Decrypting Log Data: A Meta-Analysis on General Online Activity and Learning Outcome within Digital Learning Environments

Analyzing log data from digital learning environments provides information about students’ online learning behavior. However, it remains unclear how this additional information can be transferred to psychologically meaningful variables, or how it is linked to learning outcomes. The present study summarizes findings on correlations between general online activity and learning outcomes in institutional settings. Course format, instructions to engage in online discussions, requirements, operationalization of general online activity, and publication year are considered potential moderators. The three-level random-effects meta-analysis based on 106 effect sizes covering 70 independent samples from 42 studies (N = 11,195) identified a pooled effect of ρ = .24, p = .002, 95% CI [.09, .40], indicating that students who are more active online have better grades. Moderator analyses revealed no significant differences. We discuss further potential influencing factors in online courses that might contribute to the high heterogeneity. Furthermore, we highlight the potential of learning analytics.