ICT Access Research Articles

Exploring barriers and facilitators of ICT in English pronunciation instruction: Perspectives from Jordanian tertiary education

This study examines the barriers and facilitators to integrating ICT in teaching and learning English pronunciation among university lecturers and students. Three female lecturers from a Jordanian government university's Department of Pharmacy, with teaching experience spanning 3 to 10 years, participated, along with six focus groups of male and female students aged 20 to 23 from the Faculty of Pharmacy. Thematic analysis uncovered barriers such as limited ICT access, inadequate training, large class sizes, time constraints, and students' negative attitudes and low ICT skills, alongside facilitators including leadership support, ICT tool accessibility, basic training for students, and consistent ICT integration in assessment and curriculum. Students advocated for lecturer support, mobile device integration, ICT training, smaller class sizes, consistent ICT tool integration, tool accessibility, and specialized pronunciation courses. This study offers fresh insights into understanding perceptions of ICT adoption barriers and facilitators among university lecturers and students, benefiting researchers and policymakers focusing on teacher professional development to enhance ICT integration in English pronunciation teaching and learning at the tertiary level.

“Periphery-Centric” Approach as a Tactic for Everyday Digital In- and Exclusion of Indonesian Villages

Much has been said about the importance of digital inclusion in reducing the digital divide and ensuring equal access and use of ICTs for all. Generally, inclusivity has a positive connotation, meaning that no one should be left behind by digitalization processes. However, the inclusion of marginalized communities into the digital system could lead to new exclusions within the new system because it amplifies the pre-existing social inequalities that these communities face, creating digital inequality. By observing the implementation of School of Community Networks in 10 Indonesian villages, this article attempts to describe those inequalities and explain how rural communities actively design a strategy to make their involvement in Indonesia’s digitalization more meaningful. The conceptual framework developed in this study adopts a “periphery-centric” approach, aligning with the user-centric approach, as it examines from the perspective of marginalized communities how they perceive, understand, and utilize digital technology by generating new forms of innovation that have real impacts on their community, such as tailored applications for public services and local internet infrastructure to reach remote areas. The approach poses the problem and strategic dimension of the issue and puts forward the ownership and locality of these innovations to overcome digital inequality. With the meaningful use of digital technology, the inclusiveness of socially less-advantaged groups into the digital system does not immediately create new inequality; rather, they make themselves the center of their respective bottom-up innovation projects.

Uncovering student profiles. An explainable cluster analysis approach to PISA 2022

Educational data mining (EDM) applied to the wealth of data generated from international large-scale assessments (ILSAs) shows potential for identifying successful educational initiatives. Despite limited research on clustering methods in ILSAs, leveraging these methods to uncover student profiles can help decision-making in designing tailored programs. This study aims to identify and characterize 15-year-old student profiles using PISA 2022 data and reveal insights into the relationship between these profiles and factors such as ICT availability and use, gender, academic performance, and educational expectations. We analyzed PISA 2022 Spanish student data (n = 30,800) with a selection of 74 contextual variables, applying an end-to-end explainable cluster analysis methodology that integrates different machine learning (ML) and explainable artificial intelligence (XAI) techniques. This methodology covered data pre-processing, dimensionality reduction, clustering, and classification to ensure data quality and result explainability. We obtained 16 derived variables, 7 student clusters, and an optimal XGBoost classifier with a global accuracy of 0.8643. Using local and global SHAP values, we interpreted clusters, finding that socio-economic status and ICT availability and use at home are the most important factors differentiating student profiles. Our findings suggest the need to emphasize (i) proper ICT accessibility and use, as well as student support networks to improve academic performance, (ii) gender-specific well-being programs, and (iii) the encouragement of educational expectations tailored to students’ gender and their exposure to higher education. These results pave the way for personalized academic policies and programs through ML-based tools for uncovering student profiles.

