Technology Acceptance Model and E-learning

Abstract

The technology acceptance model (TAM) proposes that perceived ease of use and perceived usefulness predict applications usage. The study-in-progress investigated TAM for work-related tasks with the e-learning, and used TAM as a basis for hypothesizing the effects of such variables on the use of e-learning as the application. E-learning has become an increasingly popular learning approach in higher education institutions due to the rapid growth of Internet technologies in Malaysia. It has been integrated in many university programs, and is one of the new learning trends that challenge the banking concept of education (i.e. assumes that the instructor or teacher owns the knowledge and deposits it into the students who attend the class). E-learning is not intended to replace the traditional classroom setting, but to provide new opportunities for interaction and communication between students and instructor or teacher. This study focuses on the individual users ’ acceptance investigation for the e-learning in universities as an effective learning tool. It develops a technology usage model for the e-learning.The contributions of this study are three fold. First, this study may help identify whether learners or users would like to accept e-learning or vice versa. Second, this study will help to determine what are the factors that significant in explaining the intention towards e-learning. An attempt is made whether attitudinal belief such as perceived ease of use and perceived usefulness has relationship towards the e-learning adoption. Third, this study is among the first to use the technology acceptance model in the context of e-learning.