Interrelationships among College Students' Perceptions of Smart Classroom Environments, Perceived Usefulness of Mobile Technology, Achievement Emotions, and Cognitive Engagement.

Cognitive engagement is a crucial factor that shapes successful learning outcomes, but our understanding of the factors that influence such engagement in the smart classroom context remains limited. This study aims to narrow this research gap by exploring the relationships among college students' perceptions of the smart learning environment, perceived usefulness of mobile technology, achievement emotions, and cognitive engagement. A total of 1293 college students completed an online questionnaire survey, and 1076 valid responses were received. Structural equation modeling was used to analyze the interrelationships among these factors. The results revealed that students' perceptions of the smart classroom environment and perceived usefulness of mobile technology as well as two achievement emotions (pride and anxiety) significantly impact cognitive engagement. Both pride and anxiety act as mediators in the relationships among perceptions of smart classroom environments, the perceived usefulness of mobile technology, and cognitive engagement, in which context the mediating effect of pride is stronger than that of anxiety. These findings have practical implications for instructors, who should focus on implementing strategies that promote positive achievement emotions when students use mobile technology in smart classrooms. Additionally, these findings can inform the design and construction of smart classroom environments. Moreover, our study has limitations due to reliance on online data collection and self-reported data, which may introduce biases and measurement errors. Future research should incorporate multimodal data and advanced technologies for a comprehensive assessment to better understand students' engagement in smart learning environments, while also considering individual factors and the educational context to enhance the effectiveness of mobile technology in supporting students' emotions and achievement.

Exploring the influence of students' perceptions of face-to-face collaboration on cognitive engagement and learning outcomes in collaborative programming.

Collaborative programming is being increasingly used to overcome the difficulties of the individual programming process. In this study, we investigated the effect of collaborative perception on cognitive engagement and learning outcomes in collaborative programming. We used a quasi-experimental research to determine the differences in cognitive engagement and learning outcomes of three groups with different levels of collaborative perception. The findings highlight several important conclusions. First, there were significant differences in cognitive engagement and learning outcomes across collaborative perception groups. Students with high levels of collaborative perception demonstrate more comprehensive and diverse cognitive engagement, resulting in higher learning outcomes compared to those with lower perception. Second, students in the low collaborative perception group had more Clarification-Elaboration cognitive connections, and students in the high collaborative perception group had stronger Clarification-Positioning and Clarification-Verification cognitive connections. Third, collaborative perception positively moderated the relationship between cognitive engagement and learning outcomes. In particular, three cognitive engagement, Clarification, Elaboration, and Positioning, had a greater impact on performance when moderated by collaborative perceptions. These findings have practical implications for educators and course designers, emphasizing the importance of considering students' collaborative perception when forming groups and promoting effective collaborative programming.

Occlusion Robust Cognitive Engagement Detection in Real-World Classroom.

Cognitive engagement involves mental and physical involvement, with observable behaviors as indicators. Automatically measuring cognitive engagement can offer valuable insights for instructors. However, object occlusion, inter-class similarity, and intra-class variance make designing an effective detection method challenging. To deal with these problems, we propose the Object-Enhanced-You Only Look Once version 8 nano (OE-YOLOv8n) model. This model employs the YOLOv8n framework with an improved Inner Minimum Point Distance Intersection over Union (IMPDIoU) Loss to detect cognitive engagement. To evaluate the proposed methodology, we construct a real-world Students' Cognitive Engagement (SCE) dataset. Extensive experiments on the self-built dataset show the superior performance of the proposed model, which improves the detection performance of the five distinct classes with a precision of 92.5%.

Cognitive, affective, and behavioral engagement with science news predicted by the use of accessibility strategies in science-minded and general audiences.

Numerous studies have explored internal factors such as cultural values and acquired knowledge accounting for how people engage with science. However, it remains unclear how external factors embedded in science texts relate to audience engagement. A content analysis of 298 text-based popular science news articles and their following 5852 reader comments was conducted in two Israeli audiences, science-minded and general readers, to explore how the accessibility strategies embedded in these articles relate to cognitive, affective, and behavioral engagement. Findings indicated similar patterns of relationship between accessibility strategies and engagement expressions for both audiences; however, the relationships were more pronounced for general readers compared to science-minded readers. Using jargon and a narrative writing style increased the odds of positive emotions in reader comments, whereas addressing socio-scientific issues increased the odds of cognitive expressions. These results may contribute to a fuller understanding of ways to drive meaningful public engagement.

