The impact of Self-Efficacy on Student Engagement in Online Learning: Mediating the Role of Motivation

Abstract

Distance learning is often confused with online learning, though both are different from each other. Talking about online learning or e-education we often discuss about technological advancement and the dynamic changes in the education sector. The major changes happened around the online learning were around Covid-19 while the evolution of online learning goes back to 90’s. While talking about online learning the most common aspect is technology, pedagogy used by various teachers and facilitators but the one aspect which affects the learning pattern, student efficiency and engagement of students is motivation. The present paper examines the impact of self-efficacy on student engagement in terms of online learning. The study also analyses the mediating role of motivation on the association between self-efficacy and student engagement. Using primary data from students at Higher Education Institutes at both UG & PG level, the study concludes that the self-efficacy strongly affects students’ engagement in online learning. It has been found that the relationship between the two is a strong positive relationship and the mediating analysis supports the view that the mediating variable student motivation only absorbs the part of self- efficacy.