Digital competence and motivation as predictors of academic success in online training for university applicants
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.46502/issn.1856-7576/2026.20.01.14Keywords:
Engagement, motivation, academic success, learning quality, digital technologyAbstract
This study explores the impact of online education on the learning quality and academic achievements of higher education applicants. Grounded in the Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TPACK) framework and Self-Determination Theory, the research adopted a mixed-methods design involving 270 participants. A 13-week online intervention combining real-time feedback, interactive modules, and collaborative forums was implemented. Data were analyzed using ANOVA, regression, Structural Equation Modeling (SEM), and cluster analysis. The findings indicate that participants possessed sufficient digital competence and high intrinsic motivation. Cluster analysis revealed three distinct learner profiles; the "Engaged-Tech-Savvy" group demonstrated significantly higher academic success compared to "Moderately Engaged" and "Disengaged" groups. Results confirm that digital competence and intrinsic motivation are key predictors of academic achievement, with course quality mediating this relationship. The study provides practical recommendations for higher education institutions regarding community building, digital infrastructure, and teacher training to better prepare applicants. Future research should integrate objective usage data to further validate these findings.
References
Abdullah, T., Alam, A., & Sanauddin, N. (2024). Moral Education in the Digital Age: A Durkheimian Exploration of Values Transmission through Online Learning. International Journal of Distance Education and E-Learning, 10(1), 85-100. http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.5313019
Aldhafeeri, F.M., & Alotaibi, A.A. (2022) Effectiveness of digital education shifting model on high school students’ engagement. Journal of Education and Information Technologies, 27(1) 6869–6891 https://doi.org/10.1007/s10639-021-10879-4
Bazán‐Ramírez, A., Alfredo Quispe‐Morales, R., Huauya‐Quispe, P., & Ango‐Aguilar, H. (2020). Accessibility, difficulties and advantages of the online study for COVID‐19 in a presential postgraduate on education. Propósitos y Representaciones, 8(SPE3), e659. https://doi.org/10.20511/pyr2020.v8nSPE3.659
Bond, M., Buntins, K., Bedenlier, S., Zawacki‐Richter, O., & Kerres, M. (2020). Mapping research in student engagement and educational technology in higher education: A systematic evidence map. International Journal of Educational Technology in Higher Education, 17(1), 1–30. https://doi.org/10.1186/s41239-019-0176-8
Bravo‐Agapito, J., Romero, S. J., & Pamplona, S. (2021). Early prediction of undergraduate Student's academic performance in completely online learning: A five‐year study. Computers in Human Behavior, 115, 106595. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2020.106595
Chávez‐Miyauchi, T.‐E., Benítez‐Rico, A., Alcántara‐Flores, M., Vergara‐Castañeda, A., & Ogando‐Justo, A.‐B. (2021). Personal motivation and learning self‐management in students, as result of the transition to online courses during COVID‐19 pandemic. Nova Scientia, 13(spe). 1–16. https://doi.org/10.21640/ns.v13ie.2739
Chigisheva, O., Soltovets, E., Dmitrova, A., Akhtyan, A. G., Litvinova, S. N., & Chelysheva, Y. V. (2021). Digital literacy and its relevance to comparative education researchers: Outcomes of SciVal analytics. Eurasia Journal of Mathematics, Science and Technology Education, 17(10), em2017. https://doi.org/10.29333/ejmste/11183
Delgado, F. (2021). Teaching physics for computer science students in higher education during the COVID‐19 pandemic: A fully internet‐supported course. Future Internet, 13(2), 35. https://doi.org/10.3390/fi13020035
Dennis, M., & Harrison, T. (2021). Unique ethical challenges for the 21st century: Online technology and virtue education. Journal of Moral Education, 50(3), 251-266. https://doi.org/10.1080/03057240.2020.1781071
Ferrer, J., Ringer, A., Saville, K., Parris, M. A., & Kashi, K. (2022). Students’ motivation and engagement in higher education: The importance of attitude to online learning. Higher Education, 83, 317–338. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10734-020-00657-5
Flores Ferro, E., Maureira Cid, F., Hadweh Briceno, M., Gutiérrez Duarte, S. A., Silva‐Salse, A., Peña‐Troncoso, S., Castillo Retamal, F., González Flores, P., Pauvif Carcamo, F., Bahamondes Acevedo, V., Zapata Vera, G., Zavala‐Crichton, J. P., Maureira Sánchez, J., Brevis‐Yéber, M., & Lagos Olivos, C. (2021). Level of satisfaction of online classes by students of Physical Education of Chile in times of pandemic. Retos‐Nuevas Tendencias en Educación Física Deporte y Recreación, 41, 123–130. https://doi.org/10.47197/RETOS.V0I41.82907
Guillén‐Gámez, F. D., & Mayorga‐Fernández, M. J. (2020). Quantitative‐comparative research on digital competence in students, graduates and professors of Faculty Education: An analysis with ANOVA. Education and Information Technologies, 25(5), 4157–4174. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10639-020-10160-0
Knopf, T., Stumpp, S., & Michelis, D. (2021). How online collaborative learning leads to improved online learning experience in higher education. En Proceedings of the 8th European Conference on Social Media (pp. 119–127).
