ERIC Number: EJ1439887
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2024-Aug
Pages: 20
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1360-2357
EISSN: EISSN-1573-7608
Unraveling the Attributions of Digital Literacy Skills and Knowledge Gap in Ghana's Higher Education: Undergraduate Students Voices in a Phenomenological Study
Jacob Oppong Nkansah; Yusuf Ikbal Oldac
Education and Information Technologies, v29 n12 p15249-15268 2024
Any undergraduate student lacking the knowledge and skills for digital technology will find it challenging to succeed academically and thrive in the 21st-century higher education setting. This study employed a novel conceptual framework built from ecological theory to investigate the attributions of the knowledge and skill gap in digital literacy among Ghanaian undergraduate students. A phenomenological qualitative design with a purposive sampling technique was implemented to collect data from 16 undergraduates in a large public university in Ghana in a four-months period. The findings show several factors responsible for students' digital literacy knowledge and skills gap. Undergraduates have ascribed these reasons to various macro and micro factors. The students attributed their skills gap to personal, parental, institutional, and government factors, pointing to the need for concerted action from national and international policymakers and educators alike. This paper argues that university lecturers, administrators, the Ministry of Education, and policymakers in Ghana should collaboratively redesign comprehensive, persuasive, and integrated digital literacy approaches to benefit undergraduate students at all levels.
Descriptors: Foreign Countries, Undergraduate Students, Student Empowerment, Digital Literacy, Knowledge Level, Universities, Student Attitudes, Barriers, Parent Influence, Government Role, Government School Relationship, Educational Background, Community Influence, Information Technology, Communications, Computer Mediated Communication
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Ghana
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A