“A study on use of computer among higher secondary students as related
with their computer attitude, achievement in computer science, Selfefficacy in computer, Internet attitude and computer anxiety”
JOMY JOHNSON,
Research scholar,
SRM University.
Main function of secondary education is to prepare the young to live effectively and
properly as adults in the society. It will also help to develop intellectual powers of the
young and transmit the knowledge and wisdom of the society to the new generation.
Now a day the world is changing rapidly with the technological advancement. So
students must cater with the needs of the society. Information Technology is the most
developing science. So the students must know the application of the Information
Technology in daily life. The tremendous influence and growth of computer
technology creates pressures on everyone affected by its proliferation to interact with
computers and become proficient in their use. The computer is causing a change in
society that is comparable to the change occasioned by the industrial revolution. This
awareness depends upon the use of computer among the higher secondary students.
The use of computer among the higher secondary students is connected with
computer attitude, Computer anxiety, Achievement in computer science, self-efficacy
in computer, internet attitude and Computer anxiety. The successful completion of
this study is depending upon the use of computer, computer attitude, Achievement in
computer science, self-efficacy in computer, internet attitude and Computer anxiety
of the higher secondary students. So we must know the levels of use of computer,
computer attitude, Achievement in computer science, self-efficacy in computer and
1
internet attitude and Computer anxiety. The present study will contribute to some
extent for that knowledge. In this era of technological advancement, computer
education is considered to be an essential ingredient of education. But use of
computer, computer attitude, Achievement in computer science, self-efficacy in
computer, internet attitude and computer anxiety of a student is an important factor in
determining his progress in the field of computer education. Since the computer
education is now a part of many higher secondary levels have computer awareness.
The students and teachers belonging to higher secondary levels may have a chance of
good knowledge in computer. The students already had some familiarity or had not
have familiarity with the use of computer at higher secondary level.
Computer
attitude, Achievement in computer science, self-efficacy in computer, internet attitude
and Computer anxiety of students in education are inevitably affected by their
familiarity with access to the technology. The computer knowledge possessed by the
students will be very useful to them for their future development and if they have a
high level of computer attitude, Achievement in computer science, self-efficacy in
computer, internet attitude and Computer anxiety then they may an inclination
towards the use of computer knowledge for their academic growth. It is also believed
that if they possess a high level of computer attitude, Achievement in computer
science, self-efficacy in computer, internet attitude and computer anxiety then there
may be a chance for them to make use of computer easily. The aim of the study
reported here was to investigate “A study on use of computer among higher
secondary students as related with their computer attitude, Achievement in computer
science, self-efficacy in computer, internet attitude and Computer anxiety”.
2
OBJECTIVES
The investigator has framed the following objectives for this present investigation.
1) To find out use of computer and its possible relationship to computer attitude,
Achievement in computer science, self-efficacy in computer, internet attitude and
Computer anxiety.
2) To find out use of computer and its possible association to computer attitude,
Achievement in computer science, self-efficacy in computer, internet attitude and
Computer anxiety.
3) To study the significance of the difference between the sub-samples of the
students in respect of their Use of computer, computer attitude, Achievement in
computer science, self-efficacy in computer, internet attitude and Computer
anxiety.
4) To study the levels of use of computer, computer attitude, Achievement in
computer science, self-efficacy in computer, internet attitude and Computer
anxiety among higher secondary students.
HYPOTHESES
1) There is significant relationship between use of computer with computer attitude,
Achievement in computer science, self-efficacy in computer, internet attitude and
Computer anxiety of higher secondary students.
2) There is significant association between use of computer with computer attitude,
Achievement in computer science, self-efficacy in computer, internet attitude and
Computer anxiety of higher secondary students.
3) There is significant difference in the use of computer between: male and female
