Abstract
This chapter examines higher education students studying in Australia, Malaysia, New Zealand, and Samoa on their attitudes toward online learning and its effects on academic performance after the first COVID-19 lockdown. A total of 165 usable responses from 260 online surveys distributed (63.5%) were analyzed. The results revealed that students across the four countries had a positive attitude toward online learning, which significantly improved their academic performance. Interestingly, information literacy had a negative association with academic performance and attitudes toward online learning. This indicates that students with higher information literacy do not necessarily favor online learning. Facilitating conditions and learning support from higher education institutions (HEIs) strengthened students' attitudes toward online learning performance. The findings highlight the importance of providing continuous support for students studying online.
TopLiterature Review And Hypotheses Development
The plethora of literature agree that attitude is a good predictor of intention and behavior. For example, the technology acceptance model (TAM) theory advances the notion that attitude has a strong effect on intention, which in turn affects the actual technology use behavior (Davis et al., 1989; Marangunić & Granić, 2015). Likewise, in the theory of planned behavior, Ajzen (1991) proposes that attitude affects intention and eventuates a driver of the actual behavior. Given these theoretical underpinnings, students’ attitude, and intentions to take online courses during the COVID-19 lockdowns present an interesting opportunity to examine how HEI leadership and support systems were able to provide for online learning in the context of students’ information literacy. To make the best use of information technology (IT), HEIs needed a workable plan to integrate IT fully into all aspects of educational services, from online classes to graduation ceremonies. The extent to which this unprecedented mandatory online learning correlates with students’ attitudes toward online learning and its impact on their academic performance has not been thoroughly researched. It is vital, however, to understand the conditions unique to higher education in the pandemic, including information literacy, facilitating conditions, and COVID-19 related variables. This study progresses this exploratory study to advance the understanding on the role of positive attitude and other influencing factors on the students’ academic performance.
Key Terms in this Chapter
Attitude: The student’s approaches to their studies during the COVID-19 first lockdown.
Online Learning: The method of learning delivered remotely online.
Higher Education: Tertiary education leading to award of an academic degree provided by public and private institutions.
Information Literacy: The ability to identify, find, evaluate, and use information to learn effectively.
Engagement Strategy: The strategy to increase students’ engagement with their learning materials and activities.
Academic Performance: The measurement of student achievement during the COVID-19 first lockdown.