Yes / The idea of professional development has gradually become an accepted and established part of teaching in higher education (Dearing, 1997; DfES, 2003; Browne, 2010). It is now the norm for new university teaching staff in the UK to complete a postgraduate certificate in Higher Education Practice, Learning and Teaching in HE, or Academic Practice as recommended or even mandatory initial professional development (Laycock & Shrives, 2009). While these certificate programmes are now well-established in the sector and are valued for raising the profile of university teaching and educational scholarship (Shrives, 2012), it is not uncommon for learners to view them as a hoop-jumping exercise, and therefore adopt strategic approaches to get through the programme, resulting in disappointing learning gains. We present an analysis of the barriers to engagement that can cause PgCert learners to take such a hoop jumping approach to their programme, drawing from policy, literature, and participant views. We then propose a teaching and assessment model to address these barriers using an eportfolio approach. While eportfolio use is not new in PgCert programmes and staff development, for example being used notably at York St. John University where learners create a portfolio to evidence how they meet the UK Professional Standards Framework (UKPSF) and use it as an ‘aide memoire’ in a summatively assessed dialogue (Asghar, 2014), the challenges to engagement for our learners that the current study found lead us to propose a different portfolio approach. There is of course no single right way to design deep learning into a PgCert programme, but we hope that the research-informed eportfolio model presented here may be useful to other practitioners who seek, like us, to remove the hoops from reflective teaching practice.

Learner engagement has been considered one of the keys that can lead learners to successful learning in a multimedia learning environment such as digital game-based learning. Regarding this point, game-based learning advocates (e.g., Gee, 2003; Prensky, 2001) have asserted that digital games have great potential to engage learners. Nonetheless, there have been only a small number of empirical research studies of players' engagement, and there is little consensus on which elements of digital games critically engage people in play (Garris, Ahlers, & Driskell, 2002). Furthermore, despite the possibility that sensory stimuli can be factors influencing digital game players' engagement, there have been very few attempts to examine empirically the relationship between engagement and sensory stimuli. This study examined the effects of game characters' voice-over in digital games on players' engagement, by using a short digital role-playing game modified from Neverwinter Nights 2. A randomized control-group post-test only design was used to collect data from 74 participants (22 female, 52 male); engagement was measured by a modification of the Game Engagement Questionnaire (Brockmyer et al., 2009). Data analysis revealed that the GEQ mean scores of the participants who played the game with voice-over was much higher than that of the participants who played without voice-over. The difference of the mean scores between the two groups was statistically significant (t = 2.45, df = 72 p = .02), and the effect size, Cohen's d, was .58 (moderately significant). The results of this study will guide educational practitioners to the identification of more effective ways of adopting, developing, and modifying digital games for educational purposes, as well as furthering the research and guiding the practice in instructional multimedia design and development.

Poor mathematics performance in South African schools is a major concern (Reddy et al., 2014) and learners’ opportunity to learn is one of the concepts that needs to be explored in schools (Dowd, Friedlander & Guajardo, 2014). Several authors (Gür, 2009; Ebert, 2017; Rohimah & Prabawanto, 2019) state that learners believe that trigonometry is difficult and abstract compared with the other topics of mathematics. Opportunity to learn (OTL) is defined as the degree to which learners during instruction get exposed to the content of the mathematics intended curriculum (Reeves & Muller, 2005). The term “mathematical tasks” refers to classwork problems, homework problems, projects, investigations and assignments. These tasks play a vital role in effective teaching and learning. Learners’ OTL was explored according to the types and nature of tasks selected by the teacher, and the pedagogical approach and strategies used by teachers and the influence of these two aspects on the time spent on tasks and learner engagement. This study therefore aimed to answer the research question about the extent to which mathematics tasks provided Grade 10 learners an opportunity to learn trigonometry. A two-part conceptual framework was used: the first part focused on the task selection in terms of its nature and cognitive demand and the second part focused on the teacher-specific factors such as teachers’ approaches and strategies. The influence of these two parts on the implementation of the tasks by the learners in terms of time-on-task and learner engagement was then described. A qualitative approach was followed, and a descriptive case study was conducted with two Grade 10 mathematics teachers from two formerly disadvantaged public schools in Gauteng Province. A qualitative research approach was used in which document analysis and classroom observations served as data collection techniques. A deductive analysis approach was implemented. The study revealed that teachers mainly gave learners recall-type and routine procedure questions involving pure mathematics, which according to CAPS’ cognitive demands, are classified as lower order thinking tasks. There was a lack of higher order mathematics tasks that could have provided the learners with and OTL trigonometry effectively. The study further revealed that both teachers’ approaches were dominated by a teacher-centred approach where the focus was on the teachers and where teachers mainly used direct teaching as teaching strategy where learners were directed to learn through memorisation and recitation techniques. Although, due to the small sample, the study’s results cannot be generalised, I believe that the findings will contribute to pre- and in-service teacher training, where teachers come to realise the importance of appropriate mathematics tasks to contribute to learners’ OTL. Moreover, the study’s findings highlight the need to engage the four cognitive levels, namely knowledge (20%), routine procedures (35%), complex procedures (30%), and problem solving (15%) in the types of tasks. The value of teachers’ choices regarding the teaching approaches and strategies used should never be under-estimated. Future research could possibly build on this study by examining the implementation of tasks to enhance learners’ in-depth understanding of trigonometry. / Dissertation (MEd)--University of Pretoria, 2021. / Science, Mathematics and Technology Education / MEd / Unrestricted