Psychometric properties of the Persian version of the Engaged teachers Scale (ETS).

BACKGROUND & AIM: Teacher engagement can be defined as the teachers' effort and attention to teaching professional tasks, adequate emotions and commitment to relationships with students and colleagues in classroom and school. The Engaged Teacher Scale (ETS) is the frequently used scale, measuring teacher engagement developed by Klassen et al., 2013 in the UK, and consists of four dimensions: cognitive engagement (CE), emotional engagement (EE), social engagement with students (SES), and social engagement with colleagues (SEC). Therefore, the aim of this study was to measure the psychometric properties of the Persian version of the Engaged Teachers Scale (ETS). MATERIALS & METHODS: A total of 123 teachers who worked at Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran, were included in this study. The study participants were selected using the convenience sampling. The Persian version of a 16-item scale developed by Klassen et al. was validated by this study. Face and Content validity index and reliability were assessed after translation and cultural adaptation, and also construct validity was calculated by confirmatory factor analysis using the PLS22. RESULTS: Of the 123 study participants, 74 (60.01%) were females and 49 (39.9%) were males. The mean age of the subjects was about 30-40 years. The majority of the study participants were general practitioners (n = 75; 60.9%) and others were from different specialists. Content validity among 15 experts was 0.88. Confirmatory factor analysis for all 16 items loaded across four factors, and this four-factor scale showed a good fit in the Iranian community. Reliability using Cronbach's alpha was 0.79. The value of root mean square error of approximation (RMSEA) was 0.0094 with the 99% confidence interval, and also the goodness of fit index GFI value was 0.98. CONCLUSION: The Persian version of ETS had good validity and reliability in Iran and could be a useful tool for measuring the teacher engagement factors of faculty members that can be used by teachers and educational administrators.

Towards the implications of positive teacher interpersonal behaviors for Spanish learners' academic engagement: Voices from Chinese SFL learners.

With the advent of positive psychology in the area of language education, more focus has been placed on the consequences of favorable teacher communication behaviors in language classes. Nonetheless, the function of language instructors' interpersonal behaviors in raising learners' engagement is somehow unknown. Furthermore, to the best of our knowledge, no research study has been carried out in Spanish language classes to explore the function of teacher communication behaviors in learners' engagement. To fill this lacuna, the current inquiry looked into the role of teachers' positive interpersonal factors in Chinese SFL learners' behavioral, cognitive, and emotional engagement. For this purpose, a random sample of 32 SFL learners was chosen to participate in our online interview sessions. The answers of SFL learners to the interview questions were thematically analyzed via MAXQDA software. The thematic analysis findings pointed to the value of teacher communication behaviors in improving SFL learners' engagement. The analysis outcomes also demonstrated the potential of 11 positive interpersonal behaviors (rapport, care, clarity, credibility, confirmation, immediacy, closeness, praise, feedback, respect, and stroke) in increasing Spanish language learners' academic engagement. The practical implications that may emerge from the present study's outcomes are finally discussed.

The impact of virtual reality on student engagement in the classroom-a critical review of the literature.

Objective: The purpose of this review is to identify the impact of virtual reality (VR) technology on student engagement, specifically cognitive engagement, behavioral engagement, and affective engagement. Methods: A comprehensive search of databases such as Google, Scopus, and Elsevier was conducted to identify English-language articles related to VR and classroom engagement for the period from 2014 to 2023. After systematic screening, 33 articles were finally reviewed. Results: The use of VR in the classroom is expected to improve student engagement and learning outcomes, and is particularly effective for students with learning disabilities. However, introducing VR into middle school education poses several challenges, including difficulties in the education system to keep up with VR developments, increased demands on students' digital literacy, and insufficient proficiency of teachers in using VR. Conclusion: To effectively utilize VR to increase student engagement, we advocate for educational policymakers to provide training and technical support to teachers to ensure that they can fully master and integrate VR to increase student engagement and instructional effectiveness.

