The association between academic engagement and achievement in health sciences students

The relationship between challenge-hindrance stressors and innovative behavior among medical postgraduates in China: the mediation role of academic engagement and the moderating effect of relaxation

This study investigated the relationship between challenge-hindrance stressors and innovative behavior of medical postgraduates in China, examining the mediating role of academic engagement and the moderating effect of relaxation. Drawing from a sample of 437 medical postgraduates from three Chinese universities, our findings revealed that challenge stressors positively correlated with innovative behavior, while the direct relationship between hindrance stressors and innovative behavior was not statistically significant. Furthermore, academic engagement mediated the relationship between two types of stressors and innovative behavior. Challenge stressors enhanced academic engagement, which in turn fostered innovative behavior. Conversely, hindrance stressors were found to diminish academic engagement, which in turn indirectly limited innovative behavior. Additionally, relaxation was identified as a moderating factor that helped mitigate the negative effects of hindrance stressors on academic engagement and indirectly on innovative behavior. These results suggested that academic engagement as a mechanism played a pivotal role in determining how different stressors influenced innovative behavior, underscoring the need for stress management, particularly through relaxation techniques, to maintain high levels of academic engagement and innovative behavior. This study offers practical insights for medical education policymakers and educators in China, emphasizing the importance of balancing stressors and incorporating relaxation practices to enhance the innovative capabilities of medical postgraduates in demanding academic environments.

Unraveling motives: identifying the impact of university attendance motives on learning behaviors among dental students

PURPOSE

Students report various motives for attending university (MAU) grouped under five categories, namely, personal-intellectual development (PER), humanitarian (HUM), careerist-materialist (CAR), expectation-driven (EXP), and uncertain motives. Although the literature demonstrates that these motives exert an influence on learning and achievement, relatively less attention is given to this issue in the context of dental students. This study aimed to examine the relationship among the mindsets, MAU, academic engagement (AE), and DAL of dental students and to test the mediating effect of AE on the relationship between MAU and deep approach to learning (DAL).

METHODS

The study recruited 226 dental students at various levels of the curriculum, who responded to four questionnaires for measuring MAU, DAL, mindsets, and AE. The study employed structural equation modeling to analyze the mediation effects of AE on the relationship between MAU and DAL and to determine the influence of mindsets on MAU.

RESULTS

This model reveals the significant relationships of a growth mindset with CAR, PER, and HUM. Moreover, the study finds that a fixed mindset was associated with CAR, EXP, and uncertain motives. Furthermore, AE only fully mediated the significant positive relationship between PER and DAL, whereas CAR negatively predicted DAL without a mediator.

CONCLUSIONS

These findings suggest that administering the inventories in a dental school setting can facilitate a more comprehensive understanding of students' mindsets toward learning and effective processes related to learning. This understanding can inform instructors' pedagogical practices, enabling them to provide more effective guidance to students navigating the complexities of academic coursework.

Challenge-Hindrance Stressors and Academic Engagement Among Medical Postgraduates in China: A Moderated Mediation Model

Background

Improving academic engagement of medical postgraduates is crucial for enhancing the quality of learning and the development of medical education. Due to medical postgraduates face high levels of stress and rigorous demands, yet the mechanisms linking challenge-hindrance stressors to academic engagement in this context remain largely unexplored. This study aims to explore the comprehensive relationship between challenge-hindrance stressors and academic engagement among medical postgraduates in China.

Methods

Data were collected from 437 medical postgraduates in China, to investigate their challenge-hindrance stressors, emotional exhaustion, learning, relaxation and academic engagement. Among these postgraduates, 40.3% were male and 59.7% were female, with the mean age of the participants being 25.71 years. Statistical procedures were conducted using Mplus 8.3, ensuring a robust analysis of the data collected.

Results

Our study showed that both challenge and hindrance stressors are significantly positively correlated with emotional exhaustion among Chinese medical postgraduates, and emotional exhaustion is negatively associated with academic engagement. Emotional exhaustion mediates the relationship between challenge-hindrance stressors and academic engagement. Learning plays a protective role, moderating the challenge stressors and emotional exhaustion relationship and its indirect effect on academic engagement. However, relaxation was not identified as a significant moderating factor in this context.

Conclusion

Our findings not only revealed emotional exhaustion as a potential mechanism underlying the relationship between challenge-hindrance stressors and academic engagement but also validated the moderating role of learning in mitigating the adverse effects of challenge stressors on emotional exhaustion and academic engagement among Chinese medical postgraduates. This comprehensive insight into the complex dynamics between different stressors and academic engagement provides both theoretical and empirical evidence for medical universities. It underscores the importance of interventions to enhance academic engagement in stressful environments and serves as a valuable reference for the development of reasonable assessment systems. These contributions are crucial for fostering a supportive educational atmosphere and promoting the well-being of medical postgraduates.

Analysis of participation rates in Poll Everywhere questions and academic performance in a veterinary biochemistry and metabolism course

The objective of the present study was to investigate whether class participation correlates with academic performance in a biochemistry and metabolism course for first-year veterinary school students. To increase engagement in this course, students had the opportunity to answer Poll Everywhere questions during many lectures in the course. These questions were mainly in multiple-choice format and delivered to students at various times (beginning, middle, and end) during the class. We compared students who earned A, B, or C grades with how often those cohorts participated in the Poll Everywhere questions. The results indicate that students who earned an A in the course have statistically significant higher participation in Poll Everywhere questions compared with students who earned a B or a C. The results do not distinguish between students who attended the lecture in person and those who watched the live stream, since remote students could answer the Poll Everywhere questions during class time. The results demonstrate an association between class participation and academic performance.NEW & NOTEWORTHY Many professional schools (medical, dental, and veterinary) routinely record most lectures and do not require attendance. Although lecture recordings may provide a valuable study tool for students, these results suggest that students who do not actively engage with class material miss an opportunity to maximize learning.

Modelling the associations between academic engagement, study process and grit on academic achievement of physical education and sport university students

OBJECTIVE

The present study examined the impact of academic engagement, study processes, and grit on the academic achievement of physical education and sport university students.

