Is learning anytime, anywhere a good strategy for success? Identifying successful spatial-temporal patterns of on-the-job and full-time students

Purpose Online learning is well-known by its flexibility of learning anytime and anywhere. However, how behavioral patterns tied to learning anytime and anywhere influence learning outcomes are still unknown. Design/methodology/approach This study proposed concepts of time and location entropy to depict students’ spatial-temporal patterns. A total of 5,221 students with 1,797,677 logs, including 485 on-the-job students and 4,736 full-time students, were analyzed to depict their spatial-temporal learning patterns, including the relationships between identified patterns and students’ learning performance. Findings Analysis results indicate on-the-job students took more advantage of anytime, anywhere than full-time students. Students with a higher tendency for learning anytime and a lower level of learning anywhere were more likely to have better outcomes. Gender did not show consistent findings on students’ spatial-temporal patterns, but partial findings could be supported by evidence in neural science or by cultural and geographical differences. Research limitations/implications A more accurate approach for categorizing position and location might be considered. Some findings need more studies for further validation. Finally, future research can consider connections between other well-known performance predictors (such as financial situation, motivation, personality and major) and the type of learning patterns. Practical implications The findings gained from this study can help improve the understandings of students’ learning behavioral patterns and design as well as implement better online education programs. Originality/value This study proposed concepts of time and location entropy to identify successful spatial-temporal patterns of on-the-job and full-time students.