The effect of computer self-efficacy on the behavioral intention to use translation technologies among college students: Mediating role of learning motivation and cognitive engagement.

Amid an era of rapid globalization and technological advancement, translation technologies stand as valuable assets for college students to enhance accuracy and efficiency in the translation process. However, the adoption and acceptance of these technologies are contingent on several psychological factors, which are underexplored in the academic field. This study, populated by a cohort of 397 college students, employs a multiple-item questionnaire measuring computer self-efficacy, learning motivation, cognitive engagement, and the behavioral intention to utilize translation technologies. The collected data were analyzed through a Partial Least Squares-Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) approach. Results indicated that computer self-efficacy significantly correlated with learning motivation, cognitive engagement, and behavioral intention to use translation technologies. Learning motivation and cognitive engagement were identified as critical mediators; combined, they exhibited a chain mediating effect on the association between computer self-efficacy and the intention to adopt translation technologies. Untangling the intertwined influences of these psychological constructs provides profound implications for the stakeholders, including tertiary education institutions, educators, curriculum developers, and technologists, to design effective pedagogical strategies and technology platforms to enhance translation technology adoption. This will equip students to harness these technologies and create a conducive environment for them to thrive in a globalized and digitally interconnected world.

Fostering childbirth education on upright positions and mobility during labor in nulliparous women.

BACKGROUND: Upright labor positions and movement during labor have a positive effect on childbirth, yet the predominant labor positions are still horizontal. Therefore, it is important to explore how it is possible to improve childbirth education, particularly its instructional design, to strengthen women's self-efficacy toward the use of upright positions and mobility during labor. The aim of the study was to evaluate the impact of an instructional approach based on a cognitive engagement ICAP (Interactive, Constructive, Active, Passive) framework on the development of knowledge, attitudes, and self-efficacy expectations toward upright positions and mobility during labor. METHODS: A prospective quasi-experimental study was conducted among nulliparous women from the ultra-orthodox Jewish community (n = 74). While the control group (n = 34) participated in routine childbirth education, the intervention group (n = 36) learned with childbirth education that included interactive and constructive cognitive engagement activities. Participants in both groups completed a set of questionnaires regarding knowledge, attitudes, and self-efficacy. RESULTS: The post-test analysis revealed that women in the intervention group compared to the control group gained significantly higher knowledge scores (p < 0.05), more positive attitudes (p < 0.001), and stronger self-efficacy expectations toward upright positions and mobility during labor (p < 0.01). CONCLUSIONS: The findings suggest that by fostering women's cognitive engagement levels during childbirth education toward the interactive and constructive modes of the ICAP framework, women's self-efficacy to move during labor and to use upright positions can be induced. These results can serve as a foundation to improve the overall effectiveness of childbirth instruction. TRIAL REGISTRATION: The study was registered retrospectively.

Cognitive engagement of nursing undergraduates in blended learning: A parallel mixed method study.

BACKGROUND: Blended learning is being integrated into undergraduate nursing education at all levels and from all directions. Cognitive engagement is not only an embodiment and guarantee of students' engagement into the curriculum from a cognitive level, deep engagement and high-level thinking, but also an important indicator of whether students are effectively engaged in the blended learning curricula. However, no studies have been seen to investigate the cognitive engagement of nursing undergraduates in the blended learning curricula and its influential factors. OBJECTIVES: To explore nursing undergraduates' cognitive engagement during the blended learning curricula and its influential factors. DESIGN: A convergent parallel mixed-methods was used. Data were collected between November 2021 and May 2022, inclusive. SETTINGS AND PARTICIPANTS: The study was carried out in the nursing school at a university in China. Participants including students undertaking entry to the blended learning curricula. METHODS: In the quantitative component (n = 142), participants' cognitive engagement was investigated and factors associated with it were examined using univariate analysis, correlation analysis and multiple regression analysis. During this period, personal, semi-structured interviews were conducted with a subset of these participants (n = 15) to understand participants' cognitive engagement experiences. RESULTS: The cognitive engagement of nursing undergraduates was at a moderate level and the cognitive engagement experiences were reflected in the four themes of Reconstitution, Connection, Elaboration and Retention. The influential factors of cognitive engagement were learning activities (ß = 0.226, p = 0.004), autonomy (ß = 0.158, p = 0.047), academic self-efficacy (ß = 0.311, p < 0.001, ß = 0.271, p < 0.001) and social interaction (ß = 0.358, p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: The cognitive engagement of nursing undergraduates in the blended learning curricula needs to be improved. To maximize promote cognitive engagement of nursing undergraduates in the blended learning curricula, educators should design diverse learning activities, engage in high quality social interactions with students, and maximize students' autonomy and self-efficacy.