METHODS

An internet-based survey recruited 459 university students aged 19-25 years (M = 21 ± 1.3) in physical education and sports (PES) to fill out questionnaires on Physical Education-Study Process Questionnaire (PE-SPQ), Physical Education-Grit (PE-Grit), academic engagement (A-USEI), and Grade Point Average (GPA). A path analysis was carried out to understand variable relationships.

RESULTS

Data from each variable exhibited symmetrical and normal distribution, as indicated by the skewness and kurtosis values. The model's fit indices showed sufficient Comparative Fit Index (CFI = 0.92), Tucker-Lewis Index (TLI = 0.90), Goodness of Fit Index (GFI = 0.99) and Normed Fit Index (NFI = 0.90) and showed acceptable levels. The results indicated a statistically significant positive impact of engagement (β = 0.299, p < 0.001) and study processes (β = 0.397, p < 0.001) on academic achievement. However, the effect of grit on achievement was non-significant.

CONCLUSIONS

Academic engagement as well as study processes are two important factors predicting academic achievement while grit seems to be not a major predictor. Hence, physical education and sport faculty and university administrators should prioritize student engagement as a determinant of academic outcomes by reforming or redesigning physical education and sport curriculum modules that can facilitate engagement.

A multi-center cross-sectional study on identification of influencing factors of medical students' emotional engagement in China

BACKGROUND

Studies exploring influencing factors of emotional engagement among medical students are scarce. Thus, we aimed to identify influencing factors of medical students' emotional engagement.

METHODS

We carried out a multi-center cross-sectional study among 10,901 medical students from 11 universities in China. The Chinese version of Utrecht Work Engagement Scale-Student version (UWES-S) was used to evaluate emotional engagement level of medical students. The predictors related to engagement level were determined by the logistic regression analysis. Furthermore, we constructed a nomogram to predict emotional engagement level of medical students.

RESULTS

A total of 10,576 sample were included in this study. The mean emotional engagement score was 74.61(± 16.21). In the multivariate logistic regression model, we found that males showed higher engagement level compared with females [odds ratio (OR) (95% confidence interval (CI)): 1.263 (1.147, 1.392), P < 0.001]. Medical students from the second batches of medical universities had higher engagement level and from "Project 985" universities had lower engagement level compared with 211 project universities [OR (95%CI): 1.376 (1.093, 1.733), P = 0.007; OR (95%CI): 0.682 (0.535, 0.868), P = 0.002]. Medical students in grade 4 and grade 2 presented lower engagement level compared with in grade 1 [OR (95%CI): 0.860 (0.752, 0.983), P = 0.027; OR (95%CI): 0.861 (0.757, 0.980), P = 0.023]. Medical students lived in provincial capital cities had higher engagement level compared with in country [OR (95%CI): 1.176 (1.022, 1.354), P = 0.024]. Compared with eight-year emotional duration, medical students in other emotional duration (three-year and four-year) had lower engagement level [OR (95%CI): 0.762 (0.628, 0.924), P = 0.006]. Medical students' engagement level increased with increases of grade point average and interest in studying medicine. Medical students learned by converging style showed lower engagement level [OR (95%CI): 0.827 (0.722, 0.946), P = 0.006] compared with accommodating style. The model showed good discriminative ability (area under curve = 0.778), calibrating ability and clinical utility.

CONCLUSIONS

We identified influencing factors of medical students' emotional engagement and developed a nomogram to predict medical students' emotional engagement level, providing reference and convenience for educators to assess and improve emotional engagement level of medical students. It is crucial for educators to pay more attention to emotional engagement of medical students and adopt effective strategies to improve their engagement level.

The association between online class-related enjoyment and academic achievement of college students: a multi-chain mediating model

BACKGROUND

Based on the control-value theory of achievement emotion and self-determination motivation theory, this study attempted to examine the multi-chain mediating relationships among online class-related enjoyment, school motivation, learning engagement and academic achievement.

METHODS

This is an empirical study based on cross-sectional data. Online class-related enjoyment is the independent variable, academic achievement is the dependent variable, and school motivation and learning engagement are the mediating variables. Sample data were collected from 1294 Chinese college students, and SPSS macro program PROCESS 3.3 was used for data analysis.

RESULTS

The present study confirmed that students' online class-related enjoyment has a significant positive correlation with academic achievement. And there is a positive correlation between college students' school motivation with learning engagement and college students' learning engagement with academic achievement. In addition, online class-related enjoyment affects academic achievement through the chain mediating effect of school motivation and learning engagement.

CONCLUSIONS

Our study indicated that online class-related enjoyment has a significant impact on academic achievement. Both of these factors should be considered when determining the optimal multi-chain mediating model for Online Class-related Enjoyment and Academic Achievement of college students.

Can Moving More and Sitting Less Improve the Academic Engagement of Adolescents?- A Study Based on Junior High School Students in Shanghai, China

Purpose

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationships between academic engagement and moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA), muscle-strengthening exercise (MSE) and sedentary behavior (SB) among adolescents, so as to provide evidence from the perspective of exercising for students to learn efficiently, teachers to improve classroom teaching, and schools to improve educational quality.

Methods

A questionnaire survey was conducted in 12 junior high schools in Shanghai, China, which were selected by a multi-stage stratified cluster sampling method. Then, with the valid data of 2078 students collected from the survey. A data analysis was performed using SPSS Statistics 26.0. Multiple linear regression models were adopted to analyze the factors affecting adolescent academic engagement and to determine whether MVPA, MSE, and SB play roles in it.

Results

(1) The differences in academic engagement depended on the exercise adherence to the recommended amount of MVPA, MSE, and screen-based SB. (2) In terms of the three independent variables of total time, MSE (β = 0.206) and MVPA (β = 0.175) showed a significant positive correlation with academic engagement, while SB (β = -0.155) was negatively correlated with academic engagement. (3) From the linear regression model of eight combination groups divided by the exercise adherence to the recommended amount of MVPA, MSE and SB, the group that met none of the recommendations (β = -0.235) showed a significant negative effect on academic engagement, while the groups that met any two or all three of the recommendations demonstrated strong positive correlations with academic engagement (P < 0.001).

