ISSN: 2222-6990
Open access
Open Distance Learning (ODL) is understood as an important method to allow the lectures, lesson learnings, and information to flow freely and ideas to be the driving force of efficiency boundaryless anywhere anytime. This paper proposes a short analysis and evaluation of online engagement in ODL. The objective of the research contains three main parts of the online learning influence. The objectives cover learner-to-learner engagement, learner-to-instructor engagement, and learner-to-content engagement. Generally, the research is about exploring connectivism through online engagement based on the three major objective sections within an ODL sphere. The paper presents the quantitative survey based on male and female respondents range from high school to the highest level of education. The survey instruments include four major sections which are demographic profile, learner-to-learner interaction, learner-to-instructor interaction, and learner-to-content interaction with a total of 116 respondents. Findings, in general, show the students’ interactions, preferences, behaviors, attitudes, mindsets, opinions, participations, supports, and motivations as the main factors in connectivism through online engagement. The research study can be used to reflect the effectiveness of online engagement and set as a standard framework that can be applied across universities, higher institutions, and even schools. The academicians, lecturers, researchers, and teachers can refer to this study research as a means of evaluating, improving, and enhancing their existing practices, their capabilities, and expertise to engage students through online engagement.
Alhammadi, S. (2021). The Effect of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Learning Quality and Practices in Higher Education — Using Deep and Surface Approaches. Education Sciences, 11(9). https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci11090462
Banna, J., Lin, M. F. G., Stewart, M., & Fialkowski, M. K. (2015). Interaction matters: Strategies to promote engaged learning in an online introductory nutrition course. Journal of Online Learning and Teaching/MERLOT, 11(2), 249–261. Retrieved from
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4948751/
Britt, M. (2015). How To Better Engage Online Students With Online Strategies. College Student Journal, 49(3), 399–404. Retrieved from
https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A429736073/AONE?u=anon~3a4ab13a&sid=googleScholar&xid=820c2349
Coman, C., ?îru, L. G., Mese?an-Schmitz, L., Stanciu, C., & Bularca, M. C. (2020). Online teaching and learning in higher education during the coronavirus pandemic: Students’ perspective. Sustainability (Switzerland), 12(24), 1–22.
https://doi.org/10.3390/su122410367
Fabry, D. L. (2009). Designing Online and on-Ground Courses To Ensure Comparability and Consistency in Meeting Learning Outcomes. Quarterly Review of Distance Education, 10(3), 253–261. Retrieved from
https://www.anitacrawley.net/Resources/Articles/Fabry2009
Kauffman, H. (2015). A review of predictive factors of student success in and satisfaction with online learning. Research in Learning Technology.
https://doi.org/10.3402/rlt.v23.26507
Moore, M. (1993). Three types of interaction. In K. Harry, M. John & D. Keegan (Eds.), Distance Education: New Perspective (pp. 19–24). Routledge.
Muir, T., Douglas, T., & Trimble, A. (2020). Facilitation strategies for enhancing the learning and engagement of online students. Journal of University Teaching and Learning Practice, 17(3), 8–17. https://doi.org/10.53761/1.17.3.8
Pokhrel, S., & Chhetri, R. (2021). A Literature Review on Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic on Teaching and Learning. Higher Education for the Future, 8(1), 133–141. https://doi.org/10.1177/2347631120983481
Rogerson-Revell, P. (2015). Constructively aligning technologies with learning and assessment in a distance education master’s programme. Distance Education, 36(1), 129–147. https://doi.org/10.1080/01587919.2015.1019972
Abou-Khalil, V., Helou, S., Khalifé, E., Chen, M. A., Majumdar, R., Ogata, H. (2021), Emergency Online Learning in Low-Resource Settings: Effective Student Engagement Strategies. Educ. Sci., 11, 24. https://doi.org/10.3390/
Aydin, B. (2021). Determining the effect of student-content interaction, instructor-student interaction and student-student interaction on online education satisfaction level. In W. B. James, C. C., & M. Cavusoglu (Eds.), Advances in Global Education and Research (Vol. 4, pp. 1–9). USF M3 Publishing. https://www.doi.org/10.5038/9781955833042
Gleason, B. (2021). Expanding interaction in online courses: integrating critical humanizing pedagogy for learner success. Education Tech Research Dev. 69:51–54
https://doi.org/10.1007/s11423-020-09888-w
Muzammil, M., Sutawijaya, A., & Harsasi, M. (2020). Investigating Student Satisfaction In Online Learning: The Role Of Student Interaction And Engagement In Distance Learning University. Turkish Online Journal Of Distance Education, 21(Special Issue- IODL), 88-96.
https://doi.org/10.17718/tojde.770928
Martin, F., & Bolliger, D.U. (2018). Engagement matters: Student perceptions on the importance of engagement strategies in the online learning environment. Online Learning 22(1), 205- 222. doi:10.24059/olj.v22i1.1092
Siemen, G. (2005) Connectivism: A Learning Theory for the Digital Age. International Journal of Instructional Technology and Distance Learning, Vol 2(1), Retrieved from hppt://www.itdl.org/
Dhawan, S. (2020). Online Learning: A Panacea in the Time of COVID-19 Crisis. Journal of Educational Technology Systems, 49(1), 5–22.
