Measuring student engagement in the undergraduate general chemistry laboratory

Abstract

In this study a survey was developed to investigate students’ engagement during general chemistry laboratory sessions. Aspects of engagement surveyed included cognitive, behavioral, and emotional engagement, and the survey items were focused on activities during the pre-laboratory introduction, laboratory procedures, and data collection. Exploratory factor analysis of the results was conducted to determine the various underlying factors in the survey, and the scores of the general chemistry laboratory students along these underlying factors were compared. The findings supported the various dimensions of engagement reported in the literature.