higher secondary students; higher secondary students studying in urban schools
and rural schools; higher secondary students studying in Science and arts subject;
Parent’s with knowledge about computer and Parent’s without knowledge about
3
computer of higher secondary students, Availability of Personal computer at
home and not availability of Personal computer at home of higher secondary
students.
4) There is significant difference in the Achievement in computer science between:
male and female higher secondary students; higher secondary students studying in
urban schools and rural schools; higher secondary students studying in Science
and arts subject; Parent’s with knowledge about computer and Parent’s without
knowledge about computer of higher secondary students, Availability of Personal
computer at home and not availability of Personal computer at home of higher
secondary students.
5) There is significant difference in the computer attitude between: male and female
higher secondary students; higher secondary students studying in urban schools
and rural schools; higher secondary students studying in Science and arts subject;
Parent’s with knowledge about computer and Parent’s without knowledge about
computer of higher secondary students, Availability of Personal computer at
home and not availability of Personal computer at home of higher secondary
students.
6) There is significant difference in the self-efficacy in computer between: male and
female higher secondary students; higher secondary students studying in urban
schools and rural schools; higher secondary students studying in Science and arts
subject; Parent’s with knowledge about computer and Parent’s without knowledge
about computer of higher secondary students, Availability of Personal computer
at home and not availability of Personal computer at home of higher secondary
students.
7) There is significant difference in the internet attitude between: male and female
higher secondary students; higher secondary students studying in urban schools
and rural schools; higher secondary students studying in Science and arts subject;
Parent’s with knowledge about computer and Parent’s without knowledge about
computer of higher secondary students, Availability of Personal computer at
home and not availability of Personal computer at home of higher secondary
students.
4
8) There is significant difference in the computer anxiety between: male and female
higher secondary students; higher secondary students studying in urban schools
and rural schools; higher secondary students studying in Science and arts subject;
Parent’s with knowledge about computer and Parent’s without knowledge about
computer of higher secondary students, Availability of Personal computer at
home and not availability of Personal computer at home of higher secondary
students.
PROCEDURE
Tools
Tools used were: a scale to measure use of computer among higher secondary Students
constructed and validated by the investigator (2008), computer attitude scale constructed
and validated by kumaran and selvaraj (2001), a scale to measure self-efficacy in
computer among higher secondary Students constructed and validated by the investigator
(2008), internet attitude scale constructed and validated by the investigator (2008) and
computer anxiety scale constructed and validated by the investigator (2008).
Achievement in computer science was measured from the achievement scores in
computer science of higher secondary students are taken from teachers.
In the present study a scale to measure use of computer among the higher
secondary Students is constructed and validated by the investigator was used. It is of the
Likert type having as many as 32 statements. Each statement is set against a 5 point scale
of “often”, “always”, “sometimes”, “never” and weight of 4,3,2,1 are given in that order
for the statements .An individual score is sum of all the scores for the 32 items. The score
in the scale to measure use of computer range form 0 to 128. The reliability and validity
of the scale is 0.62 and 0.78.
In the present study computer attitude scale is constructed and validated by
kumaran and selvaraj (2001) was used. It is of the Likert type having as many as 36
5
statements. 18 of them are favourably worded and the remaining 18 are unfavourably
worded. Each statement is set against a 5 point scale of “Strongly agree”, “Agree”,
“Undecided”, “Disagree” and “Strong Disagree” and weight of 4,3,2,1 & 0 are given in
that order for the favourable statements and the scoring is reversed for the unfavourable
statements, An individual score is sum of all the scores for the 36 items. The score in the
computer attitude scale range form 0 to 144. The reliability and validity of the computer
attitude scale are 0.78 and 0.88.
In the present study a scale to measure self-efficacy in computer among higher
secondary students is constructed and validated by the investigator was used. It is of the
Likert type having as many as 16 statements. 8 of them are positively worded and the
