The roles of academic engagement and digital readiness in students' achievements in university e-learning environments

Abstract

University students, who are assumed to be digital natives, are exposed to campus e-learning environments to improve their academic performance at the beginning of their academic careers. However, previous studies of students' perceptions of e-learning demonstrate a lack of consistent results with respect to the prediction of their academic achievement. The goal of this study was to examine university students' perceptions of e-learning, based on their experiences, and the mediating roles of academic engagement and digital readiness within the university context of an e-learning environment for academic achievement. A total of 614 undergraduate students enrolled in a Korean university participated in this study. Using a partial least squares model to develop the theory, we examined students engaging in university e-learning environments in relation to their perceptions of e-learning, digital readiness, academic engagement, and academic achievement (i.e., grade point average). The results are significant for the importance of students' academic engagement and digital readiness as mediators in their perceptions of e-learning predicted by academic achievement. Although students positively perceived e-learning experiences on campus, they must have strong digital skills to perform academic work and commit to effortful involvement in the context of academic learning in university e-learning environments. Our results provide practical implications for ways to enhance effective adoption of e-learning environments by college students, educators, and administrators.