Engage Me! Research-based Best Practices for Student Engagement Using Microsoft Teams in Middle School
Abstract: Many faculty were forced to teach online with inadequate training or resources, affecting student academic performance because of COVID-19. The ultimate goal of this study was to help K-12 teachers improve instruction using MS Teams information technology as they work to integrate innovative instructional technologies into their pedagogy. The problem addressed in this study was the requirement of faculty to teach online with inadequate training or resources affecting student academic performance because of COVID-19 and physical separation and lack of engagement strategies often resulted in absent students and stressed teachers teaching themselves. Teachers were desperate to engage students and Microsoft (MS) Teams was promising as a tool to engage students, but there are few studies, mostly in higher education, with mixed results. The specific gap in the research literature that needed to be addressed by this study was the lack of engaging instructional strategies and tools required to engage K-12 online and blended learning students.