Conclusion

Increasing adolescents' muscle-strengthening exercise and moderate-to-vigorous physical activity and reducing sedentary behavior can effectively promote academic engagement. Therefore, adolescents are suggested to reach the recommended amounts of physical activity, muscle-strengthening exercise, and sedentary behavior so as to improve academic engagement more effectively.

Student engagement in health professions education: AMEE Guide No. 152

This guide aims to support our colleagues to have comprehensive understanding of student engagement in health professions education. Despite the universal agreement about the significance of student engagement, there is lack of uniformity in conceptualizing and operationalizing this emerging construct. We review the theoretical basis explaining student engagement from three main perspectives: behavioral, psychological, and socio-cultural. In addition, we propose a contemporary and comprehensive framework for the student engagement in higher education, which is applicable to health professions education contexts. Drawing from this framework, we explain the conceptualization of the construct and its preceding factors, mediators, dimensions, spheres, and outcomes of student engagement. The proposed framework introduces student 'engagement through partnerships' as a novel component compared with the existing models of student engagement in higher education. This way, we are proposing a mixed model that not only considers the student as a 'customer' but also as a 'partner' in education. Engagement of students through partnerships include four areas: (1) provision of the education program, (2) scholarly research, (3) governance and quality assurance, and (4) community activities. This guide will provide practical applications on how to improve student engagement in health professions education. Finally, we highlight the current gaps in areas of research in the student engagement literature and suggested plans for future directions.[Box: see text].

Relationships between psychological characteristics, academic fit and engagement with academic performance in veterinary medical students

BACKGROUND

Recognition of the factors that influence academic performance in university students constitutes one of the key objectives of education researchers. Few studies have been conducted in this sphere in relation to veterinary students; however, considering the high levels of depression, anxiety symptoms, and decreased life satisfaction revealed in recent literature for this demographic, understanding these factors is of great importance. Moreover, the literature on veterinary education has mostly focused on cognitive factors as antecedents to academic performance, while very little attention has been directed toward personal characteristics.

METHODS

The present cross-sectional study aims to investigate the relationships between psychological characteristics (internal locus of control and self-efficacy), academic fit, well-being (engagement and exhaustion), and academic performance (average grade) among veterinary students. The study was conducted in the Department of Veterinary Sciences at the University of Turin between September 2021 and January 2022 involving 231 students.

RESULTS

The results of the Structural Equation Model confirmed a positive relationship between both internal locus of control and self-efficacy and academic fit, which in turn showed a positive relationship with engagement and a negative relationship with exhaustion. Finally, a significant positive relationship between engagement and academic performance was highlighted. Indirect effects were also significant, confirming the mediating role of academic fit and engagement.

CONCLUSIONS

The study contributes to the literature by demonstrating the direct and indirect relationships among the variables selected in a sample group of veterinary students. These findings provide information for practical interventions that could support the academic experience and prospects of veterinary students by improving their psychological parameters and well-being.

Measurement of student engagement in health professions education: a review of literature

Student engagement is a complex multidimensional construct that has attained great interest in health professions education (HPE). Definition and conceptualization of student engagement is an important step that should drive the development of the instruments for its measurement. We have recently proposed a comprehensive framework for student engagement in HPE with a definition of engagement as student investment of time and energy in academic and non-academic experiences that include learning, teaching, research, governance, and community activities. The dimensions of student engagement in this framework included the cognitive, affective, behavioral, agentic, and socio-cultural. Guided by the student engagement framework, this non-systematic review aims to identify, critically appraise, and summarize the existing methods for measuring student engagement in HPE. Extrapolating from higher education literature, we attempted to link the theoretical perspectives of student engagement with the published methods of its measurement in HPE context. In addition, we have described the different methods of measuring student engagement including self-report surveys, real time measures, direct observation, interviews/focus groups, and the use of multiple instruments. The span of engagement dimensions measured by self-report surveys ranges from one to five dimensions. However, measurement of agentic and sociocultural dimensions of engagement in HPE is still limited and further research is required. We have also reflected on the existing methods of measuring engagement of students as active partners in HPE. The review also describes the advantages, limitations, and psychometric properties of each method for measuring student engagement. We ended the review with a guiding conclusion on how to develop and select an instrument for measuring student engagement in HPE. Finally, we addressed the gaps in the literature about measuring engagement of HPE students and future research plans.

The relationship between basic psychological needs satisfaction and university students’ academic engagement: The mediating effect of emotional intelligence

Introduction

Basic psychological needs satisfaction (BPNS) and Emotional intelligence (EI) have been underscored as helpful psychological constructs in explaining academic engagement. However, the joint interaction of BPNS with EI abilities to explain academic engagement has not been tested. Therefore, the present study aimed to investigate the interactive role of BPNS with EI abilities in the prediction of academic engagement in a sample of Chinese university students.

Methods

A questionnaire survey was administered to a sample of 466 university students. The data were analyzed using the SPSS (version 21.0) software. The first analysis consisted of descriptive statistics (including mean and standard deviation) and Pearson’s correlations among BPNS, EI, and academic engagement. Through structural equation modeling (SEM), direct and indirect effects were calculated.

Results

The results showed that BPNS was positively associated with academic engagement and that only the Use of emotion dimension of EI mediated these associations.

Discussion

These results suggest that important interventions incorporated with BPNS and EI abilities, especially the use of emotion ability, may be performed to promote university students’ academic engagement.

Profiles of School-Related Well-Being and Their Links to Self-Esteem and Academic Achievement

Abstract. School represents an essential developmental context for adolescents. Accordingly, understanding well-being in school is of utmost importance. While it has long been common to measure well-being on a general level, more recent conceptualizations emphasize its multidimensionality and context-specificity. Therefore, the present study took a person-oriented approach and investigated how profiles of adolescents’ school-related well-being differ regarding two relevant goals of schooling: academic achievement and self-esteem. School-related well-being was assessed along five dimensions: engagement, perseverance, optimism, connectedness, and happiness among Austrian students ( N = 1,484). By applying latent profile analyses, we obtained four profiles that differed primarily regarding their total school-related well-being scores and the expression of connectedness. Generally, groups with a higher total score displayed higher academic achievement and self-esteem. However, there are also exceptions standing out from that pattern. Different constellations are discussed, aiming to contribute to further differentiating research on well-being in the school-context.