remaining 8 are negatively worded. Each statement is set against a 5 point scale of
“Strongly agree”, “Agree”, “Undecided”, “Disagree” and “Strong Disagree” and weight
of 4,3,2,1 & 0 are given in that order for the positive statements and the scoring is
reversed for the negative statements, An individual score is sum of all the scores for the
16 items. The score in the scale to measure self-efficacy in computer among higher
secondary students range form 0 to 80. The reliability and validity of the scale is 0.74 and
0.86.
In the present study a scale to measure internet attitude is constructed and validated
by the investigator was used. It is of the Likert type having as many as 16 statements.
Each statement is set against a 5 point scale of “often”, “always”, “sometimes”, “never”
and weight of 4,3,2,1 are given in that order for the statements .An individual score is
sum of all the scores for the 16 items. The score in the Higher secondary student’s
6
internet attitude scale range form 0 to 64. The validity and reliability of the higher
secondary student’s internet attitude scale are 0.61 and 0.78.
In the present study higher secondary student’s computer anxiety
scale is constructed and validated by the investigator was used. It is of the Likert type
having as many as 20 statements. 9 of them are positively worded and the remaining 11
are negatively worded. Each statement is set against a 5 point scale of “Strongly agree”,
“Agree”, “Undecided”, “Disagree” and “Strongly Disagree” and weight of 4,3,2,1 & 0
are given in that order for the positive statements and the scoring is reversed for the
negative statements, An individual score is sum of all the scores for the 20 items. The
score in the computer anxiety scale range form 0 to 80. Reliability and validity of the
higher secondary student’s computer anxiety scale is 0.79 and 0.88.
Sample
Cluster sampling technique has been used in the selection of the sample of as many as
802 students studying in the Higher Secondary Schools situated in the Thrissur district of
Kerala, India. 25 Higher Secondary Schools have been chosen by lottery method from
Thrissur district of Kerala. Out of these 25 Higher Secondary Schools, 11 happened to be
located in the urban areas and the remaining 14 were located in the rural areas. Likewise
out of the 25 Higher Secondary Schools, 7 happened to be Higher Secondary Schools
with science students and the remaining 18 happened to be Higher Secondary Schools
with arts students. All the available students studying in each of these selected Higher
Secondary Schools were chosen as sample. This sample of 802 students in the Higher
Secondary Schools is found to have the following sub-samples: (1) Male Students
(N=400), (2) Female Students (N=402), (3) Students from Urban schools (N=392), (4)
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Students from rural schools (N=410), (5) Students studying in science subject (N=400),
(6) Students studying in arts subject (N=402), (7) higher secondary Student’s Parents
with knowledge about computer (N=211), (8) higher secondary Student’s Parents without
knowledge about computer (N=591), (9) higher secondary Student’s Availability of
Personal computer at home(N=145), (10) higher secondary Student’s no Availability of
Personal computer at home(N=657).
Statistical Treatment of the Data
The means and standard deviations of the use of computer, computer attitude,
Achievement in computer science, self-efficacy in computer, internet attitude and
Computer anxiety scores were computed directly from the respective raw scores for the
entire sample and its five sub-samples of the higher secondary students. The percentages
of the entire sample of the higher secondary students who had high, average and low
level of use of computer with computer attitude, Achievement in computer science, selfefficacy in computer, internet attitude and Computer anxiety were also computed & as
shown in Table-2, Table-3 , Table-4, Table-5, Table 6 and Table 7. The test of
significance was used (‘t’ test) in order to study if there was any significant difference
between each selected pair of sub-samples in respect of their use of computer with
computer attitude, Achievement in computer science, self-efficacy in computer, internet
attitude and Computer anxiety & as shown in Table-8, Table-9, Table-10, Table-11,
Table-12 and Table13 . Pearson’s product-moment ‘r’ was computed between use of
computer and computer attitude, use of computer and Achievement in computer science,
use of computer and self-efficacy in computer, use of computer and internet attitude and
use of computer and computer anxiety scores of the higher secondary students as shown
8
in Table-1. Chi-square value was used in order to study if there was any association
between use of computer and computer attitude, use of computer and Achievement in
computer science, use of computer and self-efficacy in computer, use of computer and
internet attitude and use of computer and computer anxiety scores of the higher
secondary student
FINDINGS

