STUDENTS ENROLLED IN SELECTED UPPER-DIVISION AGRICULTURE COURSES: AN EXAMINATION OF COMPUTER EXPERIENCES, SELF-EFFICACY AND KNOWLEDGE

Abstract

Students (E = 169) enrolled in eight upper-division agriculture courses at a land-grant university were surveyed during the Fall 1999 semester to determine their computer experiences, computer self-efficacy, and computer knowledge. The students reported a variety of computer experiences, with 79% having completed a computer course and 66% owning a computer. Over one-half of the students had received formal instruction in word processing (76%), file management (71%), spreadsheets (71%), electronic mail (64%), presentation graphics (62%), Internet use (62%), and databases (51%). Computer programming was the only topic that a majority (66%) of respondents had not studied The students had a slightly above average level of computer self-efficacy. Students felt they had the highest level of skills in word processing, electronic mail, and Internet use, with more than 50% rating their shills in these areas as above average. The overall score on the 35 item multiple choice test of computer knowledge was fairly low, with a mean of 17.6 (50.3% correct). Nearly three-fourths (72.7%) of the students scored 60% or less on the test. There was only a low association ( r = .29) between computer self-efficacy and computer knowledge. Recommendations for enhancing student computer experiences are offered.