Agricultural Value Chains and Gender in the Post-reform Era

This article systematically reviewed literature on agricultural market reforms, value chains and gender, selected from Global South developing countries to generate evidence on the changes in smallholder agricultural value chains and gender relations, following liberalization reforms. The study specifically aimed to; identify and critically analyse previous attempts to categorize agricultural value chains; and provide new value chain categorizations and associated gender relations. We found that only 5% of the reviewed 60 publications have attempted to categorize agricultural value chains, however with no consideration of gender relations. A new value chain typology has been provided as: “Traditional”, Digitally-led”, “Group-led” and “Firm-led” value chains, respectively basing on 13%, 35%, 32%, and 24% of the publications. With regard to gender relations, the main finding was that unequal gender relations are inherent in all forms of value chains but tend to be experienced differently by value chain actors –men and women – depending on the type of value chain. The commonly identified underlying factors for gender inequality included; patriarchal structures that bestow upon men decision-making power and control over production resources mostly land. Related were social norms that confine women to the domestic realm, proscribe their mobility and participation in higher value chain nodes and farmer groups. Lastly were gender disparities in education, skills and income leading to differences in access, ownership and use of ICTs. From the results, we note that inasmuch as different forms of value chains present some opportunities for actors, the evolution in smallholder value chains continues to engender equality challenges, mostly affecting women. We contributed to filling the knowledge gap on transformations in post-reform value chains and its effect on gender relations.

Who has ICT Access in India? A Gender-based Analysis

Who has ICT Access in India? A Gender-based Analysis

Web accessibility and CMS. Moodle as case study

<p>The advance of ICT can be appreciated in a range of synchronous and asynchronous tools for communication that facilitate the interaction without spatio-temporal restrictions. The Web Accessibility Initiative defines guidelines to let people with disabilities access ICT. The article presents the method and the results obtained from web accessibility evaluation applied to Moodle CMS, using guidelines WCAG 2.0. The results of this study provided data to guide further research and development focused on test processes on web accessibility using specific tools, in order to improved user´s experience.</p>

The mediating role of government ICT use on the nexus between ICT access and public sector performance

PurposeThis study aims to explore how government ICT use influences the relationship between ICT access and public sector performance globally. Previous research has mainly focused on the impact of ICT access on private firms' performance, measured by profitability. Moreover, previous studies have mostly examined the effect of ICT access on firms' performance within a single country. This study fills a gap in the literature by investigating how government ICT use mediates the connection between ICT access and public sector performance on a global scale.Design/methodology/approachThe study develops and empirically validates a conceptual model based on the Technology, Organisation-Environment framework and archival data for 131 countries, using partial least squares-structural equation modelling.FindingsThe findings from the study shows a significant relationship between ICT access and Government ICT use. Also, there was positive relationship between ICT access and Public Sector Performance. In addition, there exist a significant relationship between Government use of ICT and Public Sector Performance. Furthermore, the mediating role of government ICT use on the impact of ICT access on public sector performance was significant.Originality/valueThis study is unique in that it explores the relationship between ICT access, government ICT use and public sector performance on a global scale. By using archival sources, this research findings can easily be replicated and applied to a larger population. Additionally, using the TOE framework, this study demonstrates how technology (ICT access) and organisation (government ICT use) impact public sector performance globally.

Effects of resilience, social support, and academic self-efficacy, on mental health among Peruvian university students during the pandemic: the mediating role of digital inclusion.

