Learning Content and Difficulty Level as Predictors of Student Engagement
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.53555/es.v12i1.2516Keywords:
Learning Content Type, Difficulty Level, Instructional Design, Learning Analytics, Behavioral IndicatorsAbstract
The work under consideration explores the predictive value of the learning content type and level of difficulty in student engagement through a data-driven method. The importance of student engagement in academic success is well-established, but few studies have investigated the interactive impact of instructional design and task difficulty through objective behavioral measures. In order to fill this gap, quantitative, cross-sectional design was adopted using a reduced secondary data set of 131 observations. The data were categorical in terms of learning content type, difficulty level, and engagement level, and behavioral measures of pupil dilation and fixation duration. Excel was used to analyze relationships between variables by use of descriptive statistics, cross-tabulation, and multiple regression analysis. Results showed that there were comparatively equal levels of engagement between the types of content and levels of difficulty with slight differences. The mean engagement was slightly higher with interactive content and with lower difficulty levels, but the differences were not statistically significant. The results of the regression showed that the type of learning content and the level of difficulty did not significantly predict student engagement, and the model had a trivial percentage of variance (R2 = 0.0026). The research concludes that instructional variables alone do not have a strong effect on student engagement and that it is likely to be affected by a wider range of cognitive, behavioral and contextual factors. These results underscore the need to take a multidimensional and data-driven perspective in interpreting engagement. Future studies are needed to use more variables and real-life data to reflect the complexity of student engagement within the modern learning contexts.
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