Educational technology acceptance across national and professional cultures: a European study

The continuous development of new platforms and environments for technology-enhanced learning emphasizes the increasing importance of research in educational technology acceptance (ETA). Responding to this need, the unified theory of acceptance and use of technology (UTAUT) proposes a major ETA model. However, the UTAUT has been so far validated only in restrained contexts. The ongoing internationalization of education calls for extending ETA research and the UTAUT across national and professional boundaries. Therefore, this study aims at cross-cultural validation of the UTAUT by examining a large sample (N = 4,589) of educational technology users from three European countries, Germany, Romania and Turkey. As a first conclusion, the UTAUT questionnaire displays adequate validity, reliability, and measurement equivalence across cultures, which further enables UTAUT-based comparisons of the cultural groups. Secondly, the effect of technology use intention on the actual use behavior proves to be extremely weak. Several possible explanations are proposed along with suggestions for future research. Thirdly, for the first time in ETA research the cultural sample diversity allows the verification of correlations between acceptance and culture. Thus, this study makes headway in the integration of culture (sensu Hofstede) in the UTAUT by suggesting effects of power distance, individualism, masculinity, uncertainty avoidance and long-term orientation on performance and effort expectancy, perceived social influence, computer anxiety, technology use intention and actual use behavior. Fourthly, for educational practice the presented results suggest several ways of anticipating and supporting ETA in multicultural user groups.     

Fertile Zones of Cultural Encounter in Computer Science Education

We explain certain learning difficulties in computer science education as resulting from a clash between the students' culture as computer users and the professional computing culture. We propose the concept of fertile zones of cultural encounter as a way of overcoming these learning difficulties. This pedagogical approach aims to bridge the gap between cultures by designing interventions that are appreciated by members of both cultures, yet also guide the student to engage in the practices of the professional culture. The learning difficulties are demonstrated by a detailed analysis of episodes taken from an advanced high school computer science course in concurrency. We show that fertile zones of cultural encounter can be successful in significantly improving learning of this subject.     

国内技术接受模型的实证研究综述

技术接受模型是解释和预测人们对信息技术接受程度的基础理论,其后续研究不断加以验证和扩充,形成完备而操作性强的实用模型,文章介绍经典TAM模型和UTAUT两个模型.国内的大部分学者在作实证研究的时候一般会采用一个简约的技术接受模型,根据各自不同的研究领域加入变量,使模型扩展.对不同研究领域的变量、数据采样和数据分析方法作比较分析,并作简要总结.     

A cross‐cultural examination of the impact of social,organisational and individual factors on educational technology acceptance between British and Lebanese university students

This paper examines the social, organisational and individual factors that may affect students' acceptance of e‐learning systems in higher education in a cross‐cultural context. A questionnaire was developed based on an extended technology acceptance model (TAM). A total sample of 1173 university students from two private universities in Lebanon and one university in England participated in this study. After performing the satisfactory reliability and validity checks, the hypothesised model was estimated using structural equation modeling. The findings of this study revealed that perceived usefulness (PU), perceived ease of use (PEOU), social norms (SNs), perceived quality of work life (QWL), computer self‐efficacy (SE) and facilitating conditions (FC) are significant determinants of behavioural intentions (BIs) and usage of e‐learning system for the Lebanese and British students. QWL, the newly added variable, was found the most important construct in explaining the causal process in the model for both samples. Differences were found between Lebanese and British students with regard to PEOU, SN, QWL, FC, SE and actual usage; however, no differences were detected in terms of PU and BI. Overall, the proposed model achieves acceptable fit and explains for 69% of the British sample and 57% of the Lebanese sample of its variance which is higher than that of the original TAM. Our findings suggest that individual, social and organisational factors are important to consider in explaining students' BI and usage of e‐learning environments.     

Investigating the determinants and age and gender differences in the acceptance of mobile learning

With the proliferation of mobile computing technology, mobile learning (m-learning) will play a vital role in the rapidly growing electronic learning market. M-learning is the delivery of learning to students anytime and anywhere through the use of wireless Internet and mobile devices. However, acceptance of m-learning by individuals is critical to the successful implementation of m-learning systems. Thus, there is a need to research the factors that affect user intention to use m-learning. Based on the unified theory of acceptance and use of technology (UTAUT), which integrates elements across eight models of information technology use, this study was to investigate the determinants of m-learning acceptance and to discover if there exist either age or gender differences in the acceptance of m-learning, or both. Data collected from 330 respondents in Taiwan were tested against the research model using the structural equation modelling approach. The results indicate that performance expectancy, effort expectancy, social influence, perceived playfulness, and self-management of learning were all significant determinants of behavioural intention to use m-learning. We also found that age differences moderate the effects of effort expectancy and social influence on m-learning use intention, and that gender differences moderate the effects of social influence and self-management of learning on m-learning use intention. These findings provide several important implications for m-learning acceptance, in terms of both research and practice.     