Mental health of university students has been impacted during the pandemic, highlighting the importance of understanding its psychosocial determinants. Nevertheless, there has been limited exploration into whether the digital inclusion conditions for remote education could mediate the effects that variables such as resilience, social support, and academic self-efficacy may have on mental health. Considering the above, there is evidence that shows a consistent relationship between resilience, social support and academic self-efficacy on mental health, to the extent that these are psychological variables. On the other hand, digital inclusion, which comprehends a contextual variable, not a psychological one, related to ICT access opportunities and mainly focused on the quality of Internet access, should be analyzed in a differential manner. This study seeks to analyze the effect of resilience, social support and academic self-efficacy, on the mental health of a group of Peruvian university students; in addition, it seeks to analyze the mediating role of digital inclusion. A cross-sectional study was conducted with 3,147 undergraduate students from a private university in Lima, Perú. From August to October 2020, data were collected online through questionnaire, this include The Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale 21 (DASS-21), The 10-item version of the Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale (CD-RISC10), The Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (EMASP), The Perceived Self-Efficacy Specific for Academic Situations Scale (EAPESA) and to measure digital inclusion, the Perceived Quality of Internet Access reported by the students. The levels of participants' anxiety, depression and stress were described using frequency and percentage. Pearson Correlation test was used to measure the correlation between the variables and a Path analysis was conducted. Finally, The PROCESS macro for SPSS (Model 4) was applied to examine the mediating effect of the model controlling gender variable. The results revealed significant levels of extremely severe symptoms of anxiety (36.8%), depression (33.4%) and stress (18.1%) among the participants. A path analysis, which indicated that resilience (β = -0.346), social support (β = -0.189), academic self-efficacy (β = -0.060) and digital inclusion (β = -0.089) had significant impact on students' General Distress. In addition, digital inclusion plays a partial mediation role with low but significant effect size in the relationship between resilience, social support and self-efficacy with mental health. Mental health of university students during the pandemic shows alarming levels of general or emotional distress. The findings indicate that resilience, social support and self-efficacy protect college students' mental health by reducing general distress. However, the study shows that when there is a digital divide around internet quality the impact of these factors is affected.

Integration of Information Communication Technology, Strategic Leadership and Academic Performance in Universities in North Kivu, Democratic Republic of Congo

Information communication technology has become an integral part of the management of higher educational institutions worldwide. There is no aspect of our lives that technology has not penetrated and brought lasting impact. This study delves into the intricate dynamics of how ICT influences management and learning processes in higher learning institutions. It sought to critically examine the impact of the integration of information communication technology in the strategic management of institutions of higher learning, specifically focusing on North Kivu, Democratic Republic of Congo. It aims to critically assess the integration of ICT and its impact on financial management, human resource management, and the overall enhancement of faculty and employee effectiveness in Congolese higher learning institutions. The study was conducted within selected institutions of higher learning in North Kivu in Congo. The study engaged a sample size of 124 staff from select universities who participated in this study. The study was guided by the positivist research philosophy, and it employed a cross-sectional descriptive design. This study utilized purposive sampling technique to get the sample size. Data collection was done through questionnaires. Data analysis entailed using descriptive statistics and inferential statistics. Descriptive statistics used mean and standard deviation which served as key metrics. The F- test was used to make statistical inferences. Analysis of qualitative data was done using the use of content analysis. The study established that ICT usage, ICT accessibility, and ICT integration both have significant influence on academic performance. Furthermore, the study determined that strategic leadership played a mediating role in the relationship between ICT integration and academic performance. It is, therefore, advisable for managers of these institutions to invest in ICT so that they can improve performance and increase service delivery to all the stakeholders.

‘ICT Development and depopulation: exploring the effects of municipal size on citizens’ technological profiles and policy evaluation in rural Spain'

ABSTRACT Increasing ICT availability and adoption is at the core of public policies to tackle rural depopulation. Taking as a reference the Digital Divide theory and the UTAUT model, the article shows how municipal size is associated with different technological profiles among rural citizens differing in terms of access and, above all, ICT quality, usage levels and perceived usefulness. On the other hand, the article analyses citizens’ perception of the management of rural policies based on the results of a survey of inhabitants of depopulated inland Spain. It uses cluster analysis around the variables of municipal size and opinion of citizens about ICT in recent years. The results reflect a generalized perception of non-compliance with the policies, although a certain conformism is detected in small municipalities. The central government is the one chosen to lead these policies followed by the regional governments.

