Relationship between Student Engagement and Performance in e-Learning Environment Using Association Rules

TL;DR

This study investigates how student engagement impacts academic performance in e-learning environments, using association rules to identify positive correlations and provide insights for enhancing online education effectiveness.

Contribution

It applies the Apriori association rules algorithm to e-learning data to uncover the relationship between engagement and performance, extending traditional classroom findings to digital platforms.

Findings

Higher engagement correlates with better academic performance.

Positive association rules indicate engagement influences success.

Results support strategies to boost student engagement in e-learning.

Abstract

The field of e-learning has emerged as a topic of interest in academia due to the increased ease of accessing the Internet using using smart-phones and wireless devices. One of the challenges facing e-learning platforms is how to keep students motivated and engaged. Moreover, it is also crucial to identify the students that might need help in order to make sure their academic performance doesn't suffer. To that end, this paper tries to investigate the relationship between student engagement and their academic performance. Apriori association rules algorithm is used to derive a set of rules that relate student engagement to academic performance. Experimental results' analysis done using confidence and lift metrics show that a positive correlation exists between students' engagement level and their academic performance in a blended e-learning environment. In particular, it is shown that higher engagement often leads to better academic performance. This cements the previous work that linked engagement and academic performance in traditional classrooms.