Evaluating online class participation in higher education: a scoping review and a proposed framework

In this paper, the relationship between relative and absolute participation in undergraduate higher education in Slovenia is investigated. That relationship results from the interrelationship between factors contributing to relative participation in higher education and the size of youth populations. The development patterns of the relative and absolute participation in undergraduate higher education in Slovenia are presented. In order to empirically test the authors' hypotheses, two separate multiple regression analyses were conducted. The first analyzes factors of the demographic base, and the second analyzes factors of the relative participation in undergraduate higher education. The results reveal the factors contributing to both the demographic base and relative participation in undergraduate higher education and identifies the significant factor linking them to each other. This factor works in one direction in the case of the demographic base and in the opposite direction in the case of the relative participation in undergraduate higher education, causing the relationship between changes in relative and absolute participation in higher education. At the end of the paper, findings confirming the hypotheses are presented with an explanation of the background of the empirical findings.

Online education has become a vital component of the American higher education system. Demand for online education is expected to grow, as online education offers a number of tangible benefits to potential students. Faculty member participation in online education has been found to be crucial to the success of new or expanded online education initiatives. This research was conducted to determine the extent to which a number of extrinsic and intrinsic factors influence a faculty member's decision to participate in online education. Ten subscale factors across four motivational dimensions were identified in the literature as potentially important to faculty participation in online education. This research study employed survey research and quantitative methods to determine the extent to which these factors influenced faculty member participation in online education at one liberal arts institution. Both extrinsic and intrinsic factors were found to have a positive, statistically significant relationship with faculty member willingness to participate in online education. Intrinsic factors, including a faculty member's beliefs regarding the efficacy of online education, a faculty member's desire to increase student access to education, and opportunities for professional growth were found to have the strongest relationship with faculty member willingness to participate in online education. Higher education administrators who are seeking to increase faculty participation in online education are advised to implement encouragement programs that, while emphasizing the aforementioned intrinsic factors, incorporate a broad range of motivational factors.

This paper investigates the determinants of the relative participation in undergraduate higher education in Slovenia. The determinants of participation in higher education can be investigated at the micro or macro level. Using regression analysis we focus on the macro-level determinants of the increasing relative rate at which the relevant population of youth participates in undergraduate higher education in Slovenia from 1980-81 to 2006-7. Since 1980 the relative participation in higher education has increased more than twice the initial level. We investigate possible reasons for that dramatic increase in association with the overall economic conditions, the financial conditions of individuals, the expected benefits from undergraduate higher education, the proportion of the relevant population who fulfilled the enrollment requirements, the changing personal and social values related to higher education, and the supply side variables of higher education. In a regression analysis we include trend and autoregression effects. Finally, we make a simple simulation estimate of the expected development of the relative participation in undergraduate higher education in Slovenia in the near future.

Class participation is an important indicator of student engagement. As research on assessing class participation is relatively scarce, questions of how to achieve reliability in assessing class participation and how to minimize subjectivity in the process remain to be addressed. As assessment approaches get updated in the era of Generative AI, there is a need to revisit the topic to uncover the various ways educators assess class participation in both physical and virtual classrooms. This study aimed to gather the best practices and challenges of higher education teachers in assessing class participation in online and offline (physical/face-to-face) learning. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 20 teachers from all 10 faculties in a university in Hong Kong. We found that strategies employed in assessing participation are associated with the type of learner, type of course, technology available, teachers’ training, support, and resources, the learning context, and intended learning outcomes. Findings also point to the potential of technology-enabled assessment in helping students achieve intended learning outcomes, with teachers playing a huge role in terms of ensuring constructive alignment among intended learning outcomes, teaching and learning activities, and assessments. Recommendations to maximize the use of digital technologies in higher education are discussed.

