Behind-the-screen silence in technology-supported university classrooms: A network and mixed-methods study of inclusive participation.

Abstract

Technology-supported classrooms can broaden access to learning, but access does not ensure inclusive voice. This study examined behind-the-screen silence as an affective-participatory experience among Chinese university students in courses with digital or hybrid components. Survey data were obtained from 423 respondents; after range checking and exclusion of straightline responses, the strict analytic sample included 375 students. Twenty-two exploratory classroom-silence items were analyzed using descriptive statistics, one-factor measurement diagnostics, an ordinal item-level network, teaching-mode sensitivity checks, VIF diagnostics, auxiliary regression, and thematic coding of 168 open-ended responses. The one-factor model showed acceptable approximate fit, indicating a strong general silence-related tendency. The primary network was dense but showed modest local associations among technology-pedagogy constraints, digital response affordances, online silence, and affective insecurity; an alternative-estimator sensitivity check produced a highly similar edge-weight pattern. Teaching-mode comparisons suggested small domain differences and advised caution because the online-dominant subgroup was small. Domain correlations were high, but VIF values did not indicate severe multicollinearity; regression was therefore treated only as auxiliary association evidence, with affective barriers showing the largest standardized association. Independent recoding of 30.4% of open-text responses showed high agreement (92.2%; Cohen's kappa = 0.909). Overall, digital participation tools appeared to coexist with unresolved affective, interactional, and recognition-related barriers, identifying low-risk, responsive, and multimodal participation as design priorities for future classroom evaluation.