Engagement Indicators (EIs) provide a useful summary of the detailed information contained in your students' NSSE responses. By combining responses to related NSSE questions, each EI offers valuable information about a distinct aspect of student engagement. Ten indicators, based on three to eight survey questions each (a total of 47 survey questions), are organized into four broad themes as shown at right. Theme Engagement Indicator
Academic Challenge Higher-Order Learning
Reflective & Integrative Learning
Learning Strategies
Quantitative Reasoning
Learning with Peers Collaborative Learning
Discussions with Diverse Others
Experiences with Faculty Student-Faculty Interaction
Effective Teaching Practices
Report Sections Campus Environment Quality of Interactions
Supportive Environment
Overview (p. 3) Displays how average EI scores for your students compare with those of students at your comparison group institutions.
Theme Reports (pp. 4-13) Detailed views of EI scores within the four themes for your students and those at comparison group institutions. Three views offer varied insights into your EI scores:
Mean Comparisons
Straightforward comparisons of average scores between your students and those at comparison group institutions, with tests of significance and effect sizes (see below).
Score Distributions
Box-and-whisker charts show the variation in scores within your institution and comparison groups.
Performance on Indicator Items
Responses to each item in a given EI are summarized for your institution and comparison groups.
Comparisons with High-Performing Institutions (p. 15) Comparisons of your students' average scores on each EI with those of students at institutions whose average scores were in the top 50% and top 10% of 2018 and 2019 participating institutions.
Detailed Statistics (pp. 16-19) Detailed information about EI score means distributions, and tests of statistical significance.
Detailed Statistics (pp. 16-19)
Detailed information about EI score means, distributions, and tests of statistical significance.
Mean comparisons report both statistical significance and effect size. Effect size indicates the practical importance of an observed difference. For EI comparisons, NSSE research has concluded that an effect size of about .1 may be considered small, .3 medium, and .5 large (Rocconi & Gonyea, 2018). Comparisons with an effect size of at least .3 in magnitude (before rounding) are highlighted in the Overview (p. 3).
EIs vary more among students within an institution than between institutions, like many experiences and outcomes in higher education. As a result, focusing attention on average scores alone amounts to examining the tip of the iceberg. It's equally important to understand how student engagement varies within your institution. Score distributions indicate how EI scores vary among your students and those in your comparison groups. The Report Builder and your Major Field Report (both to be released in the fall) offer valuable perspectives on internal variation and help you investigate your students' engagement in depth.
Each EI is scored on a 60-point scale. To produce an indicator score, the response set for each item is converted to a 60-point scale (e.g., Never = 0; Sometimes = 20; Often = 40; Very often = 60), and the rescaled items are averaged. Thus a score of zero means a student responded at the bottom of the scale for every item in the EI, while a score of 60 indicates responses at the top of the scale on every item.
For more information on EIs and their psychometric properties, refer to the NSSE website: nsse.indiana.edu
Rocconi, L.M., & Gonyea, R.M. (2018). Contextualizing effect sizes in the National Survey of Student Engagement: An empirical analysis. Research & Practice in Assessment, 13 (Summer/Fall), pp. 22-38.