The relationship between perceived learning, academic performance and academic engagement in virtual education for university students

Abstract

This study aimed to determine whether the three dimensions of academic engagement (cognitive, emotional  and behavioral) were positively associated with perceived learning and academic performance. The participants were 301 university students from Lima. Structural equation models were used to test the proposed theoretical relationship between the variables. The results indicated that the model showed satisfactory fit indices (CFI = 0.956, TLI = 0.949, RMSEA = 0.043, SRMR = 0.062). Perceived learning was found to be predicted by cognitive engagement (β = 0.447, p < 0.01) and emotional engagement (β = 0.230, p < 0.05). However, there was no statistically significant relationship between behavioral engagement and perceived learning (β = 0.035, p = 0.840). On the other hand, academic performance was predicted by  behavioral engagement (β = 0.393, p < 0.05) but not by cognitive (β = -0.164, p = 0.301) or emotional (β = 0.001, p = 0.991) engagement. The study highlights the importance of fostering academic engagement in university students to enhance both their academic performance and perceived learning.