Effect of e-Learning and its Social Impact on Higher Education Students

Prof. Neelam Dhamija

M. M. College of Education
M.M. University Campus
Mullana-133207 Haryana, India

ABSTRACT

Education is a continuous, complex, dynamic and life long process. Now- a- days,
technology occupies a prominent place in bringing revolution in the field of education
.Especially, the Information technology has brought tremendous changes in education with new
technology of internet. Internet is a technological development that has the potential to change
not only the way of society but also to transform and restructure traditional mode of higher
education, particularly the delivery and interaction with course materials and associated
resources. This research study was conducted to find the effects of e-learning and its social
impact on higher education students. An attitude scale was developed and standardized to know
about their attitude towards the effect of e-learning. To measure the social impact of e-learning
on higher education students, questionnaire was developed and its validity was seen. 150 higher
education students were taken up. Significant differences were found between the attitude of
higher education rural and urban students as well as students from arts and science stream.
Along with it, percentage was calculated to find out the social impact of e- learning on higher
education students. It was also found that most of the higher education students were having
positive attitude towards the social impact of e-learning.

Key Words: e-Learning , Effect, Social Impact and Higher Education Students

INTRODUCTION

Education is a continuous, complex, dynamic and life long process. Now- a- days,
technology occupies a prominent place in bringing revolution in the field of education.
Especially, the Information technology has brought tremendous changes in education with new
technology of internet The Internet is a technological development that has the potential to
change not only the way of society but also to transform and restructure traditional mode of
higher education, particularly the delivery and interaction with course materials and associated
resources. Internet is the key ingredient in economic as well as social development. .21 st century

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is characterized with the emergence of knowledge based society wherein internet plays an
important role. The education is not an exception and also influenced with the new technology
of internet. To satisfy the needs of the society, the teachers as well as the learners have to be
made familiar with the use of internet in the form of e-learning in teaching learning process.
Thus, e-learning is a process of learning by using internet which enables each learner to enjoy
the privilege of independent learning.

JUSTIFICATION OF THE STUDY

E-learning (Electronic Learning) emerged as a new tool which has the potential to
enhance and support the traditional learning system. It is the outcome of internet which has
gifted education with flexibility in time, place and need-oriented learning. It has become an
integral part of the learning used by every educational organization. It is asynchronous in nature
as it does not compel the students to learn at the same time .But it allows learner to participate
and complete course work in accordance with their daily commitments. This makes e-learning as
viable option for those who have other commitments such as family or work. Thus, it provides
the accessibility for individuals who wish to learn at their own pace, place and time. It provides a
platform for virtual learning and an uninterrupted learning through distance mode but reduces the
distance between the teacher and the taught. It facilitates searching of information and learning
content on the Internet. It has also improved the conventional learning by computer-supported
acquisition, distribution and creation of knowledge. Different researchers have different views
towards the use and effects of e-learning. Siman (2001) studied the usage of technology as a
replacement for rather than a supplement to a traditional text book. He found that the technology
was more useful than traditional media. Sandars and Shelter (2002) examined students’ attitude
with regard to the WEL (Web Enabled Learning) components in a general Biology course for
under-graduates. The results showed a positive effect of WEL on students’ learning, problem
solving skills, and critical thinking skills. Derouza and Fleming (2003) compared the under-
graduates who completed quizzes online with those who took traditional paper based quizzes.
The obtained marks revealed that students who took the quizzes online significantly
outperformed than the students who took the pencil & paper quizzes. Uma (2004) studied the
role of computer and technology in classroom teaching and learning process in the subjects of
Science and Mathematics. She proved that the revision helps in improving scores. The
performance of the students was better after computer revision. Kai Wen Cheng (2006) studied
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the students’ level of satisfaction in applying e-learning in Taiwan. He concluded that students’
level of satisfaction in applying e-learning for business courses was pretty high. Further, he
found that gender, school system and computer skills did not affect students’ level of acceptance
in applying e-learning courses. Mitchell et al. (2007) conducted another exploratory study on
web-enhanced learning in under-graduate nurse education. They found that students held
favorable attitude towards Web-enhanced learning in under-graduate nurse education, but some
students experienced difficulties. Almobarraz and Farag (2009) studied the Attitude of under
graduates towards e-learning in Saudi Arabia. The results indicated an overall positive attitude
of under graduates towards the e-learning. Kumar and Kumar (2011) carried out a study to find
out the attitude of teachers of Higher Education towards e-learning. The findings of this study
revealed that the teachers who were familiar with computer and information & communication
technology had a favourable attitude towards e-learning.
However, the process of e-learning and its applications are unlimited in the field of
education. But there is the need to establish the deep roots of e-learning in the educational
system of India. For this purpose, some research work is required in the current educational
setup to maintain the quality of education. Keeping this in view, this research work was taken
up to collect in depth knowledge about the attitude of higher education students towards new
way of teaching and learning.

OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

(1) To study the attitude of higher education students towards the use of e-learning.
(2) To find out the difference in the attitude of rural and urban higher education students
towards the use of e-learning.
(3) To find out the difference in the attitude of arts and science streams higher education
students towards the use of e-learning.
(3) To study the social impact of e-learning on higher education students.
HYPOTHESES
Keeping in the view the objectives of the study and review of literature, following
hypotheses were framed for this research study:-
(1) There exists significant difference in the attitude of higher education students of rural
and science streams towards e-learning.

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 (2) There exists significant difference in the attitude of arts and science stream higher
education students towards the use of e-learning.

METHODOLOGY

In this study, descriptive method was used to investigate the attitude of higher education
students towards the effect and social impact of e-learning.

SAMPLE FOR THE STUDY

Stratified random sampling was used to collect the data. In stratified random sampling,
the whole population is, at first, stratified or divided into different strata, as are needed. On the
basis of some characteristics and then from these different stratified groups sample is selected
randomly. The population of the study was consisted of the higher education students of different
streams of Kurukshetra district. The population was divided into two strata viz. Arts and Science
streams. One hundred and fifty higher education students were taken as sample for this study.
The distribution of the sample is shown in the table I.
Table I
Stream wise distribution of the sample
Sr. No. Educational Stream Rural Urban Total

1 Arts 37 43 80
2 Science 33 37 70
Total 70 80 150

TOOLS USED

An Attitude Scale towards e-Learning and a Questionnaire for Social Impact of

e-Learning were developed and validated. These tools were applied on higher education students
to find out the effect of e-learning as well as to evaluate its social impact.

STATISTICAL TECHNIQUES USED

The collected data was analyzed by using the statistical techniques like t-test and
percentage. In order to find out the difference between the attitude of higher education rural and
urban students as well as students from arts and science streams, t- test was applied. To find out
the social impact of e- learning on higher education students, percentage was calculated.

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ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION

I. Attitude of Higher Education Students towards the Use of e-Learning

Attitude of higher education students towards the use of e-learning was evaluated with
the help of frequency distribution. It was prepared and percentage of the total higher education
students was calculated for each class interval of the attitude scores as shown in the table II.

Table II
Frequency Distribution & Percentage of Attitude
Score of Higher Education Students
Class-Interval on Frequency % of the Students
Attitude Scores
115-111 02 1.30
110-106 07 4.70
105-101 16 10.7
100-96 19 12.7
95-91 27 18.0
90-86 20 13.33
85-81 21 14.0
80-76 08 05.3
75-71 12 08.0
70-66 16 10.67
65-61 02 01.30
Total 150 100

From table II, it can be seen that 1.30 % students scored highest on attitude scale. 4.7% of the
higher education students responded between 110 -106 and 10.7 % students scored between
105 – 101 out of 115. Table II also shows that 12.7 % students scored between 100-96 and 18%
students responded between 95-91 on the attitude scale. 13.33 % students scored between 90-86,
14% students scored between 85-81, 5.3% students scored between 80-76, 8% students scored
between 75-71. It can also be seen that few students i.e., 10.67% scored between 70-66 and only
1.3% students scored lowest scores i.e., between 65-61 on the attitude scale. So table II indicates
that 60.73% higher education students scored above 85 score and 39.27% higher education
students scored below 85 score on the attitude scale. So this can be concluded that maximum
higher education students have positive attitude towards the use of e-learning.