There is significant relationship between use of computer with internet attitude of
higher secondary students.

There is no significant relationship between use of computer with computer
attitude, Achievement in computer science, self-efficacy in computer and
computer anxiety of higher secondary students.

There is significant association between use of computer with computer attitude,
Achievement in computer science, self-efficacy in computer, internet attitude and
computer anxiety of higher secondary students.

There is significant difference in the use of computer between male and female
higher secondary students. Compare to female, the male higher secondary
students have better use of computer.

There is significant difference in the use of computer between higher secondary
students studying in Science and arts subject. Compare to science, arts higher
secondary students are better in use of computer.
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
There is significant difference in the use of computer between Parent’s with
knowledge about computer and Parent’s without knowledge about computer of
higher secondary students. Compare to parents without knowledge about
computer, parents with knowledge about computer of higher secondary students.
have better use in computer.

There is significant difference in the use of computer between Availability of
Personal computer at home and not availability of Personal computer at home of
higher secondary students. Compare to not availability of Personal computer at
home, availability of computer at home of higher secondary students have better
use in computer.

There is no significant difference in the use of computer between higher
secondary students studying in urban schools and rural schools.

There is significant difference between the higher secondary male and female
students with respect of their computer attitude. Compare to female, the male
students have better computer attitude.

There is significant difference between the higher secondary urban and rural
students in respect of their computer attitude. Compare to rural, urban students
have better computer attitude.

There is significant difference between the higher secondary science and art
students in respect of their computer attitude. Compare to art, the science students
have better computer attitude.

There is significant difference between the parents with knowledge about
computer and parents without knowledge about computer of higher secondary
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students in respect of their computer attitude. Compare to parents without
knowledge about computer, parents with knowledge about computer have better
computer attitude.

There is significant difference between the availability of computer at home and
not availability of computer at home of higher secondary students in respect of
their computer attitude. Compare to Not availability of computer at home,
availability of computer at home have better computer attitude.

There is no significant difference in the Achievement in computer science
between: male and female higher secondary students; higher secondary students
studying in urban schools and rural schools; higher secondary students studying
in Science and arts subject; Parent’s with
Parent’s without
knowledge about computer and
knowledge about computer of higher secondary students,
Availability of Personal computer at home
and not availability of Personal
computer at home of higher secondary students.

There is no significant difference in the Self-efficacy in computer science
between: male and female higher secondary students; higher secondary students
studying in urban schools and rural schools; higher secondary students studying
in Science and arts subject; Parent’s with
Parent’s without
knowledge about computer and
knowledge about computer of higher secondary students,
Availability of Personal computer at home
and not availability of Personal
computer at home of higher secondary students.

There is no significant difference in the Internet attitude between: male and
female higher secondary students; higher secondary students studying in urban
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schools and rural schools; Parent’s with knowledge about computer and Parent’s
without knowledge about computer of higher secondary students, Availability of
Personal computer at home and not availability of Personal computer at home of
higher secondary students.

There is significant difference in the Internet attitude between higher secondary
students studying in Science and arts subject. Compare to arts, Science students
are better in Internet attitude.

There is significant difference in the Computer anxiety between male and
female higher secondary students. Compare to female, male of higher secondary
students. students are better in computer anxiety.

There is significant difference in the Computer anxiety between Parent’s with
knowledge about computer and Parent’s without knowledge about computer of
higher secondary students. Compare to parents without knowledge about
computer, parents knowledge about computer of higher secondary students are
better in Computer anxiety.

There is significant difference in the Computer anxiety between Availability of
Personal computer at home and not availability of Personal computer at home of
higher secondary students. Compare to not availability of Personal computer at
home, availability of Personal computer at home of higher secondary students are
better in Computer anxiety.

There is no significant difference in the Computer anxiety between higher
secondary students studying in i) urban schools and rural schools ii) Science and
arts subject.
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
About 26.93% of higher secondary students, taken for the study have shown high
use of computer whereas 47.76% and 25.31% of higher secondary students, taken
for the study have shown average and low use of computer.

About 26.56% of higher secondary students, taken for the study have shown high
computer attitude whereas 44.26% and 29.18 % of higher secondary students,
taken for the study have shown average and low computer attitude.

About 26.93% of higher secondary students, taken for the study have shown high
computer attitude whereas 43.14% and 29.93 % of higher secondary students,
taken for the study have shown average and low Achievement in computer
science.

About 28.93% of higher secondary students, taken for the study have shown high
self-efficacy in computer whereas 43.64% & 27.43%, taken for the study have
shown average and low self-efficacy in computer.

About 27.43% of higher secondary students, taken for the study have shown high
Internet attitude whereas 47.26 % & 25.31% of higher secondary students, taken
for the study have shown moderate & low Internet attitude.

