Level Of Engagement Research Articles

Effects of Study-Integrated Well-Being Course Intervention for Different Burnout and Engagement Profiles of University Students

As the increase in university students’ mental health problems poses significant challenges to education, new research-based ways to support students’ well-being in higher education are urgently needed. Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) has been shown to be effective in enhancing different aspects of well-being in a variety of contexts. Although study burnout has been shown to have detrimental impacts on students’ well-being and studying, not much is known about the person-oriented features of burnout risk in relation to ACT-based intervention outcomes. The aim of this study was to compare the effects of an online ACT-based course on different aspects of university students’ well-being and study ability in latent groups of students that had different levels of study burnout and engagement at the beginning of the intervention. The results of latent profile analysis (LPA) showed that students (N=352) represented four profiles at the beginning of the course: indifferent (37.8%), engaged (29%), engaged-inefficacious (13.6%), and burned-out (19.6%). The results of mixed ANOVA with repeated measures showed that psychological flexibility, well-being, study engagement and organised studying increased, and study burnout risk decreased in the whole sample of course-participating students. The changes in students’ exhaustion, well-being, psychological flexibility, and organised studying did not differ between the four burnout and engagement profiles. The profiles differed in the changes of cynicism, inadequacy and engagement. The results of this study provide new knowledge of the person-oriented features of study burnout and indicate that ACT-based course interventions can be effective in enhancing different profiles representing university students’ well-being.

A place to call our home: innovative rural physical therapy training in Canada

BackgroundTo promote rural practice and increase enrollment in the entry-level Master of Science Physical Therapy program at the University of Alberta, the Department of Physical Therapy developed a rural physical therapy satellite campus located in a farming region in central Alberta. A distributed learning format was used to connect the rural cohort to the main urban campus. Real time video conferencing was used to connect the two campuses for all lectures, seminars and clinical skills classes. This evaluation aimed to describe a unique rural training program for physical therapy students and its effectiveness in promoting work in rural communities after graduation.MethodsPhysical Therapy students in the first three years (2012–2015) of commencing the rural satellite program (n = 280) were surveyed, and six focus groups were held to capture student experiences, satisfaction and engagement. Data were collected on employment locations of the 2012–2019 graduates’ first physical therapy position and current employment.ResultsSurvey results suggested comparable levels of satisfaction and engagement for all physical therapy students regardless of campus. Focus group data revealed that students quickly accepted the distributed learning technological interface, enjoyed their local campuses, and felt connected to instructors and student colleagues. Compared to the overall physical therapy workforce, a higher percentage of physical therapists graduating from the rural campus reported working in rural centers for both their first and current jobs.ConclusionRegardless of campus, students were satisfied and equally engaged in the physical therapy program. Students who completed the physical therapy program in a rural setting tended to work rurally after graduation. A distributed learning model may be useful for other healthcare training programs to promote engagement in rural health.

Exploring workplace well-being strategies in Iranian public organizations: a mixed methods study

PurposeTo ensure effective national governance, it is essential to enhance employees' well-being in the workplace. Employees with good mental and physical health are more likely to demonstrate a high level of commitment and engagement in advancing public policy objectives, which serve as instruments of public will. A comprehensive understanding of the various effective strategies to improve workplace well-being is indispensable to formulating human resource management policies within the public sector. Therefore, this study aims to uncover and prioritize the key strategies, programs and actions that contribute to enhancing the workplace well-being of public employees in Iran, drawing from their perspectives and experiences.Design/methodology/approachWe conducted a mixed-method study incorporating both qualitative and quantitative phases to recognize and measure these strategies. In the first phase, a qualitative content analysis was carried out based on the perspectives of Iranian public sector employees. In the subsequent phase, a questionnaire derived from the qualitative findings was randomly distributed to 374 employees from 14 public organizations. FindingsWorkplace well-being strategies can be summarized according to the level of their importance as follows: employees' well-being through “inter-personal relationship,” “systems,” “technologies,” “structure,” “culture” and “environment” within the organization. These strategies as six themes divided into 13 categories and 60 subcategories of programs and actions to promote employee well-being in the work setting.Originality/valueThe importance of considering employees' perspectives on workplace well-being is highlighted as a crucial aspect, rather than depending exclusively on managerial viewpoints for the implementation of well-being initiatives. Adopting an integrated and holistic approach to workplace well-being through strategies, programs and actions is another significant contribution of this study.

