Students' Readiness for Using E-learning in South African Rural Universities: A Case of Walter Sisulu University

Abstract

In recent timesE-learning receives greater attention among educational practitioners. All over the world, many institutions of higher learning are using E-learning as a supplementary tool to the traditional ways of teaching and learning. Covid-19 pandemic has forced institutions all over the world to adopt E-learning as the preferred mode of teaching and learning. Though many African universities have adopted E-learning as a response to Covid-19 pandemic, success of it, in particular among the institutions located in rural settings depends heavily on the e-readiness factor of the learners these institutions enrol at undergraduate levels. Though most universities in South Africa implemented E-learning, little is known about E-learning readiness in formerly under-privileged universities. Walter Sisulu University (WSU) is a higher education institutions situated in the Eastern cape province which is considered as one of the disadvantaged provinces with very low CT penetration. This selected institution predominantly enrols students who are hailing from the rural and townships population of the province with schools that are characterised by lack of essential ICT infrastructure and teachers with basic computer skills though a very low percentage of the student population constitute students from other provinces and countries outside South Africa. This research study investigated the readiness of learners enrolled at level-one of undergraduate programmes in WSU to use E-learning as tool to enhance their learning. Keywords: E-learning, African rural University, technological readiness