Presenter:
Ruth Vilayil
Authors:
Sacha Williams, Parsa Khanbadr, Jana Macleod, Ruth Vilayil
Poster Abstract:
Objectives:
- Summarize what measures are meaningful for online student engagement
- Identify pragmatic change ideas for increasing student engagement
- Interpret the impact of improvements on the student experience
Many higher education courses are virtual, promoting geographic inclusivity and flexibility. Online courses often lack student engagement which is vital for learning. Our aim was to use quality improvement methods to increase the average number of posts per student in SURG 510 by 10% by December 31, 2024. Plan Do Study Act (PDSA) model used. PDSAs included literature review; mentorship; learning analytics technology; clear expectations and modification of discussion questions.
Average number of posts per student per module was 1.83 in 2023 and 2.11 in 2024, an increase of 15.7% (p=0.25). Average word count per post was 552 in 2023 and 533 in 2024, a decrease of 3.5%. Average proportion of students posting per module was 69.23% in 2023, 70.45% in 2024. Student evaluation of quality of course rated as favourable was 75% in 2023, and 88% in 2024, an increase of 13%. Student perception of course challenge increased from 55.56% in 2023 to 75% in 2024.
We achieved our aim, though it did not reach statistical significance. This pilot study demonstrates that a combination of pragmatic changes may augment adult learner engagement and satisfaction, while associated with perceived increase in challenge. These learnings can be spread to other higher education virtual courses in future.
Keywords: Quality Improvement, virtual learning, student engagement