The role of school management in ICT implementation on student achievement and teacher attitudes in the Arab sector in Israel

This study aims at evaluating the effectiveness of school management in the integration of ICTs within the schools with emphasis on students’ performance and teachers’ perception. The data were obtained from questionnaires and interviews conducted on 11 high schools in the Arab and Bedouin localities of Israel. This study shows that strategic management, structural design, and leadership enhance students’ performance especially in Mathematics and English. The schools that have well defined policies on ICT and good leadership achieved high levels of student engagement and better academic performance. However, the study reveals that some inequality prevails in the system; the northern schools are in a better condition as compared to the Bedouin schools in the south where inadequate resources and cultural barriers are also seen. Leadership was found to be the most important variable affecting the teachers’ perception on ICT use in teaching and learning process; particularly the hybrid leadership practices positively affected the teachers’ involvement and student achievement. The findings imply that more leadership and specific strategies are required to support effective integration of ICTs in the underprivileged areas

Under Pressure: Employee Work Stress, Supervisory Mentoring Support, and Employee Career Success

ABSTRACTDespite consistent findings that stressed employees benefit from social support, these employees do not always have access to such support. We propose and test a conceptual model suggesting employee work stress will negatively affect supervisory career and psychosocial mentoring support. Drawing from social exchange theory, we predict this will indirectly affect employee career success (lower career satisfaction and promotability ratings, fewer promotions), and that the relationship between employee work stress and lower supervisory mentoring support can be explained by lower levels of work engagement experienced by, and attributed to, stressed employees. We tested our model across three studies. In Study 1, we collected four waves of multisource field data (254 employees, 127 managers, and company records) at a large postal organization in the United Kingdom (UK). Employee work stress was negatively related to supervisor career and psychosocial mentoring support, and indirectly affected career satisfaction and manager promotability ratings of employees via supervisor career mentoring support. Cross‐lagged panel analyses in a supplemental study additionally supported the proposed directionality of relationships. Study 2 included data across three waves from employees in Hong Kong (n = 137) and showed that employee work stress had indirect effects on supervisor career and psychosocial mentoring via lower employee engagement. In Study 3, using data from supervisors in the UK (n = 240) we showed that supervisor perceived employee stress had indirect effects on their provision of supervisor career and psychosocial mentoring support via lower perceived employee engagement.

Included and engaged: thesignificance of perceived inclusion among healthcare workers.

This study investigates the impact of perceived inclusion among healthcare employees on intrinsic motivation and its subsequent effects on work engagement and stress levels. Drawing from multiple theoretical frameworks, the study hypothesizes the following: (a) perceived inclusion positively influences employees' intrinsic motivation, and (b) perceived inclusion and intrinsic motivation serve as resources that enhance employee well-being by promoting work engagement and reducing stress. Data were collected from 407 healthcare workers across the European Union. The research objectives were achieved through statistical analysis of the gathered responses. The results indicate a positive relationship between perceived inclusion and intrinsic motivation. Importantly, both perceived inclusion and intrinsic motivation emerged as significant predictors of work engagement. Additionally, perceived inclusion was found to have a negative association with stress levels, underscoring its importance in healthcare management. The study is subject to certain limitations, including the cross-sectional design and reliance on self-reported data, which may affect the generalizability of the findings. The findings highlight the importance of fostering perceived inclusion and intrinsic motivation among healthcare employees to enhance work engagement and reduce stress, thus offering valuable insights for healthcare management practices. This study contributes to the existing literature by examining the complex interplay between perceived inclusion, intrinsic motivation, work engagement and stress within the healthcare sector. It also identifies avenues for future research in this area.