Purpose: the aim of this paper is to identify the problems of low effectiveness of public participation in higher education on the basis of the analysis of theoretical-methodological and empirical literature.Methods: this study is based on the institutional paradigm, through the application of the tools of which the main actors with the potential for participation in higher education, roles, opportunities for influence and interests of participants in relation to the system of higher education are identified. The problems of efficiency of interaction between universities and society were identified and characterized in terms of institutional economics.Results: the directions of organization of social involvement in higher education were defined, the taxonomy of directions of interaction between university and society on the example of Ural State University of Economics was given. Based on the correlation of interests and opportunities for influence, their projection on the potential of interaction between the main stakeholder groups of the higher education system was carried out.The problems of low efficiency of interaction between society and higher education were revealed. The most important problems include the lack of a system of informal institutions that mediate the participation practices of the population, employers, and civil society institutions in the implementation of higher education programs. There is no consistent formalization of the processes of interaction between society and higher education through state regulation of this sphere. The most widespread problem is the lack of an established mechanism (model) of public involvement in the educational process that has the necessary methodological and instrumental support in the state policy in the sphere of education. The right of the public to participate in education management is not obvious and understandable for individuals.Сonclusions and Relevance: the potential of studying the sphere of public participation in higher education requires the creation of an independent research program in order to develop areas for improvement and development of institutions mediating the interaction between universities and society.

The purpose of this basic qualitative study was to understand how cultural capital affected low-income undergraduate students' decisions to participate in higher education at highly ranked research institutions in the State of Texas. To fulfill this purpose, four research questions were formulated as the foundation for this investigation: a/ What are low-income undergraduate students' aspirations? b/ How does inherited cultural capital affect low-income undergraduate students' decisions to participate in higher education at highly ranked research institutions? c/ How does acquired cultural capital affect low-income undergraduate students' decisions to participate in higher education at highly ranked research institutions? d/ How do low-income undergraduate students determine affordability of highly ranked research institutions? Data included 12 semi-structured, in-depth interviews, observations, field notes, and documents. Data was analyzed using general inductive analysis, constant comparison, and included multiple coding strategies. Participants represented a range and variations in demographics including age, gender, race/ethnicity, type of high school attended, type of highly ranked research institution enrolled, and quantity in keeping with the proportion of race/ethnicity identified in Texas' Closing the Gap Plan. Findings show low-income undergraduate students' aspirations in terms of desiring a high-status career, jumping from low-income class to high/upper-income class living, and being altruistic. Inherited cultural capital affects low-income undergraduate students' decisions to participate in higher education at highly ranked research institutions in terms of escape generational poverty, and family values higher education. Acquired cultural capital affects low-income undergraduate students' decisions to participate in higher education at highly ranked research institutions in terms of trusted community relationships encourage vision of success, academics activities create competitive advantage, and self-directed exploration activities enhance knowledge for decision-making. Low-income students determine affordability in terms of career objective justifies costs of attendance, and scholarship offerings ease financial burden and make students feel valued. From these findings, three salient conclusions were drawn. First, low-socioeconomics is not an insurmountable barrier to low-income students' participation in higher education at highly ranked research institutions if they inherit the cultural value of higher education. Second, range of acquired cultural capital supported students' decision to participate in high education at highly ranked research institutions. Third, low-income students used an investment strategy to determine the affordability of their aspirations.

In 1988 the release of the Higher Education: A Policy Statement White Paper focused Australia’s national higher education equity policy on “changing the balance of the student population to reflect more closely the composition of society as a whole” (Dawkins 1990, 2-3). While improvement in access and participation has been noted for women, people from non-English speaking backgrounds, and people with disabilities, the interventions has remained less effective for people from Lower Socio-Economic Status (LSES backgrounds), Indigenous peoples; rural, regional and remote residents; (Gale & Tranter, 2011; Koshy & Seymour 2014). In 2009, in response to the Bradley Review (2008), the Australian government set a new agenda again focused on equitable participation in higher education, along with associated equity targets (which have since been abandoned), and funding to enable this reform as well as increased participation. Funding was delivered through the Higher Education Participation and Partnerships Program (HEPPP), renamed the Higher Education Participation Program (HEPP) in 2015 (Australian Government Department of Education and Training, 2015). A range of national partnerships, policy initiatives and programs has been used to facilitate improved achievement in schools as well as enable access, participation and achievement in higher education. These actions have included targeted programs through the use of intervention strategies aimed at widening participation in, and improving access to higher education.

