Technological Interventions and their Impact on Students’ Usage of Technology in Higher Education in Pakistan

Abstract

This study was focusing on the present state of technology used by the students at the university level. The prime objectives of this research were to access the current status of technological use by students for devices used mostly, software used frequently, and reason to use technology. The participants of the study were 211 students of B. Ed. (Hons)-Elementary 4-year program randomly selected from Teacher Education departments of four public sector universities. The study was quantitative and a close-ended questionnaire was used for data collection. The questionnaire was self-developed with the help of literature. The reliability of the questionnaire was determined through the Cronbach Alpha technique and that was 0.8. The data was analyzed through frequencies and percentages. The main findings of the study were; students rated themselves that they had fair computer knowledge and access to the internet; most of them were using smartphones and laptops, they were frequently using software such as Google, MS. Word, and MS. PowerPoint and the least used software were such as MS. Excel and LMS. They utilized technology for the learning process, entertainment, and communication, but the use of technology for discussion groups like WhatsApp, Facebook, etc was not found. The study recommended that students should be provided with facilities to use technology efficiently. And rewards and incentives for the successful use of technology for learning purposes can motivate them to usetechnology effectively.