Educational Activities: Key Theoretical Concepts and Characteristics in the Digital Age

Abstract

The aim of the study was to empirically define the features of students’ educational activities in the digital age through the comparative analysis of three learning formats, traditional online, blended, and adaptive, and to test their influence on cognitive variables, motivational/emotional components, and digital competences. The study was implemented in the experimental format of a randomized comparative experiment with pre-/post measurements of indicators involving students of a Ukrainian university. The methodological basis was an integrative theoretical framework, which combines various paradigms (connectivist, cognitivist, humanistic, and constructivist) for the analysis of educational activities in a digital environment. Empirical data were collected using a standard battery of tests, questionnaires, digital analytics of learning platforms, and semi-structured interviews. Quantitative data were collected on cognitive achievement, motivation, social activity, digital competences, and a digital activity index; qualitative data were collected on students’ subjective experience of learning in different environments. The results revealed that the adaptive format demonstrated higher learning results and a higher development of digital competences, while the blended format demonstrated a higher development of motivation and social components. Statistically significant correlations between digital activity and achievement and digital competences were identified. The practical value of the research can be implemented in the elaboration of flexible models of education, combining personalization of learning with its socialization.