Relationships between leadership orientations and emotional intelligence in nursing students

PURPOSE

To describe the relationship between leadership orientation and emotional intelligence levels of nursing students.

METHOD

The study is a cross-sectional and descriptive correlational study.

RESULTS

This study was carried out with 320 nursing students. There was a positive relationship between the mean scores for the Leadership Orientations subdimensions and the mean scores for the overall Emotional Intelligence Evaluation Scale and its subdimensions.

PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS

More studies are needed to examine the relationship between students' emotional intelligence and leadership orientations.

Recognizing Students and Detecting Student Engagement with Real-Time Image Processing

With COVID-19, formal education was interrupted in all countries and the importance of distance learning has increased. It is possible to teach any lesson with various communication tools but it is difficult to know how far this lesson reaches to the students. In this study, it is aimed to monitor the students in a classroom or in front of the computer with a camera in real time, recognizing their faces, their head poses, and scoring their distraction to detect student engagement based on their head poses and Eye Aspect Ratios. Distraction was determined by associating the students’ attention with looking at the teacher or the camera in the right direction. The success of the face recognition and head pose estimation was tested by using the UPNA Head Pose Database and, as a result of the conducted tests, the most successful result in face recognition was obtained with the Local Binary Patterns method with a 98.95% recognition rate. In the classification of student engagement as Engaged and Not Engaged, support vector machine gave results with 72.4% accuracy. The developed system will be used to recognize and monitor students in the classroom or in front of the computer, and to determine the course flow autonomously.

Remote Learning in Transnational Education: Relationship between Virtual Learning Engagement and Student Academic Performance in BSc Pharmaceutical Biotechnology

The 21st century has seen dramatic changes to education delivery which have widened the scope of transnational education and remote learning via various virtual learning environments (VLEs). Efficient remote teaching activities require students to be engaged with taught materials and academic staff, and for educators to be able to track and improve student engagement. This article describes the generation of a predictive mathematical model for students’ exam performance using VLE engagement indicators and coursework marks together to enable the creation of a model with a correlation coefficient of 0.724. This article examines the relationship of each of these variables with final exam marks, as well as the addition of personal related variable X on the generated model’s accuracy. The generated models show that each variable had a different impact on the prediction of the final exam mark. The results’ analysis suggests that coursework marks and total VLE page views were the major attributes, while personal factors were also found to greatly impact model accuracy. Considering the case of outliers, who were students with low VLE engagement achieving high exam marks, it is proposed that personal factors, such as behavioural factors and study style, also have a significant effect on student academic attainment. The generated model can be used by students to improve self-efficacy by adjusting their study style and by educators to provide early interventions to support disengaged students. This model can be replicated in different remote learning settings and transnational education, and the findings might be insightful for courses with remote learning strategies to investigate the key educational, personal and engagement parameters for students’ overall success.

Reduced failure rates associated with playing a new online game developed to support learning of core content in human systems physiology

A digital mobile card-matching game called eFlip was developed to assist second-year undergraduate medical science students to learn core content and understand key associations in physiology. Our team developed customized content of core physiological associations, of increasing difficulty, for upload on a generic card-matching platform. The generic game was extended with add-ons coded to allow identification and access of student usage data for students who consented to have their game usage linked to academic performance such as final course marks and grades. Here, we describe the development of the eFlip game content, the student usage profile, and the game's impact on learning. Students were invited to use eFlip prior to and during the final examination period. Of those who used eFlip, 152 students consented to participate in a study of game use on learning performance outcomes. Within the students who consented, 74 played the game and 78 did not play the game (nonplayers). The mean course mark of the students who played the game [69.57%; 95% confidence level (CI) (67.22, 71.92)] was higher than that of the nonplayers [65.33%; 95% CI (62.67, 67.99)] (P = 0.02). Playing eFlip was also associated with reduced failure rates in students who played the game (1% failure rate) compared with the students who did not play the game (10% failure rate; P = 0.02). The number of games played by students peaked just prior to the course final examination. Overall, students who chose to play eFlip demonstrated improved grades that were associated with a higher probability of passing the physiology course.

The importance of formal versus informal mindfulness practice for enhancing psychological wellbeing and study engagement in a medical student cohort with a 5-week mindfulness-based lifestyle program

Purpose

Medical students commonly experience elevated psychological stress and poor mental health. To improve psychological wellbeing, a 5-week mindfulness-based lifestyle course was delivered to a first-year undergraduate medical student cohort as part of the core curriculum. This study investigated the effects of the program on mental health, perceived stress, study engagement, dispositional mindfulness, and whether any improvements were related to amount of formal and/or informal mindfulness practice.

Methods

Participants were first year undergraduate medical students (N = 310, 60% female, M = 18.60 years) with N = 205 individuals completing pre and post course questionnaires in a 5-week mindfulness-based lifestyle intervention. At pre- and post-intervention, participants completed the Mental Health Continuum-Short Form, the Perceived Stress Scale, the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale for Students, the Freiburg Mindfulness Inventory, and the Mindfulness Adherence Questionnaire.

Results

Mental health, perceived stress, study engagement, and mindfulness all improved from pre- to post-intervention (all p values < .001). Improvements on these outcome measures were inter-related such that PSS change scores were negatively correlated with all other change scores, FMI change scores were positively correlated with MHC-SF and UWES-S change scores, the latter of which was positively correlated with MHC-SF change scores (all p values < .01). Finally, observed improvements in all of these outcomes were positively related to informal practice quality while improved FMI scores were related to formal practice (all p values < .05).

Conclusions

A 5-week mindfulness-based program correlates with improving psychological wellbeing and study engagement in medical students. These improvements particularly occur when students engage in informal mindfulness practice compared to formal practice.