Acute exercise and children's cognitive functioning: What is the optimal dose of cognitive challenge?

Acute bouts of exercise have the potential to benefit children's cognition. Inconsistent evidence on the role of qualitative exercise task characteristics calls for further investigation of the cognitive challenge level in exercise. Thus, the study aim was to investigate which "dose" of cognitive challenge in acute exercise benefits children's cognition, also exploring the moderating role of individual characteristics. In a within-subject experimental design, 103 children (Mage = 11.1, SD = 0.9, 48% female) participated weekly in one of three 15-min exergames followed by an Attention Network task. Exergame sessions were designed to keep physical intensity constant (65% HRmax) and to have different cognitive challenge levels (low, mid, high; adapted to the ongoing individual performance). ANOVAs performed on variables that reflect the individual functioning of attention networks revealed a significant effect of cognitive challenge on executive control efficiency (reaction time performances; p = .014, ƞ2p = .08), with better performances after the high-challenge condition compared to lower ones (ps < .015), whereas alerting and orienting were unaffected by cognitive challenge (ps > .05). ANOVAs performed on variables that reflect the interactive functioning of attention networks revealed that biological sex moderated cognitive challenge effects. For males only, the cognitive challenge level influenced the interactive functioning of executive control and orienting networks (p = .004; ƞ2p = .07). Results suggest that an individualized and adaptive cognitively high-challenging bout of exercise is more beneficial to children's executive control than less challenging ones. For males, the cognitive challenge in an acute bout seems beneficial to maintain executive control efficiency also when spatial attention resources cannot be validly allocated in advance. Results are interpreted referring to the cognitive stimulation hypothesis and arousal theory.

Socioeconomic and home educational resource risk factors and Children's literacy and social skills in Guyanese families: Mediating role of parental cognitive engagement and parental guidance.

This study examined the mediating role of parental cognitive engagement and parental guidance on the associations between family socioeconomic and home environment resource risk factors and children's literacy and social skills in Guyana. The sample consisted of 1208 families from diverse ethnic and socioeconomic backgrounds drawn from the 2019 to 2020 country-level UNICEF MICS data. Caregivers provided assessments of socioeconomic conditions, educational resources in the home environment, cognitive engagement, parental guidance and children's literacy and social skills. Family socioeconomic risk had an indirect association with social skills through cognitive engagement. Home environment educational resource risk had indirect associations with children's literacy and social skills through parental guidance. Findings are discussed in terms of identifying protective factors within families in low- and middle-income Caribbean countries that can better inform intervention efforts geared at reducing risks to childhood development.

EFL learners' engagement in online learning context: development and validation of potential measurement inventory.

Research has proved learner engagement is a strong predictor of academic achievement, especially in the online learning environment. The lack of any reliable and valid instrument to measure this construct in the context of online education made the researchers of the current study develop and validate a potential measurement inventory to assess EFL learners' engagement in the online learning environment. For this purpose, a comprehensive review of the related literature and careful investigation of the existing instruments were carried out to find the theoretical constructs for learner engagement which led to the development of a 56-item Likert scale questionnaire. The newly developed questionnaire was piloted with 560 female and male EFL university students selected based on nonprobability convenience sampling. The results of the factor analysis indicated the reduction of items to 48 loaded on three main components, namely behavioral engagement (15 items), emotional engagement (16 items), and cognitive engagement (17 items). The results also revealed that the newly developed questionnaire enjoyed a reliability index of 0.925. The findings of the current study will undoubtedly help teaching practitioners assess EFL learners' engagement in the online learning context and make principled decisions when it comes to learners' engagement.