https://doi.org/10.1177/0047239520934018
Rothman, T., Romeo, L., Brennan, M., & Mitchell, D. (2011). Criteria for Assessing Student Satisfaction with Online Courses. International Journal for E-Learning Security, 1(1), 27–32. https://doi.org/10.20533/ijels.2046.4568.2011.0004
Watson, J., Powell, A., Staley, P., Patrick, S., Horn, M., Fetzer, L., Hibbard, L., Oglesby, J., Verma, S., Education, M., C, T. O. C.-I. N. B., Kuehn, B. L., Ed, D., Archibald, D., Barbour, M. K., Leary, H., Wilson, E. V., & Ostashewski, N. (2020). Teacher education and K-12 online learning. INACOL, The International Association for K–12 Online Learning, July, 1–20. Retrieved from http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED560788.pdf
Yang, D., Lavonen, J. M., & Niemi, H. (2018). Online learning engagement: Critical factors and research evidence from literature. Themes in ELearning, 11(1), 1–18. Retrieved from http://earthlab.uoi.gr/tel
Lee, J., Song, H.-D. & Hong, A. J. (2019). Exploring Factors, and Indicators for Measuring Students’ Sustainable Engagement in e-Learning. Sustainability, 11, 985. Retrieved from https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/11/4/985.
Amin, M. H. I., Che Hassan, N., & Ab. Jalil., H. (2017). Predictors of Academic Achievement in Online Peer Learning among Undergraduate Students in a Malaysian Public University. International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences. Vol. 7, Special Issue - 4th International Conference on Educational Research and Practice, 564-587. Retrieved from http://doi.org/ 10.6007/IJARBSS/v7-i14/3689
Adedoyin, O. B., & Soykan, E. (2020). Covid-19 Pandemic and Online learning: The Challenges and Opportunities. Interactive Learning Environments, 0(0), 1–13. Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.1080/10494820.2020.1813180
Adnan, M. A. (2020). Online learning amid the COVID-19 pandemic: Students’ Perspectives. Journal of Pedagogical Sociology and Psychology, 2(1). Retrieved from
http://doi.org/10.33902/JPSP. 2020261309
Chung, E., Subramaniam, G., & Dass, L. C. (2020). Online Learning Readiness Among University Students in Malaysia Amidst Covid-19. Asian Journal of University Education, 16(2), 45–58. Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.24191/AJUE.V16I2.10294
Dhawan, S. (2020). Online Learning: A Panacea in the Time of COVID-19 Crisis. Journal of Educational Technology Systems, 49(1), 5–22. Retrieved from
https://doi.org/10.1177/0047239520934018
Garg, A. (2020). Online Education: A Learner’s Perspective During COVID-19. Asia-Pacific Journal of Management Research and Innovation, 16(4), 279–286. Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.1177/2319510x211013594
Kamal, A. A., Shaipullah, N. M., Truna, L., Sabri, M., & Junaini, S. N. (2020). Transitioning to online learning during COVID-19 Pandemic: Case study of a Pre-University Centre in Malaysia. International Journal of Advanced Computer Science and Applications, 11(6), 217–223. Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.14569/IJACSA.2020.0110628
Mathew, V. N., & Chung, E. (2020). University Students’ Perspectives on Open and Distance Learning (ODL) Implementation Amidst COVID-19. Asian Journal of University Education, 16(4), 152–160. Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.24191/ajue.v16i4.11964
Rahayu, R. P., & Wirza, Y. (2020). Teachers’ Perception of Online Learning during Pandemic Covid-19. Jurnal Penelitian Pendidikan, 20(3), 392–406. Retrieved from
https://doi.org/10.17509/jpp.v20i3.29226
Redmond, P., Abawi, L. A., Brown, A., Henderson, R., & Heffernan, A. (2018). An online engagement framework for higher education. Online Learning Journal, 22(1), 183–204. https://doi.org/10.24059/olj.v22i1.1175
Abdullah, H. (2018). An integrated best practices framework for online teaching, research and community engagement within an Open Distance Learning (ODL) context. Proceedings - 5th IEEE International Conference on MOOCs, Innovation and Technology in Education, MITE 2017, 57–62. https://doi.org/10.1109/MITE.2017.00016
In-Text Citation: (Sidik et al., 2021)
To Cite this Article: Sidik, N., Zaiton, S. N. H., Hambali, N., Sujak, S. F., S, T. I. S. T., & Zahid, F. S. (2021). Exploring Connectivism through Online Engagement. International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences, 11(11), 1350 – 1365.
Copyright: © 2021 The Author(s)
Published by Human Resource Management Academic Research Society (www.hrmars.com)
This article is published under the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY 4.0) license. Anyone may reproduce, distribute, translate and create derivative works of this article (for both commercial and non0-commercial purposes), subject to full attribution to the original publication and authors. The full terms of this license may be seen at: http://creativecommons.org/licences/by/4.0/legalcode