Beyond the Translation of Initial Meaning: The Localization of Yoruba-bound ICT Terminologies

Research in translation is often centred on issues that bother on literature, language teaching, style, processes, etc. This study examines the translation of Yoruba-bound ICT terminologies beyond their raw meaning as presented by the English language and culture. It deploys localization, the third in the GILT arrangement of Globalization, Internationalization, Localization, and Translation in modern technology translation. The objectives of this study are to: identify certain ICT terminologies in English, describe adoptable strategies for translating the terminologies for Yoruba end-users, examine how the terminologies are understood in the Yoruba locale as intended by the initial meaning, highlight the difficulties involved in the interpretation of the terminologies into Yoruba, propose cultural and linguistic models for translating ICT terminologies from English into the Yoruba language and enable Yoruba end-users of computer system for ICT access information in Yoruba language. The study adopts Bell’s linguistic and psycholinguistic model (1991) to analyze and synthesize the structural organization of linguistic materials of the ICT terminologies and their translation beyond their surface meaning. The study finds out that: the traditional approach of translating Euro-based terminologies by loanwords may yield little result; localizing ICT terminologies will enhance the appreciation of ICT materials by Yoruba end users; difficulties involved in the interpretation of ICT are both linguistic and cultural, and that ICT terminology translators are technical and cultural mediators. The study concludes that the marketing and purchase of ICT products are likely to be more embraced by Yoruba end users with the use of localized expressions to translate them. It recommends that in the world of GILT, translating beyond the initial meaning of the structure of linguistic materials of the ICT terminologies is a snapshot.

ICTs for Afghan women's empowerment in the pre‐ and new‐Taliban era: Roles of gender, education, and crises

AbstractIn this paper, we explore women's use of ICTs in urban Afghanistan in the period between 2015 and 2022 to examine the changing gender dynamics of ICT access and usage in the context of expanding opportunities for women's education and employment (2015–2020) and different forms of crises, including the COVID19 pandemic (2020–2021) and political takeover by the fundamentalist and violent Taliban regime (2021–2022). Drawing on feminist theorization of empowerment and using a mixed methods study of 817 questionnaires (2015) and observation data (2015–2022) allows us to make visible the contingent and unintended dynamics of the relationship between women's empowerment and ICTs, especially in conflict zones. These findings contribute to ongoing debates on gender, empowerment and ICTs by emphasizing the multifaceted nature of technology adoption and usage, the significance of education in overcoming barriers, and the evolving role of ICTs, especially for women, in the face of radical political changes and crises.

SOCIAL ANXIETY IN ONLINE INSTRUCTIONAL DISCUSSION FORUMS: THE ROLE OF PARTICIPATION STYLES AND ICT INFRASTRUCTURE

Examination of the personal characteristics (i.e., gender, participation styles) of participants and the technical infrastructure (i.e., device type, internet connection type) of Instructional Discussion Forums (IDFs) can provide functional clues for mitigating social anxiety in these settings. In this context, this research investigated variances in learners' participation styles and social anxiety in IDFs in terms of gender and ICT availability. In addition, it explored the predictive relationships between participation styles and social anxiety. A sample of 272 freshman undergraduate students discussed various topics related to Internet ethics for three weeks through an IDF. The results indicated that participation styles differed by gender and ICT availability in several respects. First, handheld devices and cellular internet connections exerted a medium-size effect on social anxiety. Further, “to get information” and “to fulfill requirement” purposes in the “Why” dimension of participation styles had a small predictive relationship with social anxiety, as did “analytical” and “practical” participation approaches in the “How” dimension. Of these, only the “to get information” purpose negatively predicted social anxiety. Overall, participation styles accounted for 19.1% of the variance in social anxiety. Based on the findings, future directions and practical implications are suggested for both researchers and practitioners.

Digital Economy: ICT Framework for Farming Information Dissemination and Management in DRC By IJISRT