The study of the effectiveness of design-based engineering learning: the mediating role of cognitive engagement and the moderating role of modes of engagement.

Aim: Design-based engineering learning (DBEL) offers a potentially valuable approach to engineering education, but its mechanism of action has yet to be verified by empirical studies. Accordingly, the present study aimed to establish whether DBEL produces better learning outcomes, thereby building a strong, empirically grounded case for further research into engineering education. Methods: To build a more comprehensive model of design-based engineering learning, the variables of cognitive engagement (the mediator) and modes of engagement (the moderator) were introduced to build a theoretical process model. Questionnaires and multiple linear regression analysis were used to verify the model. Results and discussion: All four features of DBEL (design practice, interactive reflection, knowledge integration, and circular iteration) were found to exert significant and positive effects on learning outcomes. Moreover, cognitive engagement was found to both fully and partially mediate the relationships between these features and the outcomes of engineering learning; under two different modes of engagement, the positive effects of the learning features on cognitive engagement differed significantly. Conclusion: The paper concluded the following: (1) a design-based learning approach can enhance engineering students' learning outcomes, (2) cognitive engagement mediates between design-based engineering learning and learning outcomes (3) a systematic mode of engagement produces better learning outcomes than a staged modes of engagement.

Fluctuation in cognitive engagement during listening and reading of erotica and horror stories.

The present study examined whether emotional text content influences cognitive engagement and transportation during listening (Experiment 1) and reading (Experiment 2) of neutral, horror and erotic stories. In Experiment 1, fluctuation in arousal and cognitive engagement were measured by continuous arousal judgments and head movement recordings during story listening. Participants rated experienced transportation and emotional valence after each story. The results showed that emotional texts were more arousing and induced more transportation than neutral stories. There was less head motion overall and a steeper decrease in head motion across time for erotic than neutral or horror stories. In Experiment 2, participants' head movements and reading times were recorded during reading, and participants rated experienced transportation, arousal, and valence after each text. The results showed that emotional texts were more arousing and induced higher transportation than neutral stories. There was less head motion during reading of erotic than neutral or horror texts. Horror texts were read slower and recalled better than neutral or erotic texts. The present results show that emotional text content impacts cognitive engagement during listening and reading of literary texts and demonstrates the importance of methodological triangulation when examining cognitive engagement.

The Effects of Cognitively Challenging Physical Activity Games versus Health-Related Fitness Activities on Students' Executive Functions and Situational Interest in Physical Education: A Group-Randomized Controlled Trial.

This study compared cognitively challenging physical activity games and health-related fitness activities in terms of their effects on students' executive functions and situational interest in physical education. A total of 102 fourth- and fifth-grade students (56 boys, 46 girls) participated in this study. A group-randomized controlled trial design involving an acute experiment was used. Two intact classes of students (one fourth-grade and one fifth-grade) were randomly assigned to each one of the three groups. Students in Group 1 participated in cognitively challenging physical activity games, students in Group 2 participated in activities for developing their health-related fitness, and Group 3 students were the control group without physical education. Executive functions were measured pre- and post-intervention with the design fluency test, whereas situational interest was only measured post-intervention with the situational interest scale. Group 1 students who played cognitively challenging physical activity games had increased their executive functions' scores more than the Group 2 students involved in health-related fitness activities. Students of both these groups outperformed control group students. Moreover, Group 1 students reported higher levels of instant enjoyment and total interest than Group 2 students. The results of this study suggest that cognitively challenging physical activity games can be an effective means for enhancing executive functions, and motivate students to be involved in interesting and enjoyable forms of physical activity.

Dose-response relation between the duration of a cognitively challenging bout of physical exercise and children's cognition.

