Ready to learn in an uncertain future: ways to support student engagement

Abstract

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine student engagement in learning amid COVID-19 and compare it with the previous cohort under face-to-face learning and propose a series of learning activities to engage students for any uncertain situations in the future. Design/methodology/approach Two online surveys were conducted at the end of the academic years of 2018/2019 and 2019/2020 to measure student engagement under face-to-face tradition learning and emergency remote learning respectively. Findings Student behavioural engagement was found no statistical difference between the two learning situations, whereas students having face-to-face learning demonstrated greater emotional and cognitive engagement. Social interaction is essential to drive student engagement in emergency remote learning. Practical implications The authors intended to highlight some teaching approaches and learning activities for social interaction to engage students. Originality/value Engaging students in remote or online learning is an educational challenge for the new reality. This paper proposed the teaching approach and learning activities to engage students in their learning in the future.

Distance learning as emergency remote teaching vs. traditional learning for accounting students during the COVID-19 pandemic: Cross-country evidence

“…The results show that DL has many advantages and has helped, during the pandemic, to ensure the continuation of the educational process. This is consistent with Fogarty, 2020 , Sum et al, 2021 , who claimed that DL advantages include space saving, reduced infrastructure costs, and reduced traffic and the associated traveling hazards. Moreover, Sangster et al (2020) emphasized that, although instructors may not be happy with the new educational method, they believe it can deliver the educational message.…”

“…Conversely, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the quick switch from TL to DL as emergency remote teaching threw up many challenges for students who were not ready for this sudden change, as well as for instructors, since many may not have had the requisite skills and experiences for online teaching ( Ali et al, 2020 , Sum et al, 2021 ). Ali et al (2020) clearly highlighted this kind of struggle, arguing that “… we discovered this [lack of requisite skills required for effective student engagement in online learning] for ourselves as we struggled with the transition from face to face classroom delivery to online teaching during the recent COVID-19 disruptions” (p. 267).…”

“…DL in regular situations is an already important teaching method for higher education institutions, for reasons including space-saving, infrastructure, and international outreach, as well as being a means to improve their competitiveness ( Fogarty, 2020 , Sum et al, 2021 ). As an emergency remote teaching method, DL represents temporary access that enables the provision of education in times of crisis ( Hodges et al, 2020 ).…”

“… Beatson et al (2021) investigated the factors that may influence the faculty’s motivation to teach during the pandemic, providing useful recommendations in relation to faculty’s academic beliefs, career development, motivations, and adaptation to the new academic environment. Ali et al, 2020 , Sum et al, 2021 examined the engagement of accounting students, while White (2021) investigated the academic integrity of accounting assessment tools adopted during the pandemic through DL as emergency remote teaching.…”

First-Year College Students' Mental Health in the Post-COVID-19 Era in Guangxi, China: A Study Demands-Resources Model Perspective

“…As for reducing time pressure, interventions should be adopted by modifying study programs or structural settings at universities ( 22 ); simultaneously, time management training may help reduce time pressure for university students ( 87 ). In addition, support from teachers, good campus environment perceptions, excellent class (socio-affective, design, and organization), and motivating teaching behavior are considered to help foster student engagement ( 88 ), thus, enhancing student mental health.…”