Beyond a Buzzword: Student Perspectives on what Contributes to Engaging Educators and Classroom Experiences

Abstract

In a changing educational landscape, student engagement remains a prominent issue in research and practice. This study explores engagement from the student’s perspective across multiple disciplines, year levels and delivery modes. It draws on 13,125 Student Evaluation of Teaching survey comments where students have used the word “engage” (or derivative) in response to individual educators. Part of speech tagging was used to identify surrounding words that helped to contextualise the inclusion of the term. Through content analysis, key words were then grouped into six themes (approachability; synonyms for good; clarity; enjoyment and enthusiasm; relevance; and subject matter expertise) that highlighted both individual educator attributes and the overall learning experience. This research provides practical considerations for educators and administrators in relation to what students find engaging and how to support such positive environments. Additionally, it reinforces the role students play as major stakeholders in their learning and ongoing discussions around engagement.