FEMALE DISTANCE EDUCATION UNDERGRADUATE STUDENTS’ PERCEPTION OF THE EFFECTS OF INFORMATION COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY (ICT) USAGE ON THEIR ACADEMIC WORK

ABSTRACT

This descriptive study was conducted to examine the extent to which female Distance Education undergraduate students use computers and the Internet and how these facilities affect their academic work. An attempt was made to identify the reasons for the apparent lack of interest by the female students in the use of ICT. The study was carried out in four public universities in Ghana.

A simple random sampling technique was used to select four hundred subjects for the study. Three hypotheses were formulated and tested using one-way ANOVA and post-hoc test. The study showed that there is a statistically significant difference among Ghanaian female Distance Education undergraduates in the usage, barriers, skills and competences in ICT. The study also established that there is a statistically significant difference in the effects of ICT use on academic work among Ghanaian female Distance Education undergraduate students. It is recommended that female Distance Education undergraduate students be encouraged to use computers in ways that will contribute to their learning.