Evaluating the effectiveness of an online national education program for research postgraduate students in Hong Kong: A multidimensional approach

Social stability is crucial for enhancing the quality of life, as it recognizes the interconnectedness of individuals within the society. To foster students' understanding of the National Security Law and related issues, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University provided an online national education program to research postgraduate students during the 2022/23 Semester 1. The program included a 3-hour self-paced lecture and accompanying learning materials for self-study of three hours. 256 participants were subjected to a 19-item questionnaire to evaluate the program's effectiveness in several ways. We conducted confirmatory factor analyses to evaluate the scale's structure and multiple regression analyses to examine the relationships between different dimensions of students' perceptions of the program and their overall satisfaction. Results of the confirmatory factor analyses revealed three distinct dimensions (perceptions of course attributes, understanding of national education and law-abiding behaviors, and perceptions of self-paced learning) that are consistent with previous findings. Results indicated that students generally held positive views of the program across all dimensions. Furthermore, multiple regression analysis demonstrated that these dimensions significantly predicted the overall evaluation. These findings imply that the research postgraduate students appreciated the online program and that it promoted their understanding of national education and law-abiding behaviors.