Development of generic student engagement scale in higher education: An application on healthcare students

Aim: Student engagement is an important factor to the success of higher education. This study aimed to develop a Generic Student Engagement Scale (GSES) for face-to-face and online learning. Design: This was a cross-sectional psychometric study. Methods: We tested the psychometric properties of GSES in 451 students at the school of nursing and health studies undertaking online and face-to-face learning at a local university in Hong Kong between 2016 and 2018. Results: Content validity, face validity and test–retest reliability of GSES were satisfactory. The 29-item GSES contains five factors “self-regulated learning,” “cognitive strategy use,” “experienced emotion,” “teacher–student interaction,” and “enjoyment of school life” with the good model fit. The GSES is a reliable and valid psychometric instrument to measure student engagement in face-to-face and online learning among undergraduates and higher diploma students. Our results implied that student engagement can be assessed in routine or research by using our instrument.