The Impact of Online Engagement on Student Achievement in Blended Courses: Evidence from Liuzhou City Vocational College

With the rapid development of information technology, blended courses have become a crucial direction for educational reform in vocational colleges. Grounded in self-determination theory and social constructivism, this study employs Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) to systematically examine the mechanism by which online engagement influences student achievement in blended courses. A total of 300 students enrolled in blended courses at a vocational college in China were surveyed using a structured questionnaire. The findings indicate that online engagement not only directly enhances students’ learning self-efficacy and motivation but also significantly promotes their academic performance by increasing learning involvement. Mediation analysis reveals that learning self-efficacy and motivation exert a chain-mediated effect on academic achievement through learning involvement. Both the model fit indices and the reliability and validity of the scales used reach excellent levels. These results enrich the theoretical understanding of blended learning and provide empirical evidence and practical recommendations for the optimization of blended courses and the digital transformation of teaching in vocational colleges.