Discursive Practices during an Electoral Cycle: Public Opinion and Political Disillusionment on Twitter

Electoral cycles are highly charged, politically intense moments that influence public discourse. Political elites, citizens, and the traditional news media seek to generate opinions and interactions on social networks. This research is motivated by the following questions: What are the communicative and deliberative practices used in these spaces? Is it possible to identify the characteristics that –through deliberative conversations– potentially foster or undermine democratic debate, particularly when using populist and polarizing discourse? Using a mixed methods approach, we apply a social network analysis tool to track conversations and identify the volume of political discourse (N=346,000). Using selective and staged filtering, we identified posts from nine Peruvian Twitter accounts during the September 2022 electoral campaign in Lima: three candidates, three media outlets, and three accounts with high levels of engagement. Our data comprised the comments from these nine accounts and was extracted using an Application Programming Interface (API). Subsequently, we carried out ethnographic content analysis on publications with more than 30 comments. In this phase, we analyzed Twitter comments using a codebook to identify deliberative practices and user responses. Our findings underscore the significant role of principal media outlets in shaping political conversation on Twitter. We also discovered that attempts to interact and deliberate were often overshadowed by heated comments attempting to impose opinions on others. Most importantly, our research reveals a widespread disillusionment with politics, political institutions, and even the political preferences of fellow citizens in Peru, highlighting a key challenge for democratic discourse on social media.

Multi-head Network based Students Behaviour Prediction with Feedback Generation for Enhancing Classroom Engagement and Teaching Effectiveness

Emotions are pivotal in the learning process, highlighting the importance of identifying students' emotional states within educational settings. While neural network models, particularly those rooted in deep learning, have demonstrated remarkable accuracy in detecting primary emotions like happiness, sadness, fear, disgust, and anger from facial expressions in videos, these emotions occur infrequently in learning environments. Conversely, cognitive emotions such as engagement, confusion, frustration, and boredom are significantly more prevalent, transpiring five times more frequently than basic emotions. However, unlike basic emotions which are relatively distinct, cognitive emotions present a subtler distinction, necessitating the utilization of more sophisticated models for accurate recognition. The proposed work presents an efficient Facial Expression Recognition (FER) model for monitoring the student engagement in a learning environment by considering their facial expressions like boredom, frustration, confusion and engagement. The proposed methodology includes certain pre-processing steps followed by facial expression recognition founded on Efficient-Net B3 CNN in which the learning parameters are optimized using Circle-Inspired Optimization Algorithm (CIOA). Finally, the post processing stage estimates the frame-wise group engagement level (GEL) of students based on certain expression labels. Based on the acquired results, it is noted that the suggested Efficient-Net B3 CNN-CIOA based FER model provides promising results in terms of accuracy by 99.5%, precision by 99.2%, recall by 99.5% and f1-score by 99.6%, when compared with some state-of-art facial expression recognition approaches. Also, the suggested approach computational complexity is very much less than the compared existing approaches.

Tiers of Engagement: Achieved Learning From Business Simulations Reflected in Economics Students’ Experiences

This article investigates the impact of a business simulator in an online economics course, focusing on the relationship between student engagement and reflections on learning. Utilizing a mixed-methods approach, our study analyzes responses from 328 students who used the "Hubro Business Simulator" in a flexible online bachelor's program in economics and administration. Students provided reflections on the simulator as a learning activity, application of theoretical concepts and practical relevance. Qualitative analysis of 1640 responses further explored the depth of students' reflections, categorized into different tiers of engagement based on their responses. This analysis builds on Self-Regulated Learning (SRL) and motivational theory. The study sought to determine whether students reporting higher levels of engagement exhibited deeper metacognitive reflections compared to their less engaged peers. Findings support a link between the level of engagement and the depth of reflection. Students with higher engagement levels were more likely to reflect on specific ways in which the simulator had supported their learning and understanding of theoretical concepts. This paper discusses the limitations and implications of these findings for enhancing game-based learning interventions, emphasizing the need to foster higher engagement levels to improve educational outcomes in online learning environments. The study contributes to the literature on game-based learning by providing a large empirical study on how business simulators can foster higher-order thinking and deeper learning reflections among economics students. It also highlights the role of engagement in using business simulators as learning tools, offering insights that could improve the learning design and implementation in similar online and flexible learning program contexts.

