Using Network Analysis to Explore the Factors Influencing Students’ Online Learning Effectiveness

Despite the common pursuit of students’ online learning effectiveness, there is limited research on the factors influencing the effectiveness, particularly when considering the interplay of multiple factors. This study investigated the online learning experiences of 121,391 students in Wuhan during the COVID-19 period. A network analysis was used to reveal the impact of information literacy, online learning presence, and online learning engagement on online learning effectiveness. The study also identified the variations in the influence of these factors between student groups with high and low-effectiveness levels. The findings indicate the following: 1) Emotional engagement, information perception awareness, information application awareness, and information behavior positively contribute to online learning effectiveness; 2) Emotional engagement is associated with higher levels of strength, betweenness, closeness and expected influence in both groups. Information laws and regulations have stronger betweenness in the high-effectiveness group, while emotional engagement is stronger in the low-effectiveness group. The results inform recommendations for enhancing future online learning practices.