Self-Compassion in Irish Social Work Students: Relationships between Resilience, Engagement and Motivation

Self-compassion recognises a meaning of life’s suffering, aligning with existential positive psychology. Although this construct is known to protect our mental health, how to augment self-compassion remains to be evaluated. Social work students suffer from high rates of mental health problems; however, research into self-compassion in this population remains to be developed. This study aimed to evaluate (i) relationships between self-compassion and more traditional positive constructs—resilience, engagement and motivation, and (ii) differences of these constructs between the levels of studies to inform how self-compassion can be enhanced in social work students. A total of 129 Irish social work students completed self-report scales regarding self-compassion, resilience, engagement and motivation. Correlation, regression and one-way MANOVA were conducted. Self-compassion was associated with gender, age, resilience, engagement and intrinsic motivation. Resilience and intrinsic motivation were significant predictors of self-compassion. There was no significant difference in the levels of these constructs between the levels of studies. Findings suggest that social work educators across different levels can strengthen students’ resilience and intrinsic motivation to cultivate the students’ self-compassion. Moreover, the close relationships between self-compassion, resilience and intrinsic motivation indicate that orienting students to the meaning of the studies helps their mental health.

Proactive Personality and Academic Engagement: The Mediating Effects of Teacher-Student Relationships and Academic Self-Efficacy

A proactive personality provides students with strong competitiveness in academic learning. However, previous research primarily focused on the effects of the big five facets, and less attention was paid to proactive personality which shows more incremental validity in learning. The current study aimed to investigate the relationship between proactive personality and academic engagement. The sample consisted of 519 students (245 females, 274 males; M_age = 10.20, SD = 0.891). The study used Mplus 7.0 software to establish structural equation models (SEM). The results showed a significant positive relationship between proactive personality and academic engagement. Teacher-student relationships and academic self-efficacy were found to fully mediate separately between proactive personality and academic engagement. Moreover, the serial mediator model indicated that proactive personality was sequentially related to academic engagement through teacher-student relationships and academic self-efficacy. The implications for learning and teaching are discussed.

Investigating Relationship of Perceived Learning Engagement, Motivation, and Academic Performance Among Nursing Students: A Multisite Study

BACKGROUND

Learning engagement, motivation and academic achievement are vital growing areas in academic research. Evidence suggests that students' engagement and motivation are positively linked to improved quality of learning. However, limited number of research studies have been conducted within this scope. Therefore, the present study was conducted to investigate the relationship of learning engagement, motivation and academic performance among university nursing students.

PARTICIPANTS AND METHODS

A descriptive design, with a comparative correlational approach for data analysis, was used to describe and compare study outcomes. Data was collected from 425 students at King Saud bin Abdul-Aziz University for Health Sciences campuses in Riyadh, Jeddah and Alhasa. Study instruments included background data sheet, students' engagement in schools (SESQ-ENG), engagement facilitators (SEI), academic motivation (AMS), and academic achievement as measured by cumulative and last semester grade point average (cGPA, sGPA).

RESULTS

Overall, level of engagement was moderate (mean = 3.70±0.63) with significant differences among campuses (F = 18.88, p≤001). Students' perceptions of engagement facilitators and academic motivation were high (mean= 2.98 ±0.49, 4.89 ±1.03, respectively), and both varied by campus (F=6.35, p=0.002, F=9.85, p≤.001, respectively). Engagement, motivation, and academic achievement showed medium to large correlations (i.e., between 0.20 and 0.63). Multiple regression equation including age, academic progress, academic engagement, motivation and engagement facilitators significantly explained 24% of variance in cGPA (F (5, 226) =14.209, p < 0.001) and 22% of the variance in sGPA (F (5, 214) = 12.202, p < 0.001).

CONCLUSION

This study showed significant associations of students' engagement, facilitating conditions (e.g., engagement-fostering aspects), and students' motivation with significant effect on academic achievement. It is hoped that findings of this study could be used as quality indicators to direct school efforts towards achieving excellence in nursing education.

Bang the gavel: animal experimentation on trial-an interdisciplinary mock trial at the school of health sciences

Active learning activities offer opportunities for medical students to facilitate the retention of knowledge and develop soft skills. We aimed to create a guide for an interdisciplinary mock trial learning activity within the medical curriculum of the College of Medicine, Anhembi Morumbi University-Laureate International Universities, Sao Paulo, Brazil. We designed an "Animal Experimentation Mock Trial" in which students are coached to search for scientific, legal, and ethical arguments pro and contra animal experimentation in medical research. The mock trial is prepared and staged with student teams to play the 1) presiding judge, 2) the plaintiff's attorney and expert witnesses contra animal research, 3) the defense attorney and expert witnesses pro animal research, and 4) the jury. The plaintiff and defense teams made presentations, and between each presentation the jury put questions to presenters (cross-examination). The jury team gave two evaluation scores after the plaintiff's presentation and then after the defense presentation. The formal feedback for this active learning activity indicated that students expressed satisfaction with the teaching strategies employed in the course. The mock trial with the lesson plan provides a learning mean to exemplify the complex relationship between animal experimentation, medical evidence, ethics, and law/regulations. This mock trial helps medical students to develop their soft skills, such as the ability to collaborate and also to recognize the limits of their own knowledge, important for professional development. The importance of interdisciplinary discussions is demonstrated by increasing the awareness of the multidisciplinary aspect of animal research.

Positive Psychology for Mental Wellbeing of UK Therapeutic Students: Relationships with Engagement, Motivation, Resilience and Self-Compassion

This study aimed to examine the relationships between mental wellbeing and positive psychological constructs in therapeutic students (psychotherapy and occupational therapy students). The number of therapeutic students has increased recently; however, they suffer from poor mental health, which may be improved by potentiating their positive psychological constructs, bypassing mental health shame. Therapeutic students (n = 145) completed measures regarding positive psychological constructs, namely mental wellbeing, engagement, motivation, resilience, and self-compassion. Resilience and self-compassion predicted mental wellbeing, explaining a large effect. Self-compassion partially mediated the relationship between resilience and mental wellbeing. This study highlights the importance of positive psychological constructs, especially resilience and self-compassion, for mental wellbeing of therapeutic students.

Semantic fluency including task switching predicts academic success in medical school

Objectives

The future state treaty on the admission of students to German medical schools calls for a variety of selection criteria among which at least two are required to be independent of school leaving grades. Against this background, the present study investigated achievement motivation and executive functions as predictors of academic success in medical school.