Mastering the Game: How Level Structure and Game Elements Shape Competency Acquisition

Understanding the dynamics of level structure and game elements in digital educational games is paramount to fostering competency acquisition. How levels are organized within a game, along with the use of various game elements, has a significant impact on the learning outcomes and skill development of individuals. Through the strategic design and implementation of these components, educational games can effectively engage learners and facilitate the acquisition of competencies in multiple domains. In addition to structure, the integration of gamification elements can have a profound impact on learner engagement and sustainable skill acquisition. Therefore, a key element for the success of a serious game is to create appropriate personalization and a balanced relationship between learning and gaming experience. As a result, a mini-game called "Basketball Physics Challenge" has been designed to be integrated into an intelligent, adaptive physical learning game centered around force and motion as part of an ongoing research project. By playing the game "Basketball Physics Challenge", players will apply their understanding of basic physics principles in a realistic, interactive, and virtual setting. An experimental design was used to test the mini-game, in which a gamified and a non-gamified version were used and compared. 20 participants completed the experiment, and their learning progress was meticulously tracked. Using competency-based knowledge space theory, the mini-game facilitated in-game competency assessment, enabled monitoring of learning progress, tailored learning experiences, and provided individualized formative feedback. The pilot was used to develop and implement a competency model that will be the subject of future in-depth studies. The results indicated that the gamified version of the game led to slightly higher engagement and performance levels compared to the non-gamified version, although the difference in learning outcomes between the two versions was not statistically significant. The analysis also showed that an optimal number of levels and a balanced integration of game elements are crucial for maintaining engagement without causing cognitive overload. Furthermore, the order in which the game versions were presented affected player performance, with initial exposure to gamification leading to better outcomes. These findings provide valuable information for the design of educational games and their effectiveness in skill acquisition. This research supports the development of powerful educational technologies that enhance learning through a coherent level structure and meaningful use of game elements that effectively promote learner engagement.

Advanced Gamification and Mega-games to Enhance Lifelong Learning in Higher Education

This study investigates the effects of advanced gamification and Mega-games on student engagement and motivation within a rigorous semester-long course demanding 48 hours of weekly commitment. Conducted from February to June 2022, the research targeted sixth-semester students in Video Game Studies at Tec de Monterrey, with virtual classes for groups in Guadalajara and Querétaro. Using a mixed-method approach, the study employed participatory observation on the OASIS Discord server, incorporating gamification elements. Data collection also involved documentary research, online questionnaires, semi-structured group interviews, and faculty documentation reviews. Findings indicate that the integration of gamification elements effectively heightened student involvement and motivation, with positive feedback on instructor support and course content. However, challenges such as burnout, economic disparities, and varying engagement levels were identified. The study underscores the potential of gamification to enhance educational experiences while highlighting the need for careful management of challenges to prevent negative impacts on student well-being. Future research should focus on the psychological effects of continuous gamification and Mega-games, seeking to balance engagement with mental health considerations. Understanding these dynamics will be crucial for optimizing educational strategies and ensuring their sustainable application in diverse academic settings.