The agricultural sector is increasingly becoming both knowledge-intensive and techno-intensive. Generally speaking, agriculture sector is dynamic, farmers actively seek timely, accurate and relevant information to keep up with daily challenges. These challenges will significantly grow as a result of climate change that causes changing rainfall patterns and extreme weather events including, more frequent droughts and floods. ICTs has been instrumental for information broadcasting to farmers. Policy makers, extension practitioners, scholars and development agencies including, NGOs are advocating ICTs as a tool to foster smallholder farmers productivity, efficiency and performance through information including, new variety of seeds, fertilizer, livestock breeds, emerging diseases, vaccines, farming technologies, use of pesticides as well as market information. In addition, they enable large hub of know-how and sharing opportunity between agriculturalists, investors and entrepreneurs. Most African countries are essentially agrarian economies and agriculture turns out to be livelihoods of hundreds of millions households as well as a key driver of the economic development. However, most farmers in the Democratic Republic of Congo – especially smallholder farmers – perform below their potential. Many governments and scholars have developed innovative solutions related agricultural practice. The challenge is to enable information dissemination by large numbers of smallholder farmers. The study aims to propose a framework and policies for farmers to share information through ICTs. It used both quantitative and qualitative methods. The case study design is applied where empirical data was collected using questionnaires, interviews, documents analysis, and group discussions with farmer groups. Based on the research objectives, it was discovered that ICT policies is quasi-inexistent in agricultural sector. The government provides no agricultural information to farmers. In terms of ICT access, 36% of farmers own a telephone. 58% use basic feature phone while 42% of the respondents use smartphone. 66% of farmers would like to be provided information by a mobile phone. 63 % of farmers would prefer to have information in video format while 34 % in audio format. 95% of respondent strongly agree that ICT can improve their farming condition.

Factors influencing inequality in government health expenditures within African regional economic communities

BackgroundThe unequal distribution of government health spending within African regional economic groupings is a significant barrier to achieving Universal Health Coverage and reaching health-related Sustainable Development targets. It also hampers the progress toward achieving the African Union’s vision of an integrated and prosperous Africa, free of its heavy disease burden. Based on panel data from 36 countries nested into eight Regional Economic Communities (RECs), this study probes the effects of countries' macro-level factors on government health expenditure disparities within eight regional economic communities from 2000 to 2019.MethodWe use the multilevel linear mixed-effect method to show whether countries' trade gains, life expectancy at birth, poverty, urbanization, information and communication technology, and population aging worsen or reduce the differences for two government health expenditure indicators.ResultsThe insignificant effect of GDP per capita suggests that in most regional economic groupings, the health sector is still not considered a high-priority sector regarding overall government expenditures. Countries' poverty levels and urbanization increase the domestic general government health expenditure disparities as a percentage of general government expenditure within the regional groupings. However, trade gains and ICT diffusion reduce these disparities. Furthermore, the results reveal that external health expenditure per capita and life expectancy at birth positively impact within-regional inequalities in the domestic general government health expenditure per capita. In contrast, GDP per capita and trade gains tend to reduce them.ConclusionsThis study enriches the research on the determinants of government health expenditure inequality in Africa. Policies that can spur growth in trade and ICT access should be encouraged. Countries should also make more efforts to reduce poverty. Governments should also develop policies promoting economic growth and planned urbanization.

ЦИФРОВАЯ ЭКОНОМИКА И РАЗВИТИЕ СЕЛЬСКИХ ТЕРРИТОРИЙ (НА ПРИМЕРЕ СЕРБИИ)

The foundations for the use of ICT in Serbia have already been laid, but the e-business process is not yet well developed. Systematic studies of the impact of the Internet and ICT on competition have not yet been conducted, but the rapid development of these activities as the fastest growing in the Serbian economy indicates that the competition of firms using ICT is quite strong. However, there is a significant difference in the availability of ICT technologies in urban and rural settlements and indicates that digital inequality has not yet been overcome and that all assumptions regarding the (expected) impact of the Internet and the digital economy on faster rural development have not been made. For this reason, it is necessary not only to have a well-thought-out agricultural policy, but also to stimulate the availability of ICT throughout the country, especially in rural areas.

Crafting a Digital Divide Index for Assessing Agricultural Disparities Among Farmers: An Application of AHP Process

a new measurement tool for assessing the digital divide disparity among farmers in e agriculture was devised during 2023-24. The index comprises four dimensions, namely ICT ownership, awareness, accessibility, and usage, respectively. For dimension selection, the researchers employed the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP). The maximum eigen value (ë max) of the pairwise comparison matrix was 4.0049, serving as the overall weight for the decision-making process. In the item selection process, Likert-type scale procedures were used to assess statements for final indicator selection. An interview schedule with 45 indicators was administered to 60 farmers in a non-sampling area, with five ambiguous indicators subsequently removed. The digital divide index customized for farmers demonstrated strong reliability, with a split-half reliability coefficient of 0.846 (Spearman-Brown formula) and a Pearson correlation coefficient of 0.733. Internal consistency was good, as indicated by a Cronbach’s Alpha of 0.813, and the test displayed strong validity with a score of 0.919. Overall, these findings confirm the reliability and validity of the test in measuring the intended construct. Ultimately, the 38 items were consolidated into a standardized farmers’ digital divide index for assessing agricultural disparities in the farming community.