Material and methods

Second year medical students were assessed for executive functioning by using the Tower of London Test (ToL), a German version of the Controlled Oral Word Association Test (COWAT), the Trail Making Test (TMT-A) and for motivation by using the Achievement Motivation Inventory (AMI). Academic success was evaluated twofold, i) whether the first state exam (M1) was passed at the earliest possible, after completion of the second year and ii) via the grades obtained.

Results

81 out of 226 students enrolled participated in our study. Passing the M1 was best explained by semantic fluency including task switching. Moreover, academically successful students achieved significantly higher levels in the AMI-facets "compensatory effort" and "engagement". All students scored above average in the TMT-A and average in the ToL.

Conclusion

Alternating semantic fluency—requiring simultaneously inhibition, updating and task shifting—turned out highly predictive of academic success in medical school. Moreover, higher levels in "compensatory effort" and “engagement” suggested that both, increased energy expenditure as response to fear of failure and elevated readiness to exert effort also impacted positively on success.

Associations between e-health questionnaire responses, health checks and graduation: Finnish register-based study of 2011-2012 university entrants

OBJECTIVE

To evaluate the association between health and study-related factors measured by an Electronic Health Questionnaire (eHQ), participation in a health examination process and graduation in a university student population.

DESIGN

Nationwide, retrospective, register-based cohort study with a 6-year follow-up.

SETTING

Student health care in Finland. Finnish Student Health Service (FSHS) provides statutory student health services to university students in Finland. The health examination process of FSHS includes the eHQ provided annually to university entrants and a subsequent health check when necessary based on students' eHQ response.

PARTICIPANTS

A national cohort of university entrants from the 2011-2012 academic year (n=14 329, n (female)=8075, n (male)=6254).

OUTCOME MEASURES

The primary outcome measure was graduation, measured based on whether a student had completed a bachelor's, licentiate or master's degree during the 6-year follow-up.

RESULTS

Some 72% of the women and 60% of the men had graduated during the follow-up. The predictors in the eHQ associated with non-graduation differed by sex. Among the women's low enthusiasm about studies (OR 2.6, 95% CI 1.9 to 3.6), low engagement with studies (OR 2.5, 95% CI 1.8 to 3.4) and daily smoking (OR 1.9, 95% CI 1.4 to 2.6) were the strongest predictors to non-graduation. Among the men, low engagement with studies (OR 3.7, 95% CI 2.5 to 5.5) and obesity (body mass index≥35) (OR 4.0, 95% CI 1.9 to 8.8) were the strongest predictors to non-graduation. Not attending the health check when referred was associated with non-graduation in both sexes: the OR for not graduating was 1.6 (95% CI 1.3 to 1.9) in women and 1.3 (95% CI 1.0 to 1.6) in men.

CONCLUSIONS

Engagement and enthusiasm about studying in the first year are important predictors of graduation and therefore a potential intervention target. Health promotion initiatives conducted early in the studies may have a positive effect on students' academic achievement.

Predictors of academic efficacy and dropout intention in university students: Can engagement suppress burnout?

In this study we modelled possible causes and consequences of student burnout and engagement on academic efficacy and dropout intention in university students. Further we asked, can student engagement protect against the effects of burnout? In total 4,061 university students from Portugal, Brazil, Mozambique, the United Kingdom, the United States of America, Finland, Serbia, and Macao SAR, Taiwan participated in this study. With the data collected we analyzed the influence of Social Support, Coping Strategies, and school/course related variables on student engagement and burnout using structural equation modeling. We also analyzed the effect of student engagement, student burnout, and their interaction, on Academic Performance and Dropout Intention. We found that both student engagement and burnout are good predictors of subjective academic performance and dropout intention. However, student burnout suppresses the effect of student engagement on these variables. This result has strong implications for practitioners and administrators. To prevent student dropout, it is not enough to promote student engagement-additionally, and importantly, levels of student burnout must be kept low. Other variables such as social support and coping strategies are also relevant predictors of student engagement and burnout and should be considered when implementing preventive actions, self-help and guided intervention programs for college students.

Training Medical Students to Create and Collaboratively Review Multiple-Choice Questions: A Comprehensive Workshop

INTRODUCTION

Multiple-choice question (MCQ) creation is an infrequently used active-learning strategy. Previous studies demonstrated that medical students find value in the process, but have minimal training, which may limit potential learning benefits. We therefore developed a process for question-creation that required students to complete in-depth training, in addition to collaborative question-writing and editing.

METHODS

We created a question-writing workshop consisting of three components: (1) training in MCQ writing utilizing NBME online modules, a practice MCQ-writing session, and a training session, (2) writing MCQs independently after choosing topics from an institutionally generated blueprint, and (3) reviewing and editing MCQs via an in-person session. To understand students' perceptions, we held two four-student focus groups and recorded/transcribed the data. We iteratively reviewed the transcripts to generate a codebook and corresponding themes. We used the focus group data to generate a survey with Likert-scale questions, which we sent to the remaining 10 students and analyzed using Microsoft Excel.

RESULTS

Eighteen second-year medical students participated in this workshop. Students perceived that question-writing training (3.7/5.0±0.5) and question writing (3.9/5.0±0.3) benefitted their learning. Students perceived that MCQ writing required concept integration (4.1/5.0±0.6). Students described how question writing allowed them to recognize subtle distinctions between therapies and diagnoses. Each MCQ required about 1.5 hours to write and collaboratively edit.

DISCUSSION

Our results demonstrated that students perceived question writing to benefit their learning. More importantly, students felt that question writing actively engaged them to integrate content and compare concepts; students' engagement suggests that they learned from this question-writing activity.