As online learning rises in popularity, students are increasingly learning through technology and without regular guidance from teachers. These learning environments differ from traditional classrooms in many ways and deliver different experiences. In this study, participants’ learning environments were manipulated using two independent variables, each with two levels for a total of four conditions: study medium (text was presented either on paper or a screen) and prompt type (text was interspersed with prompts designed either to induce metacognitive processes or to be interacted with non-metacognitively). Ninety-two participants were each assigned to one of the four conditions in a between-subject design, read three expository texts, completed a comprehension test after each text, and responded to a survey at the end of the study. Participants who read text on paper tended to take more notes and spend more time studying than those who read from a screen, but performance was equal between the mediums. Participants receiving metacognitive prompts performed better than non-metacognitive participants on multiple-choice questions with an effect size comparable to those generated by educational interventions in existing literature; however, the performance difference was not statistically significant unless prompt response scores were controlled for. In addition, behavioral differences emerged between metacognitive participants (re-read more) and non-metacognitive participants (summarized more while reading). The results from this study can be used to inform dialogue about technology in classrooms and instructional design.

There is a large demand for the use of e-learning tools to support student learning, in the form of distance or blended learning. The need for e-learning environment that encourages learners to learn independently or in groups in virtual settings is crucial. Some e-learning environments provide repositories of 'resources'. They neither facilitate a strategy for learning or teaching, nor they guide students through the resources, and tutors in constructing their courses. E-learning environments need to incorporate pedagogical practices which support and allow students to learn by removing any barriers that might inhibit their learning. Therefore, one of the most important aspects in developing e-learning environments is defining appropriate models where technology and pedagogy are integrated. This thesis provides such a framework for developing e-learning applications; it aims to make it easier for tutors to implement their lesson content and engage learners to achieve the course objectives. The proposed model incorporates constructive alignment, assessment and feedback and unlike other e-learning environments guides the tutor to construct lessons and help learners to use effective learning environment. Furthermore, the thesis investigates on how supported learning can help students adapt to the different approaches to learning. The empirical work undertaken investigates the role of constructing a well designed self-assessment and feedback unit within a learning environment.

The thesis draws on a mixed-methods study which empirically and theoretically investigates the ways in which postgraduate students engage in collaborative learning activities facilitated by technology. The research is both significant and distinct in its approach towards understanding how learners engage in real-life computer-supported collaborative learning (CSCL) settings; what enables or hinders learner engagement; and how engagement shapes the learning outcomes. The ensuing findings indicate that learner engagement is embodied in human behaviour, emotions, and reflection and therefore it is described as a multi-dimensional concept. Learner engagement also appears to be a socially distributed phenomenon – rather than a stable student characteristic – influenced by various personal, group-level, and other situational factors, the most prominent of which are captured by the Hierarchical Model of Enablers and Barriers. The study also reveals that learner engagement presupposes purposeful interaction which is presented as an integrative theme capturing the impact of pedagogical design on engagement. Another observation is that particular combinations of student actions, perspectives, and characteristics tend to resurface and therefore may be considered as strong predictors of potential engagement (or disengagement). This finding led to the development of the WISE Taxonomy of Learner Engagement Archetypes which portrays the most universal engagement approaches that emerged within the studied context. Finally, findings seem to suggest that the way students envisage their learning outcomes is driven by the engagement approach each student adopts, and vice-versa. When combined, the proposed model, taxonomy, and conceptualisation of learner engagement collectively define a holistic analytical framework labelled Distributed Engagement Theory. The purpose of this mixed-methods study is to explore, understand, and subsequently explain learner engagement aiming at making an original contribution to existing CSCL literature as well as informing the design of pedagogical models for enhancing learner engagement in CSCL environments within postgraduate education.

