Impact Assessment of Information and Communication Technologies on Lesson Delivery and Students’ Performance in Selected Tertiary Institutions in Ghana

Abstract

Information and Communication Technology has been part of Ghana’s education system since 1995. However, despite the huge economic investments in providing computer infrastructure, rigorous assessment of the impacts of its integration in lesson delivery and academic performance of students has not been carried out to be able to judge its effectiveness and challenges in its usage that requires improvement(s). This assessment is even more crucial in higher institutions of learning where students are instructed in Information and Communication Technology to utilize them for the world of work. A concurrent triangulation design of the mixed method research design was used to examine the impacts of the integration of Information and Communication Technology on lesson delivery and student performance. A descriptive study method with interviews, questionnaire and observations as instruments were used in generating data from a random and a stratified random sample of 496 respondents from four tertiary institutions in Ghana. The quantitative data were analyzed using the Statistical Package for Social Scientists software while the qualitative data was analyzed via thematic analysis. The findings from the study revealed that Information and Communication Technology has impacted favourably on the lesson delivery of lecturers and students’ learning outcomes in the areas of research, easy dissemination of information and assessment procedures. The study contends that to enhance the integration of Information and Communication Technology in the lesson delivery of lecturers and the academic performances of students, educational policies must be changed to factor in modern technological advancement to groom students with requisite skills to fit into the job market while professional technological training must be periodically organized for instructors to hone their skills to deliver effectively.