Online module login data as a proxy measure of student engagement: the case of myUnisa, MoyaMA, Flipgrid, and Gephi at an ODeL institution in South Africa

Abstract

The current study employed online module login data harvested from three tools, myUnisa, Moya MA and Flipgrid to determine how such data served as a proxy measure of student engagement. The first tool is a legacy learning management system (LMS) utilised for online learning at the University of South Africa (UNISA), while the other two tools are a mobile messaging application and an educational video discussion platform, respectively. In this regard, the study set out to investigate the manner in which module login data of undergraduate students (n = 3475 & n = 2954) and a cohort of Mathew Goniwe students (n = 27) enrolled for a second-level module, ENG2601, as extracted from myUnisa, Moya MA , and Flipgrid served as a proxy measure of student engagement. Collectively, these students were registered for this second-level module at UNISA at the time the study was conducted. The online login data comprised myUnisa module login file access frequencies. In addition, the online login data consisted of the frequencies of instant messages (IMs) posted on Moya MA by both the facilitator and Mathew Goniwe students, and video clips posted on and video clip view frequencies captured by Flipgrid in respect of the afore-cited module. One finding of this study is that student engagement as measured by login file access frequencies was disproportionally skewed toward one module file relative to other module files. The other finding of this study is that the overall module file access metrics of the Mathew Goniwe group were disproportionally concentrated in a sub-cohort of highly active users (HAU).

Student learning outcomes and online engagement in time of crisis: the role of e-learning system usability and teacher behavior

“…In Oman, establishing and implementing effective educational strategies to provide enhanced online teaching and learning experience for HEIs' students is a priority for the Ministry of Higher Educational, Innovation and Research (Al-Amri et al, 2020;Al-Sadi, 2012). Despite the considerable increase of research on the relationship between educational technologies and student engagement (Chaka and Nkhobo, 2019), students' engagement and willingness to adopt innovative learning methods remain low. Evidence from many research shows that the sense of engagement factor is significantly associated with the desired educational outcomes (Joshi et al, 2021).…”

Higher education institutions and the use of online instruction and online tools and resources during the COVID-19 outbreak - An online review of selected U.S. and SA's universities

“…One of the core de nitions of online learning articulated by Blackboard Support (1998) that resonates with this paper is that it is a teaching and learning approach that employs Internet technologies meant to communicate and collaborate in a given educational setup (cf. Bates, 2015;Chaka & Nkhobo, 2019;Darby, 2020;Designing Digitally, 2019;Gannon, 2020; International Association for K-12 Online Learning, 2011; International Baccalaureate Organization [IBO], 2020; Means, Bakia & Murphy, 2014;Means, et al, 2010;Palvia et al, 2018;Sener, 2010;Xu & Jaggars, 2013;Zhu & Liu, 2020). This approach entails: student-student and faculty-student communication; student-centred pedagogies; 24/7-hour course material accessibility; just-in-time strategies to evaluate and assess student progress;and minimising administrivia related to course management (Blackboard Support, 1998).…”

Leveraging MoyaMA, WhatsApp and Online Discussion Forum to Support Students at an Open and Distance e‑Learning University

“…On this basis, the sample used in this study is small for findings sourced from it to be universal and representative. However, the findings of a study such as this one are more beneficial for their contextual transferability and applicability than for their universal replicability and generalisability (Chaka, 2015b;Chaka and Nkhobo, 2019a).…”

“…Most of the undergraduate students enrolled in this department are education students registered in an academic programme such as a Bachelor of Education (B. Ed) programme, which is offered by the College of Education. To this effect, the department offers a number of undergraduate modules to these students (Chaka and Nkhobo, 2019a). Over the last three years, the department has been providing face-to-face student support classes to students enrolled in some of their undergraduate modules.…”

“…The ethical clearance used was the one granted to a special project (the Mathew Goniwe Project) overseeing designated Saturday student support classes as mentioned earlier. It was granted by the College of Education's Research Ethics Review Committee at UNISA (Chaka and Nkhobo, 2019a).…”