Understanding cognitive engagement in virtual discussion boards

Cognitive engagement is an essential component in student learning. With the increase of more asynchronous virtual educational tools in classrooms, there is a need to understand how students are engaging with classroom content in these formats. Several studies have examined student and teacher perceptions of cognitive engagement in virtual discussion boards, but prior research has not analyzed the responses themselves. This study explores higher education students’ cognitive engagement when posting to asynchronous online discussions, investigating the levels and types of engagement for both written and video responses. Student responses were qualitatively coded based on themes that aligned with the ICAP framework of cognitive engagement. Descriptive and quantitative analyses were used to understand the types of cognitive engagement observed in online discussions, differences in video and written posts or when they had a choice in how to respond, and if patterns existed throughout the course. Results suggest that students do show deep levels of cognitive engagement in asynchronous discussions, in both written and video posts. Students exhibited deeper levels of cognitive engagement when they were given the choice in how to respond. There were no patterns over time in the course in cognitive engagement within students across the written and video posts. The structure and instructions of the prompts themselves may be important for eliciting deeper levels of responses. More explicit prompting for students to engage in deeper reflections or abstract thinking may help students engage with course content at a deeper level.