Exploring the Effect of College Students’ Civic Engagement on Transferable Capabilities during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Dian-Fu Chang, Tsun-Ning Chang and Chia-Chi Chen
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Dian-Fu Chang: Department of Education and Futures Design, Tamkang University, New Taipei City 251301, Taiwan
Tsun-Ning Chang: Graduate Institute of Educational Policy and Leadership, Tamkang University, New Taipei City 251301, Taiwan
Chia-Chi Chen: Doctoral Program of Educational Leadership and Technology Management, College of Education, Tamkang University, New Taipei City 251301, Taiwan

Sustainability, 2021, vol. 13, issue 19, 1-15

Abstract: Civic engagement refers to the ways that citizens participate in the life of a community to help shape its future or improve conditions for others. While it might have been shaped by the COVID-19 pandemic recovery, this study explored how college students perceive civic engagement on selected campuses that were partially locked down. We sampled 1036 student volunteers from six universities in Taiwan by using a self-designed module of civic engagement and transferable capabilities. The Student’s t -test, ANOVA, regression, factor analysis, and structural equation modeling (SEM) were used to interpret the differences and relationships among these variables. This study provides a more detailed example of the current status of civic engagement and its relationship to transferable capabilities in a higher education setting. The related programs and institutions should take responsibility for enhancing students’ civic engagement and transferable capabilities during the pandemic. How to ameliorate the situation? The findings suggest that it is necessary to consider a student’s academic major, learning experiences in the department, and time spent on related activities during the pandemic recovery. The findings might prove useful to various campuses for enhancing ongoing practices for sustainable development.

Keywords: civic engagement; COVID 19; change in higher education; educational systems; effects; SEM; transferable capabilities (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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