The effect of students' subject discipline on their m-learning application preferences

摘要

The effect of students' subject discipline on their preferences toward m-learning applications was investigated by using a mixed-method research design. A questionnaire on students' preferences of m-learning application features was used to collect data from 181 undergraduate students. One-way analysis of variance found a significant difference among perceptions of students from different subject disciplines related to the collaboration and learning features. Follow-up interviews were carried out to further investigate students' perceptions. Content analysis revealed that availability and ease of use were the most preferred features, and collaboration and entertaining were the least preferred ones. Interview results related to universities' readiness for m-learning were categorized into (i) universities' infrastructures, (ii) instructors' skills and (iii) students' skills for m-learning. Students indicated their universities' infrastructures as moderately ready for m-learning. They ranked their instructors' skills as low. However, students assessed their own skills as moderate for utilizing m-learning in their respective universities.