II. Difference between the Attitude of Rural and Urban Higher Education Students
towards the Use of e-Learning
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 Table III

Comparison between the Attitude of Rural and Urban

Higher Education Students towards the Use of e-Learning
Locality N Mean S.D t-ratio Level of
Significance
Rural 70 89.1 11.33
2.65 Significant at .01
Urban 80 93.36 9.61 level

It can be observed from table III that Mean attitude scores of rural and urban students are
89.1 and 93.36 with corresponding S.D.s 11.33 and 9.61 respectively. The calculated’t’ -ratio
between these two groups is 2.65 which is significant at both levels of significance. Therefore,
the hypothesis “there exists significant difference in the attitude of higher education students
of rural and urban towards e-learning” is retained. It indicates that rural and urban higher
education students differed significantly in their attitude towards the use of
e-learning.
It is also evident from table III that Mean score of urban students is more than their rural
counterpart in their attitude towards the use of e-learning. It implies that urban students possess
more positive attitude than the rural students towards the use of e-learning.

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III. Difference between the Attitude of Arts and Science Group Higher Education
Students towards the use of e-learning

Table IV
Comparison between the Attitude of Arts and Science
Higher Education Students towards the Use of e-learning

Stream N Mean S.D t-ratio Level of

Significance
Arts 80 89.88 10.88
Not
1.94 significant
Science 70 86.04 13.07

It can be observed from table IV that Mean scores of arts and science stream students are
89.88 and 86.04 with corresponding S.D.s 10.88 and 13.07 respectively. The computed 't' ratio
came out to be 1.94 which is not significant at any level. Hence, the hypothesis that t here exists
significant difference in the attitude of arts and science stream higher education students
towards the use of e-learning” is rejected. It indicates that arts and science streams higher
education students do not differ significantly in their attitude towards the use of e-learning.
IV. Result Related to Social Impact of e-learning on Higher Education Students
Table V
Social Impact of e-learning on Higher Education Students
Social Impact No. of Students Percentage of Students
Positive 126 84
Negative 09 06
Undecided 15 10
Total 150 100

Table V highlights the social impact of e-learning on higher education students. It is evident
from above given table that 84% students perceived positive social impact of e-learning in their
lives whereas 6% students perceived negative social impact of e-learning. But 10% students
remained undecided about the social impact of e-learning. Thus, it can be said that maximum
number of higher education students are having positive social impact of e-learning.

CONCLUSIONS

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  One of the finding shows that most of the higher education students have positive attitude
towards the effect of e-learning. It may be due to the fact that they understand the utility
of technology for self learning.
 There exists significant difference in the attitude of urban and rural higher education
students towards the use of e-learning .The reason may be that urban students have more
spare time as well as internet facility at home in comparison to rural students.
 There exists no significant difference in the attitude of arts stream and science stream
higher education students towards the use of e-learning. The results indicate that in
today’s environment there is no difference in the attitude of arts stream and science
stream students towards the use of sophisticated devices. The reason may be that outlook
of arts stream students has broadened and they have learned to compete with science
stream students. They are also exposed to all those sophisticated devices which were
earlier in the use of science stream students only.
 It was found that higher education students are experiencing positive social impact of
e-learning. It may be due to their regular access and usage of web based materials and
exposure of technology for solving their problems of day today life.

On the basis of the findings of this study, it can be said that e-learning has positive effect
as well as positive social impact on most of the higher education students. But to comply with
the demands of the present teaching learning situations, it should be taken up to 100%. For this
purpose, efforts should be done by teachers, students, planners as well as administrators for using
e-learning frequently in the field of education. Most of the teachers do not have open mind
towards the use of e-learning in general as well as for teaching learning process. Moreover,
teachers should also motivate Students to utilize e-learning for mastery of new concepts of
different subjects. The administrators should be directed to send teachers for getting training for
the appropriate use of e-learning as well as for applying it in everyday activities. It can be done
with the help of various types of workshops and summer schools which will provide them
training for proper usage of e-learning. They should introduce few units in the curriculum which
should be prepared with the help of e-learning. Along with it, educational administrators should
be trained in the use of e- learning. It will certainly prove helpful in framing time-table, locating
teacher’s positions, managing library, assessing students’ progress and maintaining official

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record. Concludingly, it can be said that e-learning is at its infancy stage in Indian class-rooms
but it is going to play an important role for educational scenario in near future.

However, there are also some disadvantages of e-learning which have been identified as lack of
peer contact and interaction, high initial costs for preparing multimedia content of learning
materials. But some factors of traditional learning like cooperation and face-to-face social
interaction has been found lacking by introduction of e-learning in education. But In this age of
information explosion, e- learning has become part and parcel of life and one cannot exist
without it.

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