An investigation into students’ engagement in English learning at Cebu Technological University - Tuburan Campus

Abstract

This study examined the relationship between teachers’ approaches and students’ engagement in English at Cebu Technological University-Tuburan Campus for the academic year 2023 - 2024. Surveys were conducted among college students and English teachers, and statistical tools were applied to evaluate the correlation between teaching approaches and student engagement. The data revealed that most student respondents were female (56.72%), aged 18 - 20 (57.83%), with midterm grades between 1.5 and 1.9 (59.14%), and from lower-income families (62.42%). Among the English teachers, the majority were male (68.75%) and aged 27 - 29 (31.25%). While 56.25% held a bachelor’s degree, most lacked relevant training in English instruction (56.25%). Analysis using Kendall’s Tau-b coefficient revealed a significant positive correlation (r = 0.463) between teachers’ affective-based approaches and students’ affective engagement. However, no significant relationships were found between other teaching approaches and student engagement indicators. The findings suggest that educators should adopt personalized instructional strategies that cater to the diverse learning preferences and needs of students.