Boosting Career Success: Innovative Behavioral Measures for Guiding Saudi Secondary School Graduates

This study developed and validated a comprehensive behavioral measure for career guidance among secondary school graduates in Saudi Arabia, aiming to integrate soft skills, personality traits, attitudes, and cognitive factors to fill gaps in existing career guidance frameworks. Using a cross-sectional design, data were collected from 814 secondary school students (M_age = 16.47) from diverse urban (n = 407) and rural (n = 407) settings in Saudi Arabia. Multigroup latent profile analyses (LPA) were employed to identify distinct career decision-making profiles among students. The study explored whether urban and rural students exhibited different patterns of engagement in career guidance behaviors. Three distinct engagement profiles were identified: high, moderate, and low engagement, consistent across both settings. High engagement profiles were characterized by high self-efficacy, proactive career exploration, and low anxiety, linked to better career decision outcomes and greater satisfaction with career guidance. Variance analysis using the Games-Howell post hoc test was conducted to compare the profiles based on key behavioral measures such as self-efficacy, career exploration behavior, and anxiety. To further understand the contextual factors influencing these profiles, a multinomial regression analysis examined the impact of teacher support and resilience on career guidance engagement levels. Results indicated that higher levels of teacher support and resilience significantly predicted membership in high engagement profiles. These findings highlight the importance of incorporating behavioral components into career guidance programs, particularly those tailored to address the specific needs of urban and rural students in Saudi Arabia, ultimately supporting the broader educational and workforce development goals of Vision 2030.

Game-based Learning Assessment: Quantifying Educational Efficacy of the EDURINO App

Assessing the potential and efficacy of educational apps is crucial for parents, educators and EdTech stakeholders. This paper presents evidence from two quantitative studies on EDURINO, a game-based learning app targeting children aged 4-8. It features seven subject areas and is designed to be used with an ergonomic pen that facilitates fine motor skill development and pen-holding gesture. In Study 1, parents (N = 45) used a validated index (Kolak et al., 2021) to evaluate the app’s educational potential across 10 features. In study 2, a larger cohort of parents (N = 235) reported on their children’s school readiness and fine motor skills. Specifically, we adapted the Brief Early Skills and Support Index (BESSI) to measure changes in behaviours and cognition. We also included items from the Child Development Inventory and Ages and Stages Questionnaire to assess fine motor skills. Study 1 results indicated high ratings for EDURINO’s meaningful learning and social interactions, but lower for adaptive learning. Parents’ evaluation of EDURINO did not differ by child gender, age, or subject area, but varied with parental education level (the higher the educational attainment, the lower the ratings). Study 2 found that there were statistically significant improvements in children’s behavioural and cognitive development as well as fine motor skills after playing EDURINO. Changes in those areas were independent of children’s age, gender, and subject area. Moreover, children’s improvements were positively correlated with the length of playing. However parental engagement level influenced and was negatively associated with children’s improvements in EDURINO targeted area. Overall, these studies provide evidence on EDURINO’s efficacy while highlighting the necessity for improvement with personalised and adaptive learning. The importance of transparency and collaboration between academia and industry, along with the influence of demographic factors are discussed.

DEPRESSION IN PERSONS WITH SPIRITIST ENGAGEMENT

Objective: To analyze the factors associated with depression, before and after the COVID-19 pandemic, among people with some Level of Spiritist Engagement (LSE). Method: This is a cross-sectional study that investigated the prevalence of depression in people with LSE, before and during COVID-19. Results: Digital data on sociodemographic profile, mental state, psychological care, and LSE, in addition to the Depression Anxiety Stress Scales (DASS), were collected from 848 people with LSE using the snowball sampling technique. Significant results (p<0.05) showed a high prevalence of severe depression in unemployed individuals (16.2%), those in marital crisis (23.2%), alcohol users and/or smokers (28.6%), those with self-inflicted violence (44.1%); those greatly/totally affected by the "lockdown" (21.3%) and those who perceived their emotional health as poor/very poor (53.6%). Before and during COVID-19, psychiatric follow-up was highly prevalent, especially in mild depression (>60%); and people with some LSE were mainly associated with mild depression (>75%). The pandemic did not significantly change the values associated with severe depression, with a low prevalence of high/very high LSE (2.7% before, 5.0% during COVID-19) compared to low LSE (8.2% before, 9.5% during COVID-19) and very low LSE (10.7% before, 9.9% during COVID-19). Conclusion: Regardless of the pandemic, Spiritism was attractive to people with depression and high/very high LSE was less associated with severe depression. Keywords: Depression. Spiritism. Spirituality. COVID-19.