Strategies for sustaining and enhancing nursing students' engagement in academic and clinical settings: a narrative review

Students' engagement in academic-related learning activities is one of the important determinants of students' success. Identifying the best teaching strategies to sustain and promote nursing students' engagement in academic and clinical settings has always been a challenge for nurse educators. Hence, it is essential to provide a set of strategies for maintaining and enhancing the academic engagement of nursing students. The purpose of this review was to explore and summarize the strategies that nurse educators use to sustain and promote nursing students' engagement in academic and clinical settings. A narrative literature review was conducted. CINAHL (nursing content), ProQuest, Medline, the Cochrane, Google Scholar, and Scopus were searched. Of 1,185 retrieved articles, 32 teaching strategies were identified and extracted from the nursing literature. We used thematic analysis approach to organize these strategies into five main categories as follows: technology-based strategies (15 articles), collaborative strategies (10 articles), simulation-based strategies (two articles), research-based strategies (two articles), and miscellanea learning strategies (three articles). As a general comment, these strategies have the potential to promote nursing students' engagement. Among the strategies discussed in this review, the use of technology, particularly the response system and online learning, was more common among nursing educators, which is in line with today's advances in smart technologies. The collection presented in this review can be used as a starting point for future research to evaluate the effectiveness of an educational intervention on the academic engagement of nursing students. Nevertheless, due to the lack of experimental studies, the optimal strategies remain to be elucidated through future high-quality experimental study.

Positive Psychology of Malaysian University Students: Impacts of Engagement, Motivation, Self-Compassion, and Well-being on Mental Health

Malaysia plays a key role in education of the Asia Pacific, expanding its scholarly output rapidly. However, mental health of Malaysian students is challenging, and their help-seeking is low because of stigma. This study explored the relationships between mental health and positive psychological constructs (academic engagement, motivation, self-compassion, and well-being), and evaluated the relative contribution of each positive psychological construct to mental health in Malaysian students. An opportunity sample of 153 students completed the measures regarding these constructs. Correlation, regression, and mediation analyses were conducted. Engagement, amotivation, self-compassion, and well-being were associated with, and predicted large variance in mental health. Self-compassion was the strongest independent predictor of mental health among all the positive psychological constructs. Findings can imply the strong links between mental health and positive psychology, especially self-compassion. Moreover, intervention studies to examine the effects of self-compassion training on mental health of Malaysian students appear to be warranted.

Emotional Intelligence, Sense of Coherence, Engagement and Coping: A Cross-Sectional Study of University Students’ Health

It is important to consider university settings as sustainable environments that promote student well-being. Our aim in this study was to determine how the variables of engagement, emotional intelligence, sense of coherence, and coping influence the health of students at a Spanish university. This was a descriptive, cross-sectional study. The instruments of measures administered were: The General Health Questionnaire, Trait Meta-Mood Scale, Uterch Work Engagement Scale, sense of coherence and brief coping scale to 463 students. The results showed that better-perceived health was associated with higher scores for dedication, vigor, clarity, repair, sense of coherence, active coping, positive reframing, and humor. Conversely, poorer perceived health was associated with higher scores for attention, instrumental support, self-distraction, venting, religion, denial, self-blaming, emotional support, and behavioral disengagement. In addition, the variables analyzed presented differences by sex. Our proposed predictive model of health and the associations between variables indicate the need to cultivate emotional skills, such as mood repair, a sense of coherence, and coping strategies, in order to promote student health. Facilitating students’ acquisition of knowledge and resources by analyzing these and other variables can contribute to individual well-being and help university students to cope with present and future academic challenges.

A Model of Academic, Personality, and Emotion-Related Predictors of University Academic Performance

This paper investigates the relationships between personality (i.e., trait Emotional Intelligence - trait EI - and the Big Five) and academic performance (AP). Academic motivation, procrastination, and major satisfaction were also studied. The sample consisted of 201 Lebanese undergraduates. The model represented a good fit. There was a negative direct effect of procrastination on AP and positive direct effects of major satisfaction and absorption on AP. Trait EI showed a negative direct effect on procrastination and a positive direct effect on major satisfaction, which, in turn, significantly predicted AP. Also, conscientiousness indirectly predicted AP, via procrastination, major satisfaction, and absorption. Findings point at individual differences contributing to AP and can be helpful to students, educators, and counselors in higher education.

Validity and reliability of the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale-Student Version in Sri Lanka

Objective

The present study was aimed at assessing the validity and the reliability of the Sinhala version of the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale-Student Version (UWES-S) among collegiate cycle students in Sri Lanka.

Results

The 17-item UWES-S was translated to Sinhala and the judgmental validity was assessed by a multi-disciplinary panel of experts. Construct validity of the UWES-S was appraised by using multi-trait scaling analysis and exploratory factor analysis (EFA) on data obtained from a sample of 194 grade thirteen students in the Kurunegala district, Sri Lanka. Reliability of the UWES-S was assessed by using internal consistency and test–retest reliability. Except for item 13, all other items showed good psychometric properties in judgemental validity, item-convergent validity and item-discriminant validity. EFA using principal component analysis with Oblimin rotation, suggested a three-factor solution (including vigor, dedication and absorption subscales) explaining 65.4% of the total variance for the 16-item UWES-S (with item 13 deleted). All three subscales show high internal consistency with Cronbach’s α coefficient values of 0.867, 0.819, and 0.903 and test–retest reliability was high (p < 0.001). Hence, the Sinhala version of the 16-item UWES-S is a valid and a reliable instrument to assess work engagement among collegiate cycle students in Sri Lanka.

The Use of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy to Promote Mental Health and School Engagement in University Students: A Multisite Randomized Controlled Trial

The aim of this multisite randomized controlled trial was to determine whether an intervention based on Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) was efficacious in improving university students' psychological flexibility, mental health, and school engagement. Students were recruited in four Canadian universities and randomly assigned to an intervention (n = 72) or a wait-list control group (n = 72). Students in the intervention group took part in four 2.5-hour workshops during a 4-week period and were asked to do exercises at home (e.g., meditation, observation grids). Wait-list students received the intervention soon after the post measurements. MANCOVAs and ANCOVAs revealed that students in the intervention group showed greater psychological flexibility at postintervention than those in the control group. They also reported greater well-being and school engagement, and lower stress, anxiety, and depression symptoms. Taken together, results of this study suggest that an ACT-based intervention offers a valuable way to promote mental health and school engagement in postsecondary settings.

