Students' use of technology and their perceptions of its usefulness in higher education: International comparison

Abstract

Background:The rapid globalization along with the growing trend of openness and sharing approach enabled widespread of digital technologies all over the world. However, we can still find differences between countries in technology use and perceptions of usefulness for learning. Understanding students' use of educational technology and their perceptions of its usefulness is especially significant today, given the rapid penetration of online learning into higher education as a response to Covid-19.Objectives: This research aimed to understand students' actual experiences with digital technologies during their academic studies and their perceptions of technology usefulness across institutional and international contexts (Israel and Australia).Methods: This quantitative study used data from a large-scale bi-national online survey of 3003 students in both countries. Comparative analyses were conducted. In addition, factor analysis was used to identify latent factors from 16 variables of students' perceptions of the usefulness of digital resources usefulness. Results and conclusion:The results revealed significant differences in technology usage and its perceived usefulness between students in the two countries. They confirmed the predominance of 'official' digital resources, such as learning management systems and online library resources. However, large percentages also reported the use of 'non-official' digital resources, including academic search services; subjectrelated videos and audio recordings on content-sharing websites such as YouTube and Wikipedia; and communication and/or collaboration with other students through social networks. Thus, universities need to consider the potential use of incorporating these resources for improving teaching and learning. Moreover, understanding the differences will assist in implementing tailored techno-pedagogical solutions to the students.

Zoom in: Open educational resources for informal online learning during COVID-19 and beyond

“…In line with the existing research which found that learning resources with local characteristics influence their adoption (Adam, 2019;Cohen et al, 2022;Farrow et al, 2015), English proficiency was also found to be a significant predictor of OER's perceived usefulness for professional development. Participants with high English proficiency tended to rate OERs' perceived usefulness higher.…”

“…Millions of non-English speakers were found to adopt MOOCs less than English speakers, for in addition to the language barrier, the cultural perspective was not applicable to their local context (Adam, 2019). In countries in which English is not the native language, English proficiency was also found to be a factor influencing the use of online learning activities other than MOOCs (Cohen et al, 2022). One of the greatest potential strengths of MOOCs is the localisation of OER materials for different global contexts.…”

“…Thus, it may be necessary to determine whether work-related learning resources are inadequately adapted for those with lower English proficiency. In addition, previous studies examined adults' digital readiness for online learning and found that online learning preferences vary according to academic background, age, and English proficiency (Cohen et al, 2022;Horrigan, 2016). In this study, significant differences were observed between individuals with academic backgrounds and individuals without academic backgrounds, the oldest and youngest groups, and between participants with high and low levels of English proficiency.…”

The Triple-S framework: ensuring scalable, sustainable, and serviceable practices in educational technology

“…Furthermore, they want encouraging connections with professors and fellow students via technology, as well as access to new resources and wider reading materials, implying a novel use of technology. In a recent study by Cohen et al (2022), perceived technology usefulness also differs not only across cohorts and countries, but also across official and unofficial technology tools used by learners. In truth, students extensively employ common technology in their academic studies (Rashid & Asghar, 2016), including Internet search engines to find information, audio recordings or videos about subjects/disciplines (e.g., YouTube, Vimeo), non-university provided scholarly websites to search for papers/journals, social networking sites to collaborate with other students on courses (e.g., Facebook or Twitter), and Wikipedia to find information.…”

Undergraduates’ Conceptions of Online Education and Technological Mediation

“…The present research aims to fill these gaps in the literature in two main respects: first by exploring various ways students conceptualize online education and second by discussing the relationship between these conceptions and the mediating role of technology in students' learning. It is thought that the results might provide complementary information on students' perceptions of the usefulness of technology for their learning (Cohen et al, 2022) and help instructors improve the quality of their online courses so students' overall learning experience can be enhanced (Alqurashi, 2019).…”