‘Pooling and Sharing’ and ‘Permanent Structured Cooperation’ as the Current EU’s Defense and Security Integration Modes

ABSTRACT When an urgent response in international relations is needed, the EU institutions and Member States’ governments face a deficiency of effective and practical mechanisms in security cooperation. Developing autonomous programs and concepts that address this dilemma, preventing duplication of endeavors and investments, and maximizing cost-effectiveness by broadening military-political consultations on all issues of common concern is challenging. This article analyses the path and logic of EU security integration in the recent decade. In this context, the origins and goals of the pooling and sharing concept are essential to analyze the continuity of security integration, where the Council’s introduction of Permanent Structured Cooperation in defense and security is an important step forward. Therefore, this article will investigate whether and how P&S and PESCO have been related and complemented, even though both differ in the prism of aims, logic, decision-making processes, and funding. Due to budgetary throwbacks in recent decades and the war in Ukraine intensified after February 2022, EU Member States’ governments might evaluate their approach to the level of engagement in common security programs.

Revolutionizing Education: Harnessing AI for Personalized Learning Pathways and Student Success

The integration of Artificial Intelligence (AI) into education is rapidly transforming traditional learning environments by enabling personalized learning experiences. This paper explores the role of AI in developing adaptive learning systems that tailor educational content and pathways to individual students' needs. By leveraging machine learning algorithms and learning analytics, AI-driven platforms dynamically adjust instructional materials based on students’ performance, cognitive abilities, and engagement levels. The study examines the potential of AI to enhance student outcomes by creating more interactive and engaging educational experiences, thus fostering better retention and comprehension. Key challenges, such as data privacy, algorithmic bias, and equitable access, are also addressed to ensure the effective deployment of AI in diverse learning environments. Through case studies and real-world examples, this research highlights how AI is reshaping education by making it more flexible, student-centered, and accessible.

Bias of responses to white and black dance companies and their dancers on Instagram

ABSTRACT In the historically elitist and predominantly White world of ballet, dance companies have attempted to increase diversity, with limited success. One contributing factor may involve differing levels of engagement with White and Black Dance Companies in social media environments. This study explores ‘macro conversations’ on Instagram across White vs. Black Dance Companies. A total of 445 ‘comments’ and 48,491 ‘likes’ across 28 dance-related Instagram posts were analyzed to compare rates of engagement and the types of comments (e.g. female stereotypes, physical attributes). Results indicated that White Dance Companies received significantly more engagement (defined as ‘likes’ and ‘comments’; M = 3,229) compared to Black Dance Companies (M = 274). Further, Males, compared to Females, used more female stereotypes on White Dance Company posts, whereas Females used more female stereotypes on Black Dance Company posts compared to Males. Despite efforts to enhance diversity, results show White and Black Dance Companies receive different levels and types of engagement on social media.

Responding to fluctuations in public and community trust and health seeking behaviour during the COVID-19 pandemic: a qualitative study of national decision-makers’ perspectives in Guinea and Sierra Leone

