IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jsusta/v17y2025i12p5291-d1674295.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Enhancing Student Engagement and Motivation for Sustainable Education: The Role of Internship and Institutional Support

Author

Listed:
  • Redhwan Qasem Ghaleb Rashed

    (Department of English, College of Arts, University of Ha’il, Hail 81451, Saudi Arabia)

  • Aliyu Alhaji Abubakar

    (Department of Management and Information Systems, College of Business Administration, University of Ha’il, Hail 81451, Saudi Arabia)

  • Osman Madani

    (Department of English, College of Arts, University of Ha’il, Hail 81451, Saudi Arabia)

  • Yaser Hasan Al-Mamary

    (Department of Management and Information Systems, College of Business Administration, University of Ha’il, Hail 81451, Saudi Arabia)

Abstract

This research aims to study the impact of experiential learning and skill empowerment and community engagement and institutional support systems on student engagement and motivation and sustainable education in Saudi Arabian higher education institutions. The research uses Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) with Partial Least Squares (PLS) as its quantitative methodology to study the relationships between experiential learning, skill empowerment, institutional support systems, and sustainable education. The proposed theoretical model was evaluated through a survey distributed to participants who were conveniently sampled from Saudi Arabian higher education institutions. The research shows that experiential learning together with skill development and community engagement boosts student motivation and supports sustainable education in Saudi Arabia. The study further reveals that institutional support systems have a weak moderating effect because their implementation and perception require improvement to effectively support sustainability. The main limitations are the use of self-reported data which may be influenced by response biases and the focus on higher education only which limits the generalizability of the findings to other educational levels. The research indicates that experiential learning activities including internships, community projects, and skill empowerment programs should be integrated into education to boost student involvement and motivation toward sustainability. The research applies the established theories of Kolb’s Experiential Learning, Human Capital, and Social Learning to Saudi Arabia’s educational context to show how they can be adapted to promote sustainable education through experiential learning, skill development, and community engagement. This study bridges critical research gaps by elucidating the nuanced moderating role of institutional support systems—an underexplored factor—and addressing the methodological limitations associated with a reliance on self-reported data, thereby significantly advancing the understanding of their influence on student engagement and sustainable education within diverse academic and cultural contexts.

Suggested Citation

  • Redhwan Qasem Ghaleb Rashed & Aliyu Alhaji Abubakar & Osman Madani & Yaser Hasan Al-Mamary, 2025. "Enhancing Student Engagement and Motivation for Sustainable Education: The Role of Internship and Institutional Support," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 17(12), pages 1-22, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:17:y:2025:i:12:p:5291-:d:1674295
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/17/12/5291/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/17/12/5291/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Diana Dushkova & Olga Ivlieva, 2024. "Empowering Communities to Act for a Change: A Review of the Community Empowerment Programs towards Sustainability and Resilience," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(19), pages 1-25, October.
    2. Ching-Yun Hsu & Ting-Ting Wu, 2023. "Application of Business Simulation Games in Flipped Classrooms to Facilitate Student Engagement and Higher-Order Thinking Skills for Sustainable Learning Practices," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(24), pages 1-18, December.
    3. Asunción Fernández-Villarán & Basagaitz Guereño-Omil & Nagore Ageitos, 2024. "Embedding Sustainability in Tourism Education: Bridging Curriculum Gaps for a Sustainable Future," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(21), pages 1-17, October.
    4. Abdulrahman Altassan, 2023. "Sustainable Integration of Solar Energy, Behavior Change, and Recycling Practices in Educational Institutions: A Holistic Framework for Environmental Conservation and Quality Education," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(20), pages 1-26, October.
    5. Marcellus Forh Mbah & Chidi Ezegwu, 2024. "The Decolonisation of Climate Change and Environmental Education in Africa," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(9), pages 1-25, April.
    6. Anna Shutaleva, 2023. "Ecological Culture and Critical Thinking: Building of a Sustainable Future," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(18), pages 1-23, September.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Manotar Tampubolon & Fernando Silalahi & Binoto Nadapdap, 2025. "Community Empowerment Institution (LPM) of Bojong Menteng Indonesia: Existence and Challenges," International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science, International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science (IJRISS), vol. 9(2), pages 3021-3029, February.
    2. Brina Kurent & Stanislav Avsec, 2024. "Synergizing Systems Thinking and Technology-Enhanced Learning for Sustainable Education Using the Flow Theory Framework," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(21), pages 1-42, October.
    3. Samantha Tshabalala & Wilfred Lunga & Caiphus Baloyi, 2025. "Climate Change Education: Preparing African Youth for Future Challenges," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 17(10), pages 1-19, May.
    4. Vladimir Brigida & Vladimir Ivanovich Golik & Elena V. Voitovich & Vladislav V. Kukartsev & Valeriy E. Gozbenko & Vladimir Yu. Konyukhov & Tatiana A. Oparina, 2024. "Technogenic Reservoirs Resources of Mine Methane When Implementing the Circular Waste Management Concept," Resources, MDPI, vol. 13(2), pages 1-14, February.
    5. Marcellus Forh Mbah & Chidi Ezegwu, 2024. "Impactful Methodological Considerations for Knowledge Co-Creation in Sustainable Development Research," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 17(1), pages 1-29, December.
    6. Edward Chung Yim Yiu, 2025. "Urban Political Ecology in Action: Community-Based Planning for Sustainability and Heritage in a High-Density Urban Landscape," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 17(8), pages 1-18, April.
    7. Biagio F. Giannetti & Marcos José Alves-Pinto Junior & Maritza Chirinos-Marroquín & Luis Velazquez & Nora Munguia & Feni Agostinho & Cecília M. V. B. Almeida & Ginevra Lombardi & Gengyuan Liu, 2025. "Sustainability in Universities: The Triad of Ecological Footprint, Happiness, and Academic Performance Among Brazilian and International Students," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 17(3), pages 1-24, January.
    8. Hassan Gholami, 2024. "A Holistic Multi-Criteria Assessment of Solar Energy Utilization on Urban Surfaces," Energies, MDPI, vol. 17(21), pages 1-35, October.
    9. Barbara Bradač Hojnik, 2024. "Integrating Playful Learning to Enhance Education for Sustainability: Case Study of a Business School in Slovenia," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(22), pages 1-17, November.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:17:y:2025:i:12:p:5291-:d:1674295. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.