This is a multi-article format dissertation that explores emotional and cognitive engagement in higher education classrooms. Student engagement in higher education classrooms has been associated with desired outcomes such as academic achievement, retention, and graduation. Student engagement is a multi-faceted concept, consisting of behavioral, emotional, and cognitive components. A deeper understanding of how these components interact would allow instructors and course designers to facilitate more engaging learning experiences for students. The first article is an extended literature review that investigates the extant empirical research on the relationship between emotional and cognitive engagement, and between emotional engagement and academic outcomes in post-secondary classrooms. I find that this topic has been scantily researched in the past 16 years and conclude that the relationship between emotional and cognitive engagement is cyclical, rather than linear, and is influenced by student control appraisals, value appraisals, achievement goals, and the classroom environment. The second article investigates the longitudinal relationship between emotional and cognitive engagement in university blended learning courses across 2 institutions, with 68 students. Using intensive longitudinal data collection and structural equation modeling, I find that course design and student perception variables have a greater influence on engagement than individual student characteristics and that student multitasking has a strong negative influence on engagement. Students' perceptions of the importance of the activity has a strong positive influence on both cognitive and emotional engagement. An important outcome of engagement is the students' perceptions that they were learning and improving. While emotional and cognitive engagement are highly correlated, the results do not indicate that emotional engagement leads to higher levels of cognitive engagement.

Learner engagement, or the involvement of the student's cognitive and emotional energy to accomplish a learning task, has been called "the holy grail of learning" (Sinatra, Heddy, & Lombardi, 2015, p. 1) because of its correlations to academic achievement, persistence, and satisfaction. In the 21st century, learning will be increasingly "blended," combining face-to-face with computer-mediated instruction. Research is already exploring learner engagement in blended contexts, but no theoretical framework guides inquiry or practice. Developing models and measures of the factors that facilitate learner engagement is important to the advancement of the domain. This multiple-article format dissertation addresses the theoretical gap in research on learner engagement in blended settings. The first article reviews the existing literature on learner engagement, delineates a set of constructs most relevant to the contexts of blended learning, and proposes a theoretical framework for learner engagement in blended settings. The second article operationalizes and tests the proposed model of blended learning engagement using exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis. It creates and evaluates an end-of-course self-report measure of cognitive and emotional engagement. The unique factor structure of online and face-to-face indicators of learner engagement is clearly demonstrated in the results of this study.

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Learner engagement is a critical aspect of education. While technology is rapidly developing to act in increasingly personalized, and in some dimensions human, ways, we submit that a human community may uniquely support increased student engagement. This research explored the characteristics and effects of the interactions and relationships that constitute three distinct communities in education and examined their influences on student engagement.In the format of a multiple-article dissertation I present three articles. The first article reviewed relevant literature about interactions, relationships, and communities in education. It focused specifically on online and blended contexts and their connections to student engagement. Interactions, relationships, and community are linked to one another and support student engagement. The second article surveyed students in a blended college preparation program about the relationships they experienced in their academic communities of engagement with online and in-person instructors and peers, family, friends, etc. and how they influenced students' perceptions of their engagement. The support provided by the in-person community is significantly higher than that provided online (p < 0.001). Support also has a significant impact on perceived student engagement (p < 0.001).The third article examined the students' supportive academic relationships and their influence on student engagement through semi-structured interviews. Students report more supportive relationships with their in-person communities and higher engagement there. Supportive interactions, relationships, and community promote higher student engagement. Such connections can be forged online, but in the case of this research were more likely to exist in-person. Supportive communities and the interactions and relationships they encompass should be fostered in learning environments, be they in-person, online, or blended, in order to encourage improved student engagement.