BackgroundThe level of trust in health systems is often in flux during public health emergencies and presents challenges in providing adequate health services and preventing the spread of disease. Experiences during previous epidemics has shown that lack of trust can impact the continuity of essential health services and response efforts. Guinea and Sierra Leone were greatly challenged by a lack of trust in the system during the Ebola epidemic. We thus sought to investigate what was perceived to influence public and community trust in the health system during the COVID-19 pandemic, and what strategies were employed by national level stakeholders in order to maintain or restore trust in the health system in Guinea and Sierra Leone.MethodsThis qualitative study was conducted through a document review and key informant interviews with actors involved in COVID-19 and/or in malaria control efforts in Guinea and Sierra Leone. Key informants were selected based on their role and level of engagement in the national level response. Thirty Six semi-structured interviews (16 in Guinea, 20 in Sierra Leone) were recorded, transcribed, and analyzed using an inductive and deductive framework approach to thematic analysis.ResultsKey informants described three overarching themes related to changes in trust and health seeking behavior due to COVID-19: (1) reignited fear and uncertainty among the population, (2) adaptations to sensitization and community engagement efforts, and (3) building on the legacy of Ebola as a continuous process. Communication, community engagement, and on-going support to health workers were reiterated as crucial factors for maintaining trust in the health system.ConclusionLessons from the Ebola epidemic enabled response actors to consider maintaining and rebuilding trust as a core aim of the pandemic response which helped to ensure continuity of care and mitigate secondary impacts of the pandemic. Monitoring and maintaining trust in health systems is a key consideration for health systems resilience during public health emergencies.

Influence of the number and sound level of noise events and task engagement on perceived loudness and annoyance

It is not clear how the distribution of noise sound-energy over time influences people. We compared perceived loudness, annoyance and ability to perform a cognitive task in people exposed to recordings of aircraft noise, presented either as a single 15-second overflight at 80 dB LeqA15seconds or four 15-second overflights at 60 dB LeqA15seconds. Levels were chosen on the basis that an increase of 10 dB doubles the perceived loudness, thus four stimuli at 60 dB might be expected to seem as loud as a single stimulus at 80 dB. Participants performed an engaging mental arithmetic task during half the noise presentations and rated their perception of loudness and annoyance to every presentation. Overall, the single 80-dB-flight stimulus was perceived as louder and more annoying than the four 60-dB flights. While doing the task, the four 60-dB flights were perceived as louder and more annoying than without the task, whereas the single 80-dB stimulus was less loud and no more annoying than without the task. Noise did not influence task performance. Future research may explore systematically the relationship between the number and sound level of overflights and the reactions they induce.

Meningkatkan Kemampuan Bernalar Kristis Melalui PBL Berbantuan Audio Visual pada Peserta Didik Kelas VIII SMP Santo Yusup Bandung

This research project aims to ascertain the efficacy of the PBL model in enhancing critical reasoning abilities among students at SMP Santo Yusup Bandung. The research is based on the identification of issues pertaining to student engagement, particularly the tendency of students to exhibit minimal attention and participation during classroom discussions. Another issue pertains to cognitive processes, whereby students are prone to being unduly influenced by information that they initially encounter, without engaging in critical reasoning to seek further evidence. Furthermore, learners are inadequately trained in the analysis of information. This research employs a classroom action research design, comprising four phases: planning, implementation, observation, and reflection. The research was conducted in two cycles at Santo Yusup Junior High School in Bandung. The participants were students in class VIIIA, and the material covered was Jesus Proclaimed the Kingdom of God Through Parables and Miracles. The research was conducted in September 2024. The data collection techniques employed included observation, field notes, and the documentation of students' abilities to reason critically. The data analysis employed descriptive qualitative techniques. The findings of the initial cycle of research indicated an enhancement in the capacity to reason critically and a heightened level of student engagement. However, these outcomes did not yet align with the anticipated objectives. In Cycle II, there was a notable enhancement in both critical reasoning and affective learning. The research results demonstrate a 40.12% increase in critical reasoning and learner involvement in Catholic Religious Education. It is hoped that the PBL approach will foster a more active and collaborative learning atmosphere, in alignment with the objectives of the Merdeka Curriculum and the values espoused in the Pancasila Learner Profile. It is anticipated that this research will contribute to the provision of holistic and meaningful education for learners.