Investigating ICT skills and the use of audio media in distance education among teachers and students: the case of Mountains of the Moon University in Uganda

Abstract


 
 
 Although teachers’ and students’ ICT skills have previously been investigated, there is still scant information about their ICT skills in relation to audio media as an independent medium of in- struction. This study, therefore, investigates the ICT skills of higher education distance students (HEDS) and teachers regarding the use of audio media. We used purposive sampling technique to select HEDS (n=81) and teachers (n=41). Data were collected using a structured questionnaire. The results indicate that on average, teachers’ and students’ levels of confidence regarding com- puter use are 76% and 68% respectively. The results on general ICT knowledge indicate that 52% of students rated themselves as having either good or excellent ICT skills compared to 49% of teachers. The results also show that both students and teachers use MP3 players on a regular basis. However, results reveal that they are ambivalent regarding recording and editing of audio content. Generally, the findings of this study demonstrate that teachers and students can adopt audio media in distance education.
 Key words: audio media, ICT skills, distance education, medium of instruction, Moodle platform