Do cultural differences affect users’ e-learning adoption? A meta-analysis

The great advantages of e-learning have been recognized, and efforts have been made to promote e-learning adoption. Despite valuable research achievements from technology adoption, previous studies built their models from different perspectives. In this study, to offer a comprehensive research model on e-learning adoption, we integrated these models (ie, TAM, TPB and IDT) and included culture as a moderator. Based on 45 relevant empirical research, this study conducted a meta-analysis to explore key determinants of users’ attitude and behavioral intention to adopt e-learning. Combined with traditional technology acceptance theories and innovation diffusion theory, we developed a comprehensive model and explored the moderating role of culture. The results indicate that this integrated technology acceptance model can be applied to better understand e-learning adoption. The moderator analysis shows that the influence of subjective norms and self-efficacy on users’ behavior intention is more salient in the collectivistic culture, whereas perceived usefulness is more important for online learners in an individualistic culture.     

University students' behavioral intention to use mobile learning: Evaluating the technology acceptance model

As many Korean universities have recommended the implementation of mobile learning (m‐learning) for various reasons, the number of such tertiary learning opportunities has steadily grown. However, little research has investigated the factors affecting university students' adoption and use of m‐learning. A sample of 288 Konkuk university students participated in the research. The process by which students adopt m‐learning was explained using structural equation modeling technique and the Linear Structural Relationship (LISREL) program. The general structural model based on the technology acceptance model included m‐learning self‐efficacy, relevance for students' major (MR), system accessibility, subjective norm (SN), perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, attitude (AT), and behavioral intention to use m‐learning. The study results confirmed the acceptability of the model to explain students' acceptance of m‐learning. M‐learning AT was the most important construct in explaining the causal process in the model, followed by students' MR and SN.     

Reviewing the differences in size,composition and structure between the personal networks of high‐ and low‐performing students

An interesting aspect in the current literature about learning networks is the shift of focus from the understanding of the “whole network” of a course to the examination of the “personal networks” of individual students. This line of research is relatively new, based on small‐scale studies and diverse analysis techniques, which demands for more empirical research in order to contextualize the findings and to meta‐analyze the research methods. The main objective of this paper is to review two research questions posed by a previous British Journal of Educational Technology contribution by Shane Dawson in order to know whether the differences in personal network composition impact on the performance of students. The two questions were defined by Dawson as follows: (1) Are there significant differences in personal network composition between high‐ and low‐performing students? and (2) Do high‐performing students have larger personal networks than their low‐performing peers? In addition, the “clustered graphs” method used in this study allows the inclusion of the structural analysis of personal networks. In doing so, a new research question is addressed: (3) Are there significant differences in personal network structure between high‐ and low‐performing students? This paper tries to answer these questions in the context of two undergraduate, inter‐university and fully online courses, and two different technology‐enhanced learning environments (a virtual learning environment and a personal learning environment) where interactions took place indirectly through shared resources. The results show that the network behaviors of high‐ and low‐performing students' are strongly correlated, and that high‐performing students developed larger personal networks than low performers.     

Searching for New Answers: The Application of Task‐Technology Fit to E‐Textbook Usage

Students have been slow to adopt e‐textbooks even though they are often less expensive than traditional textbooks. Prior e‐textbook research has focused on adoption behavior, with little research to date on how students perceive e‐textbooks fitting their needs. This work builds upon Task‐Technology Fit (TTF) and Consumer Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT2) theory to present a student‐perspective model of e‐textbook usage. By contextualizing TTF and UTAUT2 to e‐textbooks, the research fills a gap in the literature and provides guidance to researchers and practitioners. The goal of the research is to understand how students perceive their task of learning to fit with e‐textbook technology, and how that fit influences e‐textbook usage and expected performance in their classes. To achieve this goal, the research develops a model to test the relationship between perceived TTF of e‐textbooks and UTAUT2‐defined user characteristics that encourage adoption behaviors, thus facilitating student learning. The findings show that four factors impact a student's perceived TTF: substitution, habit, hedonic motivation, and facilitating conditions. Furthermore, perceived TTF positively correlates with students’ e‐textbook usage and expected performance in classes when using e‐textbooks. While price value exhibits a measurable effect on e‐textbook utilization, it is a minor factor.     

