Context-specific adaptation of a student engagement measure: a case study of a private university in Bangladesh

Abstract

Student engagement needs to be context-specific to embrace holistic learning for increasingly diverse students in higher education. This paper presented a case study on the context-specific adaptation of a student engagement measure for a private university in Bangladesh. The adaptation process involved steps such as benchmarking theoretically sound student engagement measures, drawing on the opinions of academic experts, and statistical model fit analysis. A 34-item adapted Measure of Student Engagement in Higher Education (MSEHE) was tested with 953 undergraduate and postgraduate students from two disciplines. This process expanded the original five-component student engagement measure with new insights such as students engaging with integration of ideas from real-life problems. The MSEHE had acceptable internal consistency (Cronbach’s standardised alpha = 0.61 to 0.91) and model fit (RMSEA = 0.048, CFI = 0.933, NNFI = 0.923). All domains of student engagement in the MSEHE were positively and significantly correlated. Hierarchical regression analysis confirmed that the three domains of the MSEHE (i.e. cognitive, affective, and social engagement with teachers) can also predict student satisfaction. A systematic process of context-specific adaptation is critical for a pragmatic student engagement measure capable of directing the university toward achieving long-term goals such as implementing outcome-based education and having employable graduates.

Keywords

• Student engagement measure
• higher education
• private university
• outcome-based education
• context-specific adaptation
• Stephen Darwin, Universidad Alberto Hurtado, Chile