Student perspectives on the importance and use of technology in learning

Abstract

Under constant demands to improve the quality of higher education within an increasingly digital world, technology is often seen as a way to increase learning and collaboration on college campuses. The current generation of college students has grown up with technology, and these students are among the earliest adopters of new advances in technology (Jones, 2002; Haney, 2011). Allowing students to connect to their campus community, collaborate with peers, acquire new information, and demonstrate their learning through technology is essential for college campuses seeking to meet the needs of today's college students. Though access and use of technology is highest in traditional age college students, disparity still exists in who uses technology and at what age they are exposed to it (Jones et al., 2009; Pew Research Center, 2012; Wilson, Wallin, & Reiser, 2003). Race, gender, age, socioeconomic status, among other factors, can impact the level of technical proficiency students come to college with and should be considered in how technology is implemented on college campuses (Goode, 2010; Hargittai, 2010; Huang, Hood, & Yoo, 2012). In order to effectively use technology to improve education, we must investigate how students are currently using technology, what they want from their colleges in the use of technology, how technology impacts educational outcomes, and how these factors differ for different student populations. How do these perceptions of importance vary by different types of students and students in different institutional settings? To what extent has students' technology use enabled them to understand, demonstrate their understanding, or study on their own or with others? How does such uses of technology relate to other important forms of educationally effective engagement? This study uses a large-scale dataset to explore these issues and provide information to institutions of higher education to effectively implement greater technology use among students.