Digitalization of higher education to achieve sustainability: Investigating students’ attitudes toward digitalization in Bangladesh

Abstract

This study examines university students’ attitudes toward digitalizing higher education in Bangladesh. The objectives of the study are to examine the nature and the subjective causes of the student's attitudes and to examine the influence of gender, prior exposure to digitalization, and socio-economic background on the attitudes. This study uses the ABC Model of Attitudes and the Digital Divide Theory to prepare a questionnaire and analyze the data. A semi-structured interview questionnaire was developed based on the ABC Model of Attitudes to collect data from 32 interviewees. The interviewees from three public universities in Bangladesh were selected using random purposive sampling. Students from every socio-economic, gender, and level of digital experience category were selected to ensure heterogeneity of the sampling. The interview transcripts were analyzed using NVivo in conjugation with pen-and-paper thematic analysis. Data triangulation in the form of data analysis and data analyst triangulation was done to ensure the credibility and reliability of the research. The findings from the data analysis show that most of the students hold positive attitudes toward the digitalization of education. However, the gap in students’ access to digital facilities causes differences in students' attitudes. Students with digital accessibility generally hold positive attitudes. On the contrary, students who don't have access to digital facilities hold negative attitudes towards the digitalization of education, although they perceive the digitalization of education as essential and timely. In addition, the findings also confirm that gender, prior exposure to digitalization, and socio-economic background influence students’ attitudes significantly.