essential academic outcomes. The current study (N = 1,288) used an ethnically diverse sample of students (53% Hispanic) to explore self‐efficacy and mastery goal orientation as potential mediators of the relationship between (a) enrollment in a DL school and (b) academic engagement, perseverance, and mathematics achievement. Results showed that students who attended DL schools, compared with students in non‐DL schools, reported higher self‐efficacy, mastery goal orientation, and academic engagement. Path analyses revealed that attending a DL school was associated with higher academic engagement and self‐efficacy. However, enrollment in a DL school was not directly related to mathematics achievement. Overall, results provide evidence that attending a DL school can lead to valuable motivation‐ and engagement‐related benefits.

The chain-mediating role of perceived stress and problematic smartphone use in the link between critical thinking and academic engagement among Spanish adolescents

“…Critical thinking has been associated with positive emotions toward achievement (Thomas, 2020) and better academic performance (Fong et al, 2017;Musa, 2020), beyond general cognitive ability (Ren et al, 2020). Based on these results, a tentative conclusion is to think that critical thinkers might be more captivated by school content and apply key ideas in different settings, which makes them more engaged and motivated in their schoolwork (Agger & Koenka, 2020).…”

The Effectiveness of a Technology-Based Isometrical Transformation Flipped Classroom Learning Strategy in Improving Students’ Higher Order Thinking Skills

“…Education is one of the platforms that can cultivate higher order thinking skills (HOTS) and 21st century learning skills [1]. HOTS is a concept that emphasizes critical thinking skills rather than rote memorization.…”

Improving student learning through PBL, student choice, and community partnerships

“…Schools that focus on deeper learning have higher academic engagement, and this holds true for all groups of students who have been historically marginalized (Agger & Koenka, 2020).…”

“…Foreshadowing a pedagogy discussed in the third strand, there is a promising symbiotic relationship between problem-based learning and deeper learning. Problem-based learning can enhance deeper learning (Walton, 2014), and deeper learning can also promote motivation and engagement (Agger & Koenka, 2020). Problem-based learning has been shown to facilitate in-depth learning (Alt & Raichel, 2022).…”

“…Students utilized collaborative problem-solving, higher-order thinking skills, critical thinking, the feedback loop, and interdisciplinary learning, which are all competencies of deeper learning (Agger & Koenka, 2020).…”