Student engagement with mathematics learning supports twelve years on

Abstract

In 2014, the Irish Mathematics Learning Support Network (IMLSN) published an extensive report on student evaluation of Mathematics Learning Support (MLS), following a multi-institutional survey questionnaire that was distributed in 2011 (O’Sullivan et al., 2014). This report analysed a variety of factors that influenced student engagement and the impact of MLS on students. In 2023, a similar questionnaire was distributed to undergraduate students in Dublin City University (DCU). Many questions in this new questionnaire were also asked in 2011, while other questions broached new topics such as students’ confidence and performance through their educational journey. In this paper, we explore student engagement with MLS post-COVID-19 lockdowns, with a focus on the reasons students gave for why they had or had not engaged, and what might encourage them to engage. We compare these new data with the corresponding data from the 2011 survey and discuss the similarities and changes that have taken place in the 12 years since.