Student Perceptions of Their Engagement in Learning and of the Learning Environment

• In Event: Influences on the Learning Environment

Abstract

Student engagement in learning has become an important consideration for research into learning environments and the design of instruction. This study applied a novel model of engagement in classroom learning based on flow theory and bio-ecological frameworks. The objectives were to construct a measure of student engagement in classroom learning and the classroom learning environment. Then, to compare student scores for variables and groups of students (e.g. boys and girls). A 60-item scale was created and data from administering the scale to 1760 secondary school students conformed to the requirements of the Rasch rating scale measurement model. There were statistically significant differences between country and city students, boys and girls, year cohorts, curriculum areas, and favourite and non-favourite subjects.

Authors

• Robert Frederick Cavanagh, Curtin University

• Graham B. Dellar, Curtin University