Comparing factors that influence learning management systems use on computers and on mobile
| Published date | 08 July 2019 |
| Pages | 468-488 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/ILS-12-2018-0127 |
| Date | 08 July 2019 |
| Author | Xiao Hu,Chun Lai |
| Subject Matter | Library & information science,Librarianship/library management,Library & information services |
Comparing factors that influence
learning management systems use
on computers and on mobile
Xiao Hu and Chun Lai
Faculty of Education, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
Abstract
Purpose –Learning management systems (LMSs) have been embraced for their potential to create a
ubiquitouslearning that is free from time and space constraints. Mobiledevices afford enhanced mobility that
enables flexible learning with LMSs. Thus, understanding students’use of mobile devices to interact with
LMSs and the influencingfactors is essential. This paper aims to examine the factorsthat influenced students’
behavioural intentionin using Web-based LMSs via mobile phones and compared the factors with those that
affect students’generalacceptance of Web-based LMSs.
Design/methodology/approach –This study surveyed 356 university students and interviewed 17
students on the variousfactors that might affect their LMS adoption. Structural equation modellingwas used
to analyse the survey data.
Findings –This study identified that perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, social influence and
facilitating conditionswere significant determinants of students’usage intention in both contexts. However,
social factors exerted greater influence on students’behavioural intentions of mobile access than the
attitudinal factors. The resultsalso pinpointed some sociocultural and tempo-spatial factorsthat might have
minimizedthe influence of perceived usefulness in the mobile context.
Originality/value –The study calls forspecial attention to the potential influences of socioculturalnorms
and tempo-spatial circumstances of mobile use in shaping the nature of learners’voluntary mobile use of
LMSs.
Keywords Higher education, E-learning, Learning management system,
Comparing computer and mobile access, Mobile technology adoption,
The unified theory of acceptance and use of technology (UTAUT), Mobile phone
Paper type Research paper
1. Introduction
Learning management systems(LMSs), such as Moodle, Blackboard, Canvas, Sakai etc., are
widely adopted by higher education institutes worldwide to support distance learning or to
complement classroom instruction (Busaidi, 2012). LMSs have been found to facilitate
student active learning and boost interaction between students and faculty members
(Lonn and Teasley, 2009). A major affordance of LMSsis to enable flexible learning that is
This project was supported by the Teaching Development Grants (TDG) of the University of Hong
Kong.
Statements on open data, ethics and conflict of interest: Requests of anonymous data can be made
to the corresponding author.
This study was conducted with full ethical approval from the University of Hong Kong. We
obtained informed consent from participants, and they were informed that their responses would be
anonymized and kept confidential.
The authors do not report any conflicts of interest.
ILS
120,7/8
468
Received14 December 2018
Revised26 April 2019
8 July2019
Accepted8 July 2019
Informationand Learning
Sciences
Vol.120 No. 7/8, 2019
pp. 468-488
© Emerald Publishing Limited
2398-5348
DOI 10.1108/ILS-12-2018-0127
The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available on Emerald Insight at:
www.emeraldinsight.com/2398-5348.htm
free from the restrictions of time and space (Sharma and Vatta, 2013), and mobile devices
could play a major role in facilitating learners’utilization of this affordance.Mobile devices
give learners increased mobility to create “impromptu sites of learning”and personalized
learning ecologies acrosstime and space (Bachmair and Pachler, 2014;Kukulska-Hulme and
Sharples, 2016). Supporting learners to use the enhanced mobility afforded by mobile
devices to engage in flexible learning withLMSs is essential to maximizing the educational
affordances of LMSs. As learner agency is the core of mobile learning (Underwood et al.,
2014), understanding learners’intention of using mobile devices to interact with LMSs and
the influencing factorsis hence critical.
Extant studies on learners’intentions of using mobile devices to interactwith LMSs have
primarily examined university students’intention for mobile learning in general (Cavus,
2011;O’Bannon and Thomas, 2015) or their adoption of LMSs mobile apps in the distance
learning context (Shin and Kang, 2015;Joo et al., 2016;Han and Shin, 2016). There is a
paucity of study that investigates university students’intention to use mobile phones to
access traditional Web-based LMSs that accompany face-to-face classroom instruction.
Given that the use of Web-based LMSs complementing classroom instruction is a common
phenomenon at the university setting, understanding the factors that influenced students’
intention to accessWeb-based LMSs via mobile phones is much needed.This study aimed at
filling in this research gap by examining factorsthat predict university students’intention
of using LMSs via mobile access and comparing the factors with students’acceptance of
LMSs in general. The comparisoncould help reveal the factors that need particular attention
when promoting mobilephone access to Web-based LMSs[1].
2. Literature review
There has been some research on LMS usage in educational contexts, and this body of
literature has largely focused on the design of LMSs and documentingstudents’perceptions
and experience with LMSs in general (Rubin etal.,2010;Sharma and Vatta, 2013). Although
some studies have examined factors that influence students’adoption of LMSs (Hsu, 2012;
Nasser et al.,2011), limited research has been conducted to understandstudents’perceptions
and behaviors related to mobile-assisted LMS usage. In effect, mobile access to LMSs have
been found to enhance students’ubiquitousaccess to learning materials and activities on the
move (O’Bannon and Thomas, 2015), and to be positively associated with online students’
learning satisfaction and academicachievement (Han and Shin, 2016;Shin and Kang, 2015).
Given the proliferation and normalization of mobile phones in university students’general
and school life (Dahlstrom et al., 2014), and the educational affordances of mobile learning
(Bachmair and Pachler, 2014;Kukulska-Hulme et al.,2017), research is much needed to
understand students’perceptions and engagement in ubiquitous learning with LMSs via
mobile phones.
Studies on students’perceptions of mobile devices for learning have yielded mixed
findings. Some studies have revealed students’reservations in using mobile devices for
learning due to technical constraints of mobile devices and users’psychological limitations
such as the preferreduse of mobile devices for hedonic purposes over instructionalpurposes
(Park, 2011;Wang et al.,2009). Other studies have reported students’positive disposition
towards the use of mobile devices for learning (Cheon et al., 2012;Dahlstrom et al.,2014).
There have been a limited number of studies on students’acceptance of using mobile
devices to access LMSs, and these studies have also reported mixed findings.For instance,
Cavus (2011) reported positive perceptions from students on the use of mobile devices in
accessing an LMS. In contrast, Han and Han (2014) found that despite perceiving the
advantages of mobileLMSs, students may regard mobile LMSs as complex and hencemight
Learning
management
systems
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