Kordrostami, M., & Seitz, V. (2021). Faculty online competence and student affective engagement in online learning. Marketing Education Review, 32(3), 240–254. https://doi.org/10.1080/10528008.2021.1965891
Koseda, E., Cohen, I. K., McIntosh, B., & Cooper, J. (2024). Internationalisation and digital transformation in HEIs: The impact of education 4.0 on teaching, learning and assessment. Policy Futures in Education, 23(1), 1-9. https://doi.org/10.1177/14782103241226531
Kovačević, I., Labrović, J. A., Petrović, N., & Kužet, I. (2021). Recognizing predictors of students' emergency remote online learning satisfaction during COVID‐19. Education Sciences, 11(11), 693. https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci11110693
Kulichenko, A. K., Sotnik, T. V., & Stadnychenko, K. V. (2018). Electronic portfolio as a technique of developing creativity of a foreign language teacher. Information Technologies and Learning Tools, 66(4), 286–304. https://doi.org/10.33407/itlt.v66i4.2178
Landrum, B., Bannister, J., Garza, G., & Rhame, S. (2020). A class of one: Students' satisfaction with online learning. Journal of Education for Business, 96(2), 82–88. https://doi.org/10.1080/08832323.2020.1757592
Lovón Cueva, M. A., & Cisneros Terrones, S. A. (2020). Impact of virtual classes on the university students in the context of COVID‐19 quarantine: The case of the PUCP. Propósitos y Representaciones, 8(SPE), e588. https://doi.org/10.20511/pyr2020.v8nSPE3.588
Masalimova, A. R., Erdyneeva, K. G., Kislyakov, A. S., Sizova, Z. M., Kalashnikova, E., & Khairullina, E. R. (2022). Validation of the scale on pre-service teachers’ digital competence to assist students with functional diversity. Contemporary Educational Technology, 14(4), ep382. https://doi.org/10.30935/cedtech/12301
Molina Gutiérrez, T. D. J., Lizcano Chapeta, C. J., Álvarez Hernández, S. D. R., & Camargo Martínez, T. T. (2021). Crisis estudiantil en pandemia. ¿Cómo valoran los estudiantes universitarios la educación virtual?. Revista Conrado, 17(80), 283–294. Recuperado a partir de https://conrado.ucf.edu.cu/index.php/conrado/article/view/1845
Morgulets, O. B., & Derkach, T. M. (2019). Information and communication technologies managing the quality of educational activities of a university. Information Technologies and Learning Tools, 71(3), 295–304. https://doi.org/10.33407/itlt.v71i3.2831
Polyezhayev, Y., Terletska, L., Kulichenko, A., Vorobiova, L., & Snizhko, N. (2024). The role of web applications in the development of multilingual competence in CLIL courses in higher education. Revista Eduweb, 18(3), 106–118. https://doi.org/10.46502/issn.1856-7576/2024.18.03.9
Prokopenko, O., Matviienko, V., Chunikhina, T., Ohol, V., & Jasurkova, A. (2024). Transforming teacher education: The influence of artificial intelligence on educational practices and human resource dynamics. En Proceedings of the 2024 International Conference on Artificial Intelligence and Teacher Education (ICAITE) (pp. 35–42). ACM. https://doi.org/10.1145/3702386.3702389
Quispe‐Prieto, S., Franchini Cavalcanti‐Bandos, M., Caipa‐Ramos, M., Páucar‐Cáceres, A., & Rojas‐Jiménez, H. H. (2021). A systemic framework to evaluate student satisfaction in Latin American universities under the COVID‐19 pandemic. Systems, 9(1), 15. https://doi.org/10.3390/systems9010015
Pichkur, M. O., Poluden, L. I., Demchenko, I. I., & Sotska, H. I. (2023). Digital footprints monitoring of higher art education applicants’ training. Information Technologies and Learning Tools, 94(2), 128–149. https://doi.org/10.33407/itlt.v94i2.5205
