Students’ level of academic cognitive engagement in the learning of economics

Abstract

This study examined students’ level of academic cognitive engagement in the learning of Economics. The study was a quantitative research that employed the descriptive cross-sectional survey design. In total, 422 Senior High School Economics students were selected for the study. The Academic Cognitive Engagement Scale (ACES) was used to gather data for the study. Descriptive statistics (frequencies, percentages, mean and standard deviation) and inferential statistics (One-Way MANOVA) were used to analyse the data. The study revealed that Economics students’ level of academic cognitive engagement was high. Also, it was found that there were statistically significant differences in Economics students’ level of academic cognitive engagement based on their school location. In addition, the study showed that there were statistically significant differences in Economics students’ academic cognitive engagement based on school category. Therefore, it was recommended that teachers should continue to engage students in instructional activities that require students to use deep strategies. Additionally, teachers in rural schools should employ teaching strategies that would help students employ deep learning strategies in the learning of Economics. Lastly, in the organisation of Continuous Professional Development (CPD) programmes and seminars for teachers on how to sustain and improve the cognitive engagement level of students, equal attention should be given to all the students in the various school categories. The practical implications of the findings are discussed in the study.