Examining effects of instructional strategies on student engagement in blended online courses

• Published in: Journal of computer assisted learning 2022-12, Vol.38 (6), p.1657-1673
• Main Authors: Heilporn, Géraldine, Lakhal, Sawsen, Bélisle, Marilou
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: blended and online learning; Blended Learning; Categories; College Students; Colleges & universities; Education; Educational Strategies; Higher Education; instructional strategies; Learner Engagement; Learning; Least squares; Least Squares Statistics; Multivariate statistical analysis; Online Courses; Online instruction; Relevance (Education); Structural models; student engagement; Student participation; Teacher Student Relationship; Teaching Methods; Trust (Psychology)
• ISSN: 0266-4909; 1365-2729
• DOI: 10.1111/jcal.12701

Background Blended online courses, which combine synchronous and asynchronous online activities, have expanded rapidly in higher education. How to enhance student engagement in such courses is unclear, although it is recognized that student engagement is malleable through instructional strategies. Objectives Given the above, this study aims to examine the influence of categories of strategies on student engagement in blended online courses. Methods A conceptual framework of instructional strategies indicated as fostering student engagement in the relevant literature was first presented, divided in eight categories (structure, pace, relevance, active, choice, relationships, explanations, guide). Then a research framework linking the categories of strategies to student engagement dimensions (emotional‐cognitive, social, behavioral) was built and tested in blended online courses. Data collected in various disciplines and university levels at four universities (n = 482) were examined using partial least squares structural equation modeling. Results and Conclusions The structural model examination confirmed the combined effects of categories of instructional strategies on student engagement in such courses in all disciplines. Particularly, this study revealed that 1) establishing trusting relationships, 2) demonstrating the relevance of activities, content, and resources, and 3) maintaining a sustained course pace significantly impacted student engagement in blended online courses in all disciplines. Takeaways This study draws upon the blended learning literature to bring together key instructional strategies that foster student engagement while highlighting empirical quantitative evidence of their effects on student engagement in blended online courses. Detailed measures of categories of instructional strategies and student engagement dimensions also provide reliable instruments for future research. Lay Description What is currently known about the subject matter? Student engagement has important repercussions on perseverance, in‐depth learning, satisfaction, and academic success. Blended online courses merge the benefits of synchronous interactions and online flexibility in terms of time, place, or even study pace. Student engagement is influenced by contextual variations like course modalities and instructional strategies. The literature lacks a quantitative large‐scale portrait of how instructional strategies influence student engagement in blended online c