A multi-site study on medical school selection, performance, motivation and engagement

Medical schools seek ways to improve their admissions strategies, since the available methods prove to be suboptimal for selecting the best and most motivated students. In this multi-site cross-sectional questionnaire study, we examined the value of (different) selection procedures compared to a weighted lottery procedure, which includes direct admission based on top pre-university grade point averages (≥8 out of 10; top-pu-GPA). We also considered whether students had participated in selection, prior to being admitted through weighted lottery. Year-1 (pre-clinical) and Year-4 (clinical) students completed standard validated questionnaires measuring quality of motivation (Academic Self-regulation Questionnaire), strength of motivation (Strength of Motivation for Medical School-Revised) and engagement (Utrecht Work Engagement Scale-Student). Performance data comprised GPA and course credits in Year-1 and clerkship performance in Year-4. Regression analyses were performed. The response rate was 35% (387 Year-1 and 273 Year-4 students). Top-pu-GPA students outperformed selected students. Selected Year-1 students reported higher strength of motivation than top-pu-GPA students. Selected students did not outperform or show better quality of motivation and engagement than lottery-admitted students. Participation in selection was associated with higher engagement and better clerkship performance in Year-4. GPA, course credits and strength of motivation in Year-1 differed between students admitted through different selection procedures. Top-pu-GPA students perform best in the medical study. The few and small differences found raise questions about the added value of an extensive selection procedure compared to a weighted lottery procedure. Findings have to be interpreted with caution because of a low response rate and small group sizes.

A confirmatory factor analysis of the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale for Students in a Chinese sample

BACKGROUND

Educational institutions play an important role in encouraging students' engagement with course work. Educators are finding instruments to measure students' engagement in order to develop strategies to improve it. Little is known about the factor structure of the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale for Students among Chinese nursing students.

OBJECTIVES

The aim of this research was to examine the factor structure of the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale for Students via confirmatory factor analysis.

DESIGN AND METHODS

The study used a cross-sectional design. A sample of 480 students from a nursing school in one Chinese university completed the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale for Students. Factor analysis was used to analyze the resulting data.

RESULTS

The overall results of internal consistency reliability and confirmatory factor analysis provided evidence supporting the reliability and three-factor structure of the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale for Students. The total internal consistency reliability coefficients were 0.91. Model comparison tests indicated that an oblique factors model that permitted correlations between pairs of error terms fitted the data better than other first-order models. In addition, due to the three strongly intercorrelated factors, a second-order model was found to fit the data well, providing support for the factorial structure of the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale for Students.

CONCLUSIONS

The findings of confirmatory factor analysis provided evidence supporting the reliability and three-factor structure of the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale for Students when evaluated with a Chinese nursing student sample in this study. Thus, it is appropriate to use The Utrecht Work Engagement Scale for Students in for assessing the engagement among Chinese nursing students.

What millennial medical students say about flipped learning

Flipped instruction is gaining popularity in medical schools, but there are unanswered questions such as the optimum amount of the curriculum to flip and whether flipped sessions should be mandatory. We were in a unique position to evaluate feedback from first-year medical students who had experienced both flipped and lecture-based courses during their first semester of medical school. A key finding was that the students preferred a variety of different learning formats over an "all or nothing" learning format. Learning format preferences did not necessarily align with perceptions of which format led to better course exam performance. Nearly 70% of respondents wanted to make their own decisions regarding attendance. Candid responses to open-ended survey prompts reflected millennial preferences for choice, flexibility, efficiency, and the ability to control the pace of their learning, providing insight to guide curricular improvements.

Performance of first-year health sciences students in a large, diverse, multidisciplinary, first-semester, physiology service module

Health Science students at the University of KwaZulu-Natal perform better in their professional modules compared with their physiology modules. The pass rates of physiology service modules have steadily declined over the years. While a system is in place to identify "at-risk" students, it is only activated after the first semester. As a result, it is only from the second semester of their first year studies onward that at-risk students can be formally assisted. The challenge is thus to devise an appropriate strategy to identify struggling students earlier in the semester. Using questionnaires, students were asked about attendance, financing of their studies, and relevance of physiology. After the first class test, failing students were invited to complete a second questionnaire. In addition, demographic data were also collected and analyzed. Correlation analyses were undertaken of performance indicators based on the demographical data collected. The 2011 class comprised mainly sport science students (57%). The pass rate of sport science students was lower than the pass rates of other students (42% vs. 70%, P < 0.001). Most students were positive about physiology and recognized its relevance. Key issues identified were problems understanding concepts and terminology, poor study environment and skills, and lack of matriculation biology. The results of the first class test and final module marks correlated well. It is clear from this study that student performance in the first class test is a valuable tool to identify struggling students and that appropriate testing should be held as early as possible.

Association of academic performance of premedical students to satisfaction and engagement in a short training program: a cross sectional study presenting gender differences

BACKGROUND

It is important that students have a high academic engagement and satisfaction in order to have good academic achievement. No study measures association of these elements in a short training program. This study aimed to measure the correlation between academic achievement, satisfaction and engagement dimensions in a short training program among premedical students.

METHODS

We carried out a cross sectional study, in August 2013, at Cercle d'Etudiants, Ingénieurs, Médecins et Professeurs de Lycée pour le Triomphe de l'Excellence (CEMPLEX) training center, a center which prepares students for the national common entrance examination into medical schools in Cameroon. We included all students attending this training center during last examination period. They were asked to fill out a questionnaire on paper. Academic engagement was measured using three dimensions: vigor, dedication and absorption. Satisfaction to lessons, for each learning subject was collected. Academic achievement was calculated using mean of the score of all learning subjects affected with their coefficient. Pearson coefficient (r) and multiple regression models were used to measure association. A p value < 0.05 was statistically significant.

RESULTS

In total, 180 students were analyzed. In univariate linear analysis, we found correlation with academic achievement for vigor (r = 0.338, p = 0.006) and dedication (r = 0.287, p = 0.021) only in male students. In multiple regression linear analysis, academic engagement and satisfaction were correlated to academic achievement only in male students (R2 = 0.159, p = 0.035). No correlation was found in female students and in all students. The independent variables (vigor, dedication, absorption and satisfaction) explained 6.8-24.3% of the variance of academic achievement.

CONCLUSION

It is only in male students that academic engagement and satisfaction to lessons are correlated to academic achievement in this short training program for premedical students and this correlation is weak.