Realyvásquez‐Vargas, A., Maldonado‐Macías, A. A., Cecilia Arredondo‐Soto, K., Baez‐López, Y., Carrillo‐Gutiérrez, T., & Hernández‐Escobedo, G. (2020). The impact of environmental factors on academic performance of university students taking online classes during the COVID‐19 pandemic in Mexico. Sustainability, 12(21), 9194. https://doi.org/10.3390/su12219194
Regalado‐Pezua, O., & Galeano, M. L. T. (2022). From Face‐to‐face education to online education: Challenges at a business school in Peru. In Zhuplev A. & Koepp R. (Eds.), Global trends, dynamics, and imperatives for strategic development in business education in an age of disruption (pp. 149–170). IGI Global. https://doi.org/10.4018/978-1-7998-7548-2.ch008
Romero Alonso, R. E., Tejada Navarro, C. A., & Núñez, O. (2021). Actitudes hacia las TIC y adaptación al aprendizaje virtual en contexto COVID‐19, alumnos en Chile que ingresan a la educación superior [Attitudes towards ICT and adaptation to virtual learning in the context of COVID‐19, students in Chile entering higher education]. Perspectiva Educacional, 60(2), 99–120. https://doi.org/10.4151/07189729-vol.60-iss.2-art.1175
Romero, E. D., & Bobkina, J. (2021). Exploring critical and visual literacy needs in digital learning environments: The use of memes in the EFL/ESL university classroom. Thinking Skills and Creativity, 40, 1-16. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tsc.2020.100783
Salas‐Pilco, S. Z., & Yang, Y. (2020). Learning analytics initiatives in Latin America: Implications for educational researchers, practitioners and decision makers. British Journal of Educational Technology, 51(4), 875–891. https://doi.org/10.1111/bjet.12952
Sapien Aguilar, A. L., Pinon Howlet, L. C., del Gutiérrez Diez, M. C., & Bordas Beltrán, J. L. (2020). Higher education during the health contingency COVID‐19: Use of ICTs as learning tools. Case study: Students of the Faculty of Accounting and Administration. Revista Latina de Comunicación Social, 78, 309–328. https://doi.org/10.4185/RLCS-2020-1479
Turchyn, I., Zaitseva, S., Rudenko, N., Saienko, V., Kuzemko, N., & Denefil, O. (2023). Using Distance Learning Models as Opportunities for Blended Learning for Foreigners. Revista Romaneasca Pentru Educatie Multidimensionala, 15(4), 178-191. https://doi.org/10.18662/rrem/15.4/787
Zapata‐Garibay, R., Eduardo González‐Fagoaga, J., Meza‐Rodríguez, E. B., Salazar‐Ramírez, E., Plascencia‐López, I., & Judith González‐Fagoaga, C. (2021). Mexico’s higher education students’ experience during the lockdown due to the COVID‐19 pandemic. Frontiers in Education, 6, 683222. https://doi.org/10.3389/feduc.2021.670400
Zhao, Y., Zhao, M., & Shi, F. (2023). Integrating moral education and educational information technology: A strategic approach to enhance rural teacher training in universities. Journal of the Knowledge Economy, 15(3), 15053–15093. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13132-023-01693-z
Zúñiga Rodríguez, M., & Cáceres Mesa, M. L. (2021). El sentido escolar frente al COVID‐19. La percepción de estudiantes de universidades públicas en Hidalgo. Revista Conrado, 17(78), 46–53. Recuperado a partir de https://conrado.ucf.edu.cu/index.php/conrado/article/view/1642
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Nataliia Kyrnis, Oksana Voroshchuk, Oksana Skorobahatska, Hanna Kravchenko, Mykhailo Sydor
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
