Exploring Students and Lecturers Perceptions on Tablet Use for Learning in a South African Rural University

Abstract

Tablets are rapidly growing pervasive, influencing all age groups of people especially adolescents. Utilizing quantitative methodology, this study sought to explore the perceptions of students and lecturers on using tablets for learning at a rural university located in the Eastern Cape state of South Africa. A descriptive case study research design was employed. A sample of 155 from a population of 254 students and 14 from a population of 25 lecturers voluntarily participated in the survey. Data collected from the structured questionnaires were captured into Statistical Package for Social Sciences (version 24). Quantitative data were analysed using descriptive and inferential analysis. Data collected from both stakeholders were triangulated by sources to confirm the findings. The results revealed that students answered the exercise questions, developed the projects and started to search concepts in detail after getting tablets. Although a statistically significant difference was there between the perceptions of students and lecturers, both stakeholders showed positive attitudes toward the students' use of tablets for learning in university classrooms. The study recommended that lecturers must provide more tablet related learning tasks to students in order to make them accept tablet as a learning tool and lecturers must ensure regularly that those tasks are done effectively.