Why are students’ self-initiated contributions important? A study on agentic engagement

Abstract

This article is part of a research project on student engagement, achievement goals, and autonomy support in higher education. This systematic observational study presents a categorization of the contributions initiated by students in lecture-based courses. For this purpose, an observation form was developed and implemented in two courses delivered by the same professor. The form is based on the research question “Which students’ verbal contributions in lecture-based courses are aligned with the concept of agentic engagement?” A sub-question is whether agentic behavior is performed differently by male and female students in small and large courses. Self-initiated contributions were classified, counted, and described in order to compare results between the two courses. The findings revealed that (1) the self-initiated contributions classified as ‘expected by the educator’ were the most common in both courses, and (2) the number and type of contributions were different depending on both student gender and class size. The paper concludes with recommendations to advance the state of research on agentic engagement.