Learner Engagement, academic motivation and learning strategies of university students

Abstract

The establishment and promotion of effective learning strategies in the university context is essential for improving academic performance and personal development. This stage is based on the convergence of behavioural, cognitive and emotional factors, which allow students to successfully adjust to the demands of the academic context as well as define their strategies. The aim of this research is to study the learner engagement enhancement effect between motivation and learning strategies. A reflective structural equation model (PLS-SEM) was applied according to the proposed theoretical framework, from an explanatory-predictive perspective. In this study, 648 university students participated, 417 were women (64.3%) and 231 were men (31.7%), with a mean age of 19.40 years (±3.67). The instruments used were: Échelle de Motivation en Éducation (EME), Utrecht Work Engagement Scale (UWES) and Learning Strategies Scale (ACRA). The results showed the relationship between variables, with the following coefficients of determination: learning strategies [(Q2 =.295); (R² =.456)]; engagement [(Q2 =.314); (R² =.364)], in the model estimation, indicating an adequate fit. In addition, the learner engagement enhancement effect between motivation and learning strategies was corroborated and contrasted with the empirical evidence. This research has shown that there is a significant relationship between the variables under study. This confirms the need to implement cross-disciplinary training in learning strategies based on internal factors, such as learner engagement and motivation, in order to strengthen both adaptive processes and personal and academic performance.