What works and why? Student perceptions of ‘useful’ digital technology in university teaching and learning

TLDR

Digital technologies are now integral to university students’ experience, prompting research into their potential to enhance learning. This study examines students’ real‑world experiences of digital technology, identifying which aspects they find most useful. A survey of 1,658 undergraduates revealed 11 key digital benefits—such as flexible access, task organization, material replay, and visual learning—yet showed that technology, while central, does not fundamentally transform university teaching, suggesting educators should temper enthusiasm and better understand student encounters.

Abstract

Digital technologies are now an integral aspect of the university student experience. As such, academic research has understandably focused on the potential of various digital technologies to enable, extend and even 'enhance' student learning. This paper offers an alternate perspective on these issues by exploring students' actual experiences of digital technology during their academic studies – highlighting the aspects of digital technology use that students themselves see as particularly helpful and/or useful. Drawing on a survey of 1658 undergraduate students, the paper identifies 11 distinct digital 'benefits' – ranging from flexibilities of time and place, ease of organizing and managing study tasks through to the ability to replay and revisit teaching materials, and learn in more visual forms. While these data confirm digital technologies as central to the ways in which students experience their studies, they also suggest that digital technologies are not 'transforming' the nature of university teaching and learning. As such, university educators perhaps need to temper enthusiasms for what might be achieved through technology-enabled learning and develop better understandings of the realities of students' encounters with digital technology.