Acute bouts of physical exercise have the potential to benefit children's cognition. Inconsistent evidence calls for systematic investigations of dose-response relations between quantitative (intensity and duration) and qualitative (modality) exercise characteristics. Thus, in this study the optimal duration of an acute cognitively challenging physical exercise to benefit children's cognition was investigated, also exploring the moderating role of individual characteristics. In a within-subject experimental design, 104 children (Mage = 11.5, SD = 0.8, 51% female) participated weekly in one of four exergaming conditions of different durations (5, 10, 15, 20 min) followed by an Attention Network task (ANT-R). Exergame sessions were designed to keep physical intensity constant (65% HRmax ) and to have a high cognitive challenge level (adapted to the individual ongoing performance). Repeated measures ANOVAs revealed a significant effect of exercise duration on reaction times (RTs; p = 0.009, ƞ2 p = 0.11), but not on response accuracy. Post hoc analyses showed faster information processing speed after 15 min of exercise compared to 10 min (p = 0.019, ƞ2 p = 0.09). Executive control, alerting and orienting performances and interactions were unaffected by exercise duration (ps > 0.05). Among individual characteristics, habitual physical activity moderated duration effects on RTs. For more active children, exercise duration influenced the interaction between executive control and orienting (p = 0.034; ƞ2 p = 0.17) with best performances after the 15 min duration. Results suggest that an acute 15 min cognitively high-challenging bout of physical exercise enhances allocable resources, which in turn facilitate information processing, and-for more active children only-also executive processes. Results are interpreted according to the arousal theory and cognitive stimulation hypothesis.

Predictors of satisfaction with emergency remote teaching (ERT) during Covid 19 among undergraduate students of Nigeria's premier university.

University of Ibadan, Nigeria's premier university commenced emergency remote teaching (ERT) in February 2021 in other to control the spread of Covid-19. After a full session of learning through this mode, this paper investigated determinants of undergraduate students' satisfaction with the institution's ERT. Proportional-to-size sampling was used in obtaining the sample size of 366, while respondents were selected using convenience sampling. Data collection was through a structured questionnaire and data were collected on the factors-attitude, affect, motivation; perceived behavioural control (accessibility, self-efficacy, ease of use); and cognitive engagement. Findings showed that all the variables except accessibility had significant relationships with students' satisfaction. However, only motivation to learn (ß = 0.140, p = 0.019) and cognitive engagement (ß = 0.154, p = 0.005) were significant predictors of students' satisfaction with the ERT. The study emphasized the need for the institution to take steps towards ensuring that online learning is interesting and motivating for students, such that when faced with such abrupt change in learning mode in the future, students are motivated to learn and are willing to invest their mental effort into understanding their academic work, which may ultimately improve their satisfaction with the learning process.

Affective or cognitive interpersonal emotion regulation in couples: an fNIRS hyperscanning study.

Sadness regulation is crucial for maintaining the romantic relationships of couples. Interpersonal emotion regulation, including affective engagement (AE) and cognitive engagement (CE), activates social brain networks. However, it is unclear how AE and CE regulate sadness in couples through affective bonds. We recruited 30 heterosexual couple dyads and 30 heterosexual stranger dyads and collected functional near-infrared spectroscopy hyperscanning data while each dyad watched sad or neutral videos and while the regulator regulated the target's sadness. Then, we characterized interbrain synchronization (IBS) and Granger causality (GC). The results indicated that AE and CE were more effective for couples than for strangers and that sadness evaluation of female targets was lower than that of male targets. CE-induced IBS at CH13 (BA10, right middle frontal gyrus) was lower for female targets than for male targets, while no gender difference in AE was detected. GC change at CH13 during CE was lower in the sad condition for male targets than for female targets, while no gender difference in AE was discovered. These observations suggest that AE and CE activate affective bonds but that CE was more effective for regulating sadness in female targets, revealing different neural patterns of cognitive and affective sadness regulation in couples.

In search of boredom: beyond a functional account.

Boredom has been characterized as a crisis of meaning, a failure of attention, and a call to action. Yet as a self-regulatory signal writ-large, we are still left with the question of what makes any given boredom episode meaningless, disengaging, or a prompt to act. We propose that boredom is an affective signal that we have deviated from an optimal ('Goldilocks') zone of cognitive engagement. Such deviations may be due to a perceived lack of meaning, arise as a consequence of struggles we are experiencing in attending to a task, or be interpreted as a blunt call to find something different to engage with. Thus, the key to understanding boredom lies in its role in keeping us cognitively engaged.