A study of ICT access and use by elders from a gender perspective - a case study in Portugal

Information and Communication Technology has been part of our routines and has brought several benefits to various sectors such as education, business, healthcare, entertainment, and communication. Amongst the several advantages of Information and Communication Technology, efficient exchange of information, connectivity, and access to knowledge and resources can be highlighted. Although technology continues to evolve and become more integrated into our everyday lives, this occurs at different paces depending on the age. Older people usually experience difficulties in using these tools and following up their advancements. Therefore, efforts must be done for them to develop digital literacy skills. This way, they can connect with others, access information, engage in online activities, and utilize digital services.Herein, the usage and access to the Information and Communication technologies amongst former students of the industrial and commercial school of Braga was examined focusing on gender differences. Men were found to use and access to both smartphone and computer more than women as well as the time spent on internet. In terms of perceived self-competence to use a smartphone or tablet, no significant differences were found between men and women.

PISA 2018 TÜRKİYE MATEMATİK OKURYAZARLIĞINI AÇIKLAYAN DEĞİŞKENLERİN CHAID ANALİZİ İLE İNCELENMESİ

This study aims to investigate the variables explaining mathematics literacy of Turkish students who attended at Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA). The topic of the study is at utmost importance due to the potential findings that will identify the variables influencing mathematical literacy in our education system and generate recommendations aimed at addressing shortcomings.This study utilizes the answers given to the PISA student questionnaire, which are analysed by correlational survey design.Stratified sampling design is used in the selection of 6890 students in Turkish sample. After excluding the missing data, the sample of the study consists of 5293 participants. Chi-squared Automatic Interaction Detection (CHAID) method, which is one of the data mining decision tree algorithms, is used for data analysis. According to the results of the study, the most important variable explaining Turkish students’ mathematic literacy is the number of the books at home. Father’s education level, highest parental education level, accessibility of ICT both at home and school, and time allocated per week to study mathematics are other variables explaining mathematics literacy.

Conceptual Framework for ICT Acceptance Impact on Students’ Academic Performance: Higher Education Institutes (HEIs) in Sindh,

Presently, Information and Communication Technologies (I&CT) is considered one of key element as services and features in higher education. Learning through traditional way is no longer the norm in higher education at present. Instead, advanced ICT is becoming a viable paradigm for fundamentally altering Higher Education Institutions (HIEs). In this regard, the Higher Education Commission (HEC) of Pakistan has launched several initiatives and made significant investments in the usage of technology in the education segment. However, it is unclear what influence ICT usage will have upon the environment, student academic performance, and learning. Evidence from literature the scarcity of research available on ICT impacts on students' academic performance, as well as the effectiveness of ICT in universities. Therefore, it needs to recognize the significance of ICT availability and the academic performance of students. The determination of this study is to explore, examine, and evaluate ICT acceptance impact on student performance at universities in Sindh, Pakistan. This study based on the extended Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) with various external factors. This is the basic model to understand user observations and behavior toward latent acceptance and denial. This research is based on a quantitative research technique for triangulate to acquire the optimal research outcome. A collection of facts in this study from students will be a cross-sectional questionnaire survey method. The Structure equation modeling (SEM) will be used to determine the rationality of the research model with Analysis of Moment Structures (AMOS) software. The estimated outcome of this study will showcase the extent at universities in Sindh, and also showcase the ICT impact on student academic performance. Based on those outcomes a critical framework would be recommended for students to integrate ICT.The significance of this framework will be recommended (HEIs) to enrich the quality of the education system by efficiently employing ICT to improve students' capacity to be more effective and quality-oriented professionals.