Participation in higher education is a significant indicator of development of a society. It is continuously reported that the level of participation of the Muslim community in higher education, especially among male students, is lower than that in other communities in Sri Lanka. A comparison of the involvement of the Muslim community in Sri Lankan university education based on gender shows that male students’ university entrance rate is lower than that of female students. The main purpose of this study was to explore the level of Muslim male students’ participation in higher education. To achieve this purpose, the following objectives were formulated: to identify the status of Muslim male students’ participation in higher education, to examine the perception of Muslim male students on pursuing higher education and to find out the reasons for their low level of participation. The study was conducted as a survey and data were analyzed quantitatively. The sample for the study was selected from the Advanced Level classes of four schools in Matale Education Zone. A total of 56 out 552 students, 28 out of 49 teachers and 29 parents from these four schools were selected as the sample. It was found that willingness to participate in higher education among male students was at a minimal level. About 63% of male students in Advance Level classes wanted to complete their studies and seek job opportunities after their Advanced Level Examination instead of engaging in tertiary education. It was also found that there was a lack of awareness about the opportunities for tertiary education among these students. Therefore, it is suggested that conducting awareness programs on the importance of and avenues available to participate in tertiary education to the students would help to increase Muslim male student participation in higher education.

This study investigates the determinants of adult learners’ participation in higher education in a lifelong learning environment. The author argues that the determinants of adult learners’ participation in higher education include individual demands, state and institutional policy objectives and industry-driven demands rather than demographic factors in the Ghanaian context. Framed along an interpretive paradigm, the study sought to examine the underlying principle for adult learners’ participation in higher education in Ghana and juxtaposing their views with those of policy-makers and managers of higher education institutions. Using an explanatory research design and a mixed method of gathering and analysing data from respondents in two structurally diverse universities, the study concludes that industry-driven factors play important role in the decisions of adult learners to enrol in Higher Education Institutions.

This article provides an overview of global higher education focusing particularly on issues of diversity and gender. The main evidence is drawn from seven unique projects on Widening Participation in Higher Education funded by the British Government’s Higher Education Funding Council for England and administered through the Economic and Social Research Council’s Teaching and Learning Research Programme. The issues are contextualised from a feminist perspective, current global and national policy debates about extending fair access to, and participation within, higher education and the contestation about these debates on global higher education in the twenty‐first century. Whilst there is clear evidence that participation in higher education has increased, especially for women, by contrast with traditional students defined as young, white, male and middle‐class, this participation is neither equal nor fairly distributed. There are systemic and systematic inequalities but, nevertheless, opportunities for critical and feminist pedagogies within the global academy have increased and offer the potential for the future of the twenty‐first‐century global academy.

Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has triggered serious disruption in economic, social and cultural dynamics around the globe. Higher education has also suffered undeniable challenges as a result of the pandemic, with thousands of university students all over the world experiencing displacement, disconnect and disengagement from formal learning. In the Global South, online and distance education programmes tend to be concentrated in urban centres. In Nepal, students from rural areas, low socio-economic and gendered spaces, and those with low proficiencies in English and technological skills are experiencing inequalities in access to and participation in online and distance education. This article outlines how universities' shift to online teaching and learning modes due to the COVID-19 pandemic has reinforced social inequalities in Nepal. For the study presented here, the author collected data through netnographic research methods. These included online interviews with university executives, online focus group discussions (FGDs) with university teachers and students, observation of and participation in online classes and policy conferences and reviews of online documents. The article analyses three overriding mechanisms which are reinforcing social inequalities in higher education: (1) universities’ policy trajectories in shifting teaching/learning from face-to-face to online mode; (2) infrastructural limitations challenging effective implementation of online teaching/learning; and (3) a lack of strong pedagogic support for students from disadvantaged and marginalised spaces, including those with low proficiencies in English and technological skills. The author presents a number of tangible strategies for universities to implement in order to mitigate social inequalities. He recommends the adoption of policies and practices that optimise the inclusive use of online and distance education programmes for best effect, both now and in the post-pandemic era.

