Abstract
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Online Tutoring Platforms (OTPs) have been applied extensively in education in China. The aim of this study is to investigate the determinants that influence college students’ behavioural intention of using OTPs to acquire knowledge. This study also explores how students’ attitude change in using OTPs five months after the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic based on a hierarchical component model which is combined by the Social Impact Theory (SIT) and Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT). Partial least squares (PLS) analysis is employed to analyse the data collected from 1133 students in Mainland China. The results of the analysis indicate that social impact consists of three dimensions (compliance, identification, internalization) significantly influences college students’ attitude toward OTPs and further affects college students’ behavioural intention toward OTPs usage. Furthermore, performance expectancy and effort expectancy also positively affect students’ behavioural intention toward using OTPs to acquire knowledge. This study makes several suggestions for universities to encourage students using OTPs to cope with the situation of Covid-19 pandemic and for educators to promote online tutoring for reforming universities in the future.
Highlights
In educational technologies, Online Tutoring Platform (OTP) refers to using Artificial Intelligence Technology (AIT) to help students acquire knowledge without face to face teaching
One of the reasons for choosing Partial least squares (PLS)-SEM is that the data doesn’t have to be normally distributed.[14]. Another reason is that this study adopts a complicated second-layer Hierarchical Component Model (HCM) which consists of reflective-reflective components and PLS-SEM can conduct analysis on complex models with formative and/or reflective constructs.[15]
This study examines OTPs systematically and used the Social Impact Theory (SIT) and UTAUT as two fundamental theoretical frameworks for examining the five determinants (SI, ATT, EE, performance expectancy (PE), facilitating conditions (FC)) of OTPs and their impacts
Summary
Online Tutoring Platform (OTP) refers to using Artificial Intelligence Technology (AIT) to help students acquire knowledge without face to face teaching. After the outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic, online education which brings convenience to students for learning courses anytime and anywhere has become mainstream. Online education is enabled by means of OTPs that integrate pre-recorded online courses and live teaching services into simple solutions. “Suspension of Classes and Non-stop Learning” is a fresh scheme proposed by the Ministry of Education of China to deal with the situation of postponement of spring semester due to the prevention and control of the pandemic. As of May in 2019, 1454 colleges across China have applied OTPs to cope with the situation of COVID-19 pandemic. The number of college students adopting OTPs has skyrocketed during the last 5 months. A total of 17.75 million college students used OTPs to participate in online learning
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