The two perfect scorers for technology acceptance

Abstract

This research paper examines the acceptance of technology for learning by senior secondary school students and university newcomers. The objectives of the study are to measure the computer competency, computer self-efficacy of selected student cohorts on the acceptance of technology for learning. The study uses the extended Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) with two additional attributes, computer competencies and computer self-efficacies to examine students' behavior towards learning with technology. Two sets of data were collected; one was from Year 12 and Year 13 students from 33 secondary schools in Fiji, and the other from newcomers of a regional university in the South Pacific. The cohorts were surveyed with a unipolar Likert scale 1-5 questionnaire. The results were analysed using the "Statistical Package for the Social Sciences" -SPSS software and the proposed extended TAM model was analysed using the Smart Partial least squares (SmartPLS) software. The results from the regression analysis confirmed that the two attributes had a significant positive impact on the acceptance of the technology, that is, computer competency and computer selfefficacy were significant predictors of students' intention to continue using technology for learning. Therefore, a new model incorporating the two perfect scorers is designed and presented in this paper. The high values for Cronbach's alpha also show that the results were reliable and valid. Finally, the study shows that computer competencies and computer self-efficacies are essential contributors to the continuous use of technology for learning.

Attitudes and awareness of regional Pacific Island students towards e-learning

“…Only 5.9% of students reported access to a Broadband internet service at home, while 7.3% reported access to a Broadband internet service at their university campus. Prior studies conducted in the South Pacific reveal that more people now have access to the internet, with subscriptions increasing every year due to the falling price of internet services and improvements in the network infrastructure (Reddy et al, 2017 , 2020a , 2020b ; Sharma & Reddy, 2015 ; Sharma et al, 2020 ). However, persisting connectivity issues impact on how students access the internet or which internet connection they use (Reddy et al 2017 , 2020b ).…”

“…The South Pacific countries are one such group of developing nations, currently undergoing a technological revolution in order to meet the growing digital demands of the populace (Reddy et al, 2016 , 2020a , 2020c ; Sharma et al, 2019a ). Many higher education institutes in the South Pacific have transited to technology enabled learning to make the learning processes more effective and to meet the demands from the students.…”

“…For instance, students may not be able to afford equipment such as laptops or desktop computers, or be able to afford internet access plans with sufficient bandwidth and data allowance for video streaming or other data-heavy applications (Chillemi et al, 2020 ). This is more prominent in developing countries such as those in the Pacific region (Reddy et al, 2017 , 2019 , 2020a , 2020b ; Sharma et al, 2018a , 2018b ). Hence in many of the Pacific Island Countries (PICs), government initiatives have been implemented to provide school students with laptops and tablets in order to allow them to access online resources and obtain assistance with their schoolwork (Reddy et al, 2016 , 2017 , 2020b , 2020c ).…”

“…One recent study at a regional university in the South Pacific found 73% of the freshmen to have high to very high digital literacy competencies (Reddy et al, 2020d ); whereas another study conducted on high school students in Fiji found 61% to have very low to average competency in digital media literacy. Students will only continue to use digital technology if they have a positive attitude and perception towards technology-enabled learning (Reddy et al, 2020a , 2020d ). In turn, the students will only have a positive attitude towards technology-enabled learning if they possess the competencies needed to use the technology in question (Reddy et al, 2020a ).…”

“…Students will only continue to use digital technology if they have a positive attitude and perception towards technology-enabled learning (Reddy et al, 2020a , 2020d ). In turn, the students will only have a positive attitude towards technology-enabled learning if they possess the competencies needed to use the technology in question (Reddy et al, 2020a ). Hence the advocacy of digital literacy in the PICs has just begun.…”