Family characteristics in terms of parental education and income are an important influence on individual’s participation in higher education. In India it could be found that categorically those who are out of the higher education system belong to marginalized groups due to their economic class, caste, gender, religion etc. despite massive expansion of higher education. With this background, this article seeks to examine the effect of family income and parental education on an individual’s probability of attaining higher education in India. Besides these two variables, an individual’s likelihood of participation in higher education is influenced by social, religious and demographic characteristics for both rural and urban youth in India. Using multivariate logistic regression to analyze data from National Sample Survey (NSS) 68th Round (unit level records), the article examines how an individual’s participation in higher education is governed by his/her economic and social background and also by gender-related aspects. The results reveal that parental education and family income exert a direct effect on an individual’s propensity to participate in higher education. In terms of social and religious group, this youth belonging to Scheduled Tribe and Scheduled Caste have significantly lower odds of going to higher education compared to general category for the whole of India. Females are less likely to participate in higher education in rural area, while Hindu females in rural area are less probable to participate in higher education. Hence, this article seeks to contribute, from an economic perspective, to the growing number of empirical studies that have investigated the background factors that influence higher education participation.

Purpose This chapter critically analyses the current participation of Indigenous Australian students in higher education and identifies new directions for seeding success and enabling Indigenous students to flourish in higher education contexts. Methodology Statistical reports, government reports and the scholarly literature were analysed to elucidate the nature of participation of Indigenous students in higher education, identify strategies that are succeeding, identify issues that need addressing and explicate potentially potent ways forward. Findings The findings have important implications for theory, research and practice. The results of this study demonstrate, that while increasing numbers of Indigenous Australian students are accessing higher education, they still are not participating at a rate commensurate with their representation in the Australian population. The findings also suggest new ways to enable Indigenous Australians to not only succeed in higher education, but flourish. Research implications The findings imply that more needs to be done to seed success in increasing the numbers of Indigenous Australian students in higher education to be representative of the population and ensuring participation in higher education enables Indigenous students to succeed and flourish. The findings also imply that there is a dire need for further research to identify key drivers of success. Implications The study supports the need for increasing the number of Indigenous Australians participating in higher education and enhancing higher education strategies to enable Indigenous students to succeed and flourish. Social implications Enhancing the participation of Indigenous students in higher education internationally can help to contribute to the well-being of individuals, Indigenous communities and nations. Originality/value This chapter provides an up to date analysis of the nature of Indigenous Australian participation in higher education and identifies potentially potent new ways forward to seed success that have international implications.

The aim of this article is to suggest a better—theoretically and empirically grounded—understanding of the complex character of social justice in higher education. Theoretically, this article conceptualises social justice in higher education as mediating participation in, completion of and outcomes from higher education. It introduces the concept of composite capability for achieving higher education that captures capabilities to participate in, complete and gain outcomes from higher education. This study also develops a methodology for building an empirically based classification of countries regarding social justice in participation in higher education, taking into account the assessed inequality in students’ pathways to higher education as well as inequality in their social conditions, associated with students’ social origin. In so doing, it develops three indices: the index of inequalities in students’ pathways, the index of inequalities in students’ social conditions and the index of participation in higher education. Using microdata from the EUROSTUDENT VII survey (2019–2021) for 12 European countries, it applies the developed methodology to classify countries, for which data are available, by the degree of fairness in participation in higher education. This study’s results demonstrate the social embeddedness of social justice in higher education in different economic and political contexts.

Rwanda is widely seen as one of the most progressive countries in the world with regard to promoting gender equality and women’s empowerment. In education, for example, girls’ access to primary and secondary education is among the highest in Africa. However, female students’ participation remains limited in public universities and they constitute only around a third of the student population at the University of Rwanda. This article explores the factors that influence female students’ participation in public higher education in the country. It draws from a study commissioned by the University of Rwanda on the causes of low female enrolment at the institution that was conducted between 2016 and 2017. The study employed a mixed methods approach, and data was gathered by means of questionnaires, in-depth interviews, and focus group discussions. The results revealed interlinked structural (such as university policies) and socio-cultural factors that contribute to the exclusion of female students from Rwanda’s top university. Given the complexities involved, this calls for a multi-pronged approach to address the issue of female representation at the University.
 Key words: Gender disparities, female students, higher education, Rwanda