Effectiveness of using information technology in higher education in Saudi Arabia

Fahad N. Alfahad (2012) Effectiveness of using information technology in higher education in Saudi Arabia, Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences, Vol.46, pp.1268 – 1278

Abstract
Information technology (IT) refers to “personal electronic devices such as laptops and handheld computers, smart phones, and institution’s computers and associated devices”. This study investigates the usefulness, efficiency and efficacy of information technology in higher education in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The study was conducted in the College of Education, King Saud University. The survey was distributed among 161 female college students selected randomly from a pool of 400 female students who were attending different courses in different areas. Results indicated that 61.5% of the participants used the electronic device in their course activities and 65.8% used IT for blogging. Interestingly, 72% of participants are often doing
online shopping and 88.6% of the students are often creating read, send e-mail and instant messages. A number of issues arising from this study were included in the conclusion and implications.

Keywords: higher education,educational technology,elearning,Saudi arabia