ASPIRE for excellence in student engagement: Examples of how institutions operationalize a complex construct

Abstract

Student engagement is a key contributor to educational programme quality. It is a complex construct often defined with the focus on student behaviors. However, a broader, more organizational approach takes into account the institutional context and how this can be structured to encourage and support students’ willingness and ability to become engaged. This paper includes suggestions for a student engagement system using key elements recognized in the literature and concrete examples from medical schools that achieved recognition in the ASPIRE-to-Excellence student engagement initiative. The examples from the ASPIRE participants demonstrate that the presence of certain key features creates a mutually beneficial collaborative approach between students and their institutions. This includes opportunities for students to formally engage in four domains touching on the breadth of student life, including institutional governance and policy-making, educational programme development and evaluation, participation in activities in the academic community, and participation in local community and international outreach. Based on an in-depth review of the information from three medical schools that recently received an ASPIRE-to-Excellence award in student engagement, it was possible to identify certain specific practices that individually and taken together allow an institution to demonstrate excellence in this complex construct. As an overarching concept, it was clear that student participation in each of these domain areas benefitted from a supportive institutional culture characterized by specific formal attributes and activities. Examples included codifying student involvement in governance through institutional policies; maximizing communication routes among students and between students and school administrators and faculty; and formalizing a participatory environment through missions statements or strategic plans. For programme planning, a helpful conceptualization is that a successful student engagement programme occurs when change is championed by all stakeholders within an institution and the organization supports a collaborative culture that includes students as active participants and partners.

Keywords:

• Student engagement
• health professions education
• learning environment
• institutional culture

Acknowledgements

The authors wish to acknowledge the work and commitment of the ASPIRE panel on Student Engagement. The panel for the 2023-2024 academic year includes the following: Co-chair: Barbara Barzansky, PhD, MHPE (USA); Co-chair: Carmen Fuentealba, DVM, MSc, PhD, (F)AMEE (USA); Khalid Bin Abdulrahman (Saudi Arabia); Maria Rosa Fenoll-Brunet (Spain); Kulsoom Ghias (Pakistan); Madalena Patricio (Portugal); Celine Marmion (Ireland); Marietjie Van Rooyen (South Africa); Danai Wangsaturaka (Thailand); Marko Zdravkovic (Slovenia); Gladys Zugwai Ibrahim (Nigeria), Student Member.

Disclosure statement

The authors report no conflicts of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the ideas, content, and writing of this article.

Additional information

Funding

The authors report there is no funding associated with their work included in this article.

Notes on contributors

Barbara Barzansky

Barbara Barzansky, PhD, MHPE, Liaison Committee on Medical Education (LCME) Co-Secretary, American Medical Association, Co-Chair, ASPIRE Student Engagement Panel.

Carmen Fuentealba

Carmen Fuentealba, DVM, MSc, PhD, (F)AMEE, Professor and Dean, Long Island University College of Veterinary Medicine, Co-Chair, ASPIRE Student Engagement Panel.