Assessing Online Students' Engagement in Higher Education: Use Theory to Guide Instructions and Foster Online Learners' Interactions

Abstract

Post-COVID-19, exploring opportunities and challenges in online learning has become a crucial area of research. The dynamics of online student interactions are now the focal point of teaching and learning studies. However, higher education institutions are grappling with various obstacles that hinder students' active participation in this new online learning and teaching landscape. Both students and teachers face significant hurdles, including low motivation, engagement, and self-regulation. The online environment presents a variety of challenges that can potentially impede learners' self-regulatory learning, motivation, and engagement. Research highlights the potential of online learning, showing that the correlation between students' learning engagement and professors' scaffolding tactics can unfold the impact of self-regulatory learning on students' online interactions. Therefore, students' social, cognitive, behavioral, collaborative, and emotional engagement is framed to sustain those students' online engagement. This chapter addresses the significant positive impact of educators' scaffolding strategies, learning management, and the use of technological applications on students' online engagement. The chapter presents the Self-System Model of Motivational Development (SSMMD) to report a comprehensive strategy for assertive communication in online classrooms and the Online Engagement Framework for Higher Education to increase educators' awareness of social, cognitive, behavioral, collaborative, and emotional factors. It also reports the tools to gauge learners' engagement in the online environment, students' self-regulated learning, and instructor's scaffolding strategies. The pedagogical implications are presented.