Media Use for Learning by Students in Higher Education: An International Empirical Survey
Michael Grosch
Institute of Education and Vocational Education, Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, Germany
Web 2.0 has already penetrated the learning environment of students. The dissemination of online information services in tertiary education has led to many changes in students’ learning and study behavior. Students now use services such as Google and Wikipedia not only for leisure but also for learning. At the same time, traditional information media such as textbooks or printed hand-outs are still basic components of their learning environment. To measure media usage for learning and how it changes, an international long-term media survey in tertiary education was set up by the author and other partners. Beginning with a first survey carried out at Karlsruhe Institute of Technology in 2009, a total of 13 surveys at 11 institutions of higher education in several countries have been carried out. As of October 2011 about 10,000 students have been asked 143 questions about their information media use for learning and related topics.
The survey measures and compares usage frequency and satisfaction with 48 services, among them information media services such as Google, Google Books, library catalogues, printed books, e-books, printed journals, e-journals, Wikipedia, open educational resources, and bibliographic software. Other variables are evaluated, such as learning behaviour, media usage during free time, usage of IT hardware, education biography, and socio-demographic factors.
Keywords: media, media use, higher education, tertiary education, information media, learning media, e-learning, Web 2.0, information systems, information science