Title:	DIGITAL LITERACY AMONGST FIRST YEAR UNIVERSITY STUDENTS FROM UNDER-RESOURCED SCHOOLS
Author(s):	Mmaki Jantjies and Vuyani Dalasile
ISBN:	978-989-8533-85-2
Editors:	Piet Kommers, Pascal Ravesteijn, Guido Ongena and Pedro Isaías
Year:	2019
Edition:	Single
Keywords:	E-learning, South Africa, Digital Literacy, High Schools, Higher Education
Type:	Full Paper
First Page:	235
Last Page:	242
Language:	English
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Full Contents:	click to dowload
Paper Abstract:	Electronic Learning (E-Learning) has enabled students in higher education to access further learning resources online through mobile and digital platforms. Higher learning institutions have adopted E-Learning strategies and technologies to enhance the teaching and learning process. Such resources enable students to access learning material and content beyond the campus environment. Furthermore, the continuous use of e-learning enables students to enhance their basic computing and digital skills which would be vital for employment requirements. In an African context, although e-learning enables learning through various technology platforms, children from underprivileged backgrounds come with little to no computer literacy education to sustain the needs of mobile and electronic learning platform use in a higher learning institutions. Coupled with a culture shock of moving from rural and peri-urban environments to the urban university environments, e-learning can place great demands on student’s basic digital literacy skills required in educational institutions. This study seeks to understand the e-learning challenges experienced by students from disadvantaged backgrounds with limited digital and computer literacy skills investigating how higher learning institutions can support basic computer and digital literacy acquisition. Through a quantitative case study in a South African university, 79 students provided perspectives on their experiences of transitioning to the computer and digital needs of higher educational institutions through a questionnaire study. This study found that the institution under study had placed various training and support programs at an institutional level to support student’s computer and digital literacy needs. While such support was commonly acknowledged by participants, the study also found the vital role that faculty and various departmental level interventions can have in improving electronic and mobile learning experiences for students.
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