Sense of Belonging in Large Online Engineering Classes: A Scoping Review

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to describe the state of existing scholarship on sense of belonging in online undergraduate engineering education courses, particularly as it relates to efforts to promote diversity, equity, and inclusion. The guiding research question was: In what ways has scholarship addressed potential interrelationships between sense of belonging; diversity, equity, and inclusion; and online undergraduate engineering education? We used a scoping review to examine the extent of available peer-reviewed literature and identify research gaps at the intersections of these areas. We searched for journal articles and conference papers in two databases, Education Research Complete from EBSCOhost and Engineering Village, established inclusion criteria, and examined the characteristics and findings of qualifying studies. We identified modest evidence of peer interaction and instructor-student interaction in online courses, as well as a few tips for instructors seeking to increase student engagement in online courses using instructor-led synchronous chats, audio-based formative feedback, and the use of a virtual environment and avatars in sense of belonging literature. Sense of belonging remains largely unexplored in online undergraduate engineering classes and underrepresented students within those classes. We offer implications for faculty seeking to promote more culturally responsive teaching and assessment practices in online undergraduate engineering classes by creating a sense of belonging.