A cross-cultural approach to the adoption of open educational resources in higher education

The factors affecting the adoption of open educational resources (OER) in higher education have become a research topic of great interest as OER continue to be widely used in universities, affecting the quality of teaching and learning. The reasons for OER adoption are diverse, across both individual educators and cultural environments. This study explored determinants of OER adoption by university educators in three cultural contexts utilizing the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT2). Data on educators' behavioral intention to adopt OER were collected from 152 educators in three countries, Korea, Japan and the United States. In every culture, habit was the strongest determinant of this behavioral intention. Other highly significant factors affecting OER adoption by educators varied by culture. In Korea, the strongest determinant was performance expectancy, in Japan it was social influence and in the United States it was price value. The moderating effect of culture was significant on three paths of the model, and the cultural specificity affecting OER adoption was substantial. Theoretical and practical implications related to the UTAUT2 model and OER policy are discussed.     

An empirical investigation of students' behavioural intentions to use the online learning course websites

With the development of the Internet in the era of knowledge‐driven economy, e‐learning is experiencing rapid growth. The online learning course websites are drawing more attention as well. This research combines the innovation diffusion theory and the technology acceptance model, and adds two research variables, perceived system quality and computer self‐efficacy to propose a new hybrid technology acceptance model to study students' behavioural intentions to use the online learning course websites. This research finds that compatibility, perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, perceived system quality and computer self‐efficacy were critical factors for students' behavioural intentions to use the online learning course websites. By explaining students' behavioural intentions from a user's perspective, the findings of this research help to develop more user‐friendly websites and also provide insight into the best way to promote new e‐learning tools for students.     

Promoting intercultural understanding and reducing stereotypes: incorporating the cultural portfolio project into Taiwan's EFL college classes

Learning about foreign language (FL) cultures is becoming an important objective in the FL curricula and national standards of different countries throughout the world. The purpose of the study was to examine the effects of the cultural portfolio project on: (1) students' concept development in their perceptions of the target language culture and their own; (2) students' evaluation of stereotypes towards English‐speaking cultures; and (3) students' self‐awareness and perception of EFL (English as a foreign language) and cultural learning process. Data were collected from students' cultural portfolio projects, classroom observation, and interviews. Results indicate that through the cultural portfolio project, students engaged in active learning, gained insight into specific aspects of the target language cultures and became more aware of the diversity within these cultures, and developed their ability to think critically instead of automatically accepting cultural information.     

Science learning via multimedia portal resources: The Scottish case

Scotland's rich heritage in the field of science and engineering and recent curricular developments led to major investment in education to equip pupils with improved scientific knowledge and skills. However, due to its abstract and conceptual nature, learning science can be challenging. Literature supports the role of multimedia technology in addressing the difficulties associated with science learning. This paper reports on a two‐phase investigation that explored the impact of multimedia resources situated in a national e‐learning portal to (1) assist generalist and specialist science teachers' teaching practices and (2) stimulate pupils' interest, encourage engagement and improve overall science learning experiences. Our research also investigated how portal resources facilitated and/or acted as barriers for teaching and learning. Findings from our research affirm that multimedia technology has transformed science learning; with these resources accessible through a national portal, radically different learning experiences ensued. These findings raise serious implications for teacher education and professional development in ensuring that teachers acquire sound science content and pedagogical knowledge as well as practical strategies for utilising technology‐rich environments, as this is likely to become the norm. Harnessing the fullest potential that information and communication technology, multimedia and e‐learning portals can offer starts by addressing these challenges.     

