Comparing Student and Faculty Perceptions of Technology Usage for Teaching and Learning

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Comparing Student and Faculty Perceptions of
Technology Usage for Teaching and Learning

• Dr. H. Hilliard Gastfriend
• Dr. Catherine L. Finnegan
• Advanced Learning Technology
• Office of Information Instructional Technology
• Board of Regents
• University System of Georgia

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University System of Georgia (USG)

• 34 public institutions (35 beginning in AY 2007)
• 21 4-year research, regional, and state
  universities and colleges
• 13 2-year colleges
• FTE student enrollment
• 253,552 (Fall 2005)
• Full time faculty
• Approx. 9,335 (Fall 2004)

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USG Faculty Use of Course Management Systems
(CMS) Survey (2004-2005)

• Documented current USG faculty uses, experiences,
  and expectations regarding course management
  systems (CMS)
• Modified from Educause Center for Applied
  Research (ECAR) survey conducted by the
  University of Wisconsin System in May 2003
• Developed benchmarks for determining change in
  usage over time

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USG CMS Survey

• Adapted ECAR survey to include USG-centric
  questions.
• 33 of 34 institutions participated
• 3,228 faculty responded
• 37 response rate

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CMS Survey Format

• Total of 45 questions possible
• Online Branched survey format
• Not all faculty saw all questions depending upon
  their answers to key items
• Major branch point Do you currently use a CMS?
• If answers no, respondent skips approximately 25
  questions on CMS usage
• If answers yes, respondent sees majority of the
  45 questions

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USG Student Information Technology (SIT) Survey
(Phase 1, Spring 2006)

• Based on University of Michigan Survey on
  Information Technology (2004, 2005) and ECAR
  Student and Information Technology (SIT) study
  (2004, 2005, 2006)
• 19 Institutions participated
• Approximately 8,900 student responses

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SIT Survey

• Survey closed 5/15/2006
• Online survey, 27 questions
• Individual institutions responsible for IRB
  clearance and protocols
• Individual institutions responsible for
  contacting and selecting student populations
• Individual institutions responsible for choosing
  length of time of survey availability

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Student Characteristics Student Level
9
Student Characteristics Student Status
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Student Characteristics Student Gender
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Student Access to Technological Equipment
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Student Access to Technological Equipment (contd)
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Self-Rated Technological Skills
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Self-Rated Technological Skills (By gender)
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What experiences have you had with online classes
or online class components?
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Barriers to Student Use of Technology in Learning
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Barriers to Student Use of Technology in Learning
(contd)
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How important is it to you to have the following
resources available online? (1/3 slides)
19
How important is it to you to have the following
resources available online? (2/3 slides)
20
How important is it to you to have the following
resources available online? (3/3 slides)
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My college or university should . . .
22
To what extent has the use of information
technology helped you in . . . ?
23
Have you taken a class that used a course
management system (e.g.,WebCT Campus Edition,
WebCT Vista, Blackboard, eCollege, etc.)?
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How would you describe your own overall
experience using a course management system?
25
Having taken a course with an online component in
the past, would you seek out such courses in the
future?
26
How important did you find the following course
management system features?
27
How important did you find the following course
management system features?
28
Which of the following Internet-based tools do
you commonly use when teaching and interacting
with students? (Faculty survey)
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How long have you been using a CMS? (Faculty
survey)
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How would you describe your overall expertise or
skill in using your CMS? (Faculty survey)
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How do you use your CMS? (Faculty survey)
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How important are the following features of the
CMS you currently use for teaching and
interacting with students? (Faculty survey)
33
What do you see as being the major disadvantage
of using a CMS? (Faculty survey top 7)
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Why do you use a CMS in your teaching? (Faculty
survey)
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Findings Experience

• Students and faculty are growing more experienced
  in using technology in the classroom.
• Most rate their skills at the intermediate level.
• Most have used technology in one or more courses
  in college.

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Findings Expectations

• Students expectations for use of technology in
  courses similar to faculty uses.
• Most Valued Tools Syllabus, Announcements,
  Grades, Email
• Least Valued Tools Tracking, Chat, and FTP
• Most students feel faculty use technology well
• Most students feel faculty should be encouraged
  to use more technology in classes

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How important are the following features of the
CMS to youStudent vs Faculty responses
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Findings Disconnects

• Faculty think CMS can engage students more in
  learning
• Commonly used tools are not reflective of this
• Students prefer convenience tools

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Next Steps

• Distribute Student survey to remaining USG
  institutions
• Complete analysis of Student survey and
  comparisons with Faculty survey
• Complete analysis of open-ended questions on
  Faculty survey
• Compile and conduct follow-up Faculty survey on
  best practices in 2007

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Questions?

• All surveys can be viewed at http//www.alt.usg.e
  du/research/best/surveyinstrument.phtml
• PowerPoint presentation will be available at
  http//alt.usg.edu/publications
• Email
• hilliard.gastfriend_at_usg.edu
• catherine.finnegan_at_usg.edu