Bridging Realty to Virtual Reality: Investigating gender effect and student engagement on learning through video game play in an elementary school classroom

The purpose of this study was to examine students' learning of simple machines, a fifth‐grade (ages 10–11) forces and motion unit, and student engagement using a teacher‐created Multiplayer Educational Gaming Application. This mixed‐method study collected pre‐test/post‐test results to determine student knowledge about simple machines. A survey ascertained the time spent using the computer for general purposes, and the time spent playing computer games as a function of gender. The pre‐test and post‐test design involved 74 students, 31 males and 43 females, who played the Dr. Friction Multiplayer Educational Gaming Application for several days in the middle of the unit. Results showed the females averaged using the computer more than their male counterparts and males played video games more than females. Analysis of covariance suggested no significant difference between the factor gender (p > .05) but statistically significant differences in gain scores (p = .001). Observations and qualitative focus groups suggested high student engagement and how video game technology can scaffold learning of simple machines.     

Alternative Frameworks and the Concept of Task. Cognitive Constraints in Pupils' Interpretations of Teachers' Assignments

Halldén, O. 1988. Alternative Frameworks and the Concept of Task. Cognitive Constraints in Pupils' Interpretations of Teachers' Assignments. Scandinavian Journal of Educational Research 32, 123‐140. If we are to understand a learning outcome, we have to take into consideration the learner's conception of the learning task. Task is here defined as the means a teacher utilizes when trying to communicate an assignment to a pupil. The pupil's interpretation of such a task is called a problem or a project. It is the pupil's attempts to solve such problems or to complete such projects that account for the learning that takes place. Two qualitatively different types of problem are identified: procedural and content‐related. Factors influencing pupils' task interpretation are discussed and implications for research on pupils' alternative frameworks are considered. One such implication is the identification of two different levels of alternative frameworks.     

Visual Aids and the Enhancement of Communication in Africa

Educational visual aids and illustrations in African institutions are mostly imported from overseas, and the few local productions tend to be Western‐orientated in style. However, research on the technical and design elements of visual aids, their cultural implications and socio‐economic factors all point to considerable differences of perception and interpretation of visuals between African and Western students. The paper discusses these differences and considers their implications to designers and producers of learning materials for African students.     

Factors Influencing Student Acceptance of Mobile Learning in Higher Education

The purpose of this study was to explore the acceptance of mobile learning by students in a higher education setting. The unified theory of acceptance and use of technology (UTAUT) was extended to include hedonic motivation, operationalized as enjoyment, as well as social influence in a field study involving the adoption of iPad mobile devices. Survey data were collected from 171 college students and analyzed using partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM). The results indicated that enjoyment and performance expectations were important factors influencing the acceptance of mobile learning in this context. For those engaged in the mobile learning pilot project upon which this study was based, the use of the UTAUT and the results provided a theory-based empirical approach to support an assessment that the pilot project goals were achieved. Overall, students perceived iPads to be useful and enjoyable tools for accomplishing educational tasks and improving learning outcomes.     

Learning for a Sustainable Environment: professional development and teacher education in environmental education in the Asia‐Pacific region

The close link between environmental education and development education advocated by major international reports of the last decade is operant in the UNESCO Asia‐Pacific region. A regional collaborative effort sponsored by the Asia‐Pacific Centre of Educational Innovation for Development (ACEID), UNESCO and Griffith University is creating an action research network to support teacher education in environmental education. The process is informed by Paul Hart's and Ian Robottom's argument that constructivist epistemology is consistent with an ecological world view and, therefore, provides an appropriate grounding for professional development in environmental education. Teacher educators from some 20 countries in the region are sharing in the writing of workshop modules for pre‐ and in‐service teachers; these are then critiqued and adapted in accordance with the needs of other countries. A culture of action research is being created by encouraging those involved to write case studies of their design, critique, adaptation and use of the materials as part of their professional development     

Attitudes of Dutch and German preschool teachers towards professional childcare: a cultural comparison

This study explores educators' reflections on professional childcare practice in different national contexts. The data were collected by showing video clips of classroom activities in Japanese, Dutch and German pre‐schools to experienced German and Dutch pre‐school teachers. The clips were used to elicit their opinions on playing and learning in educational settings through a standardized questionnaire completed immediately after viewing each clip. The participants were also invited to rate the strength of cognitive, social, physical and emotional developmental domains during the activity. These data were analysed by classifying the questionnaire responses into four categories: remarks related to teachers, to children, to peers and to context. The frequencies of the categories and the ratings of developmental domains were computed and compared by t‐tests between the German and the Dutch sample. The findings revealed that pre‐school teachers offered more elaborated perspectives on the content of the foreign video clips than on the clips from their own country. There were also some differences with regard to developmental domains. With regard to pre‐school teacher training it was concluded that the teachers' knowledge base should be used as an input for their professional practice.