About 26.93% of higher secondary students, taken for the study have shown high
computer anxiety whereas 47.76 % and 25.31% of higher secondary students
taken for the study have shown average and low computer anxiety.
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CONCLUSION
The study served as an eye opener regarding the use of computer, computer attitude,
Achievement in computer science, self-efficacy in computer and Internet attitude of
higher secondary students. Even though there are some limitations in the present study, it
is evident that the use of computer, computer attitude, Self-efficacy in computer, Internet
attitude and Achievement in computer science is average in higher secondary students.
The result reveals that there is significant relationship between use of computer with
Internet attitude of higher secondary students. The result reveals that there is no
significant relationship between use of computer with Achievement in computer science,
self-efficacy in computer and computer attitude of higher secondary students. Also a
significant difference is observed in the use of computer between groups regarding
gender, stream of subject, Parents knowledge about computer and Availability of
Personal computer at home. Also a significant difference is observed in the computer
attitude between groups regarding gender, stream of subject, location of the school,
Parents knowledge about computer and Availability of Personal computer at home. Also
a significant difference is observed in the computer anxiety between groups regarding
gender, Parents knowledge about computer and Availability of Personal computer at
home. This reveals that the use of computer, computer attitude, Self-efficacy in computer,
internet attitude and Achievement in computer science of higher secondary students
needs to be improved.
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REFERENCES
Kumaran, D and Selvaraj, K (2001)A study of cognitive and affective computer attitude
of teachers. Journal of All India Association for Educational Research. 13, 1& 2, 1-7,
March - June..
Rajasekar,S. (2005)University students’ attitude towards computer. Recent Researches in
Education and Psychology 10, 1-11, 1-5.
Sam .H.K, Othman,A.E.A, and Nordin, Z.S (2005) Computer self-efficacy, computer
anxiety and attitudes toward the internal: A study among undergraduates in Unimas.
Educational Technology and Society 8, 4, 205-219.
Brosnan, M., & Lee, W. (1998). A cross-cultural comparison of gender differences in
computer attitudes and anxiety: The UK and Hong Kong. Computers in Human Behavior,
14 (4), 559-577.
Chua, S. L., Chen, D., & Wong, A. F. L., (1999). Computer anxiety and its correlates: A
meta-analysis. Computers in Human Behavior 15, 609-623.
15
Table-1
Coefficient of correlation between the variables
Variables
Correlation coefficient
Entire sample (802)
use of computer with Computer attitude
0.02
use of computer and achievement in computer
0.06
science
use of computer and Self-efficacy in computer
0.018
use of computer with internet attitude
0.14**
use of computer with computer anxiety
0.05
** Significant at 0.01 level
Table-2
Frequency distribution of level of use of computer
Use of computer
Low
Average
High
Total
Frequency
203
383
216
802
Percentage
25.31
47.76
26.93
100.00
Table-3
Frequency distribution of level of computer attitude
Computer attitude
Low
Average
High
Total
Frequency
234
355
213
802
16
Percentage
29.18
44.26
26.56
100.00
Table-4
Frequency distribution of level of achievement in computer science
Computer attitude
Low
Average
High
Total
Frequency
240
346
216
802
Percentage
29.93
43.14
26.93
100.00
Table-5
Frequency distribution of level of self-efficacy in computer
Computer attitude
Low
Average
High
Total
Frequency
220
350
232
802
Percentage
27.43
43.64
28.93
100.00
Table-6
Frequency distribution of level of Internet attitude
Computer attitude
Low
Average
High
Total
Frequency
203
379
220
802
Percentage
25.31
47.26
27.43
100.00
Table-7
Frequency distribution of level of computer anxiety
Computer attitude
Low
Average
High
Total
Frequency
203
383
216
802
17
Percentage
25.31
47.76
26.93
100.00
Table -8
Data and results of the test of significance of difference between mean scores of use of
computer based on relevant sub-samples
Variable
Category
Mean
S.D
N
Male
71..09
13..75
400
Female
65.85
13.56
400
Urban
68.15
14.76
389
a. Gender
b. Location
Rural
68.77
13.03
411
Science
66.73
15.32
399
Art
70.19
12.09
401
d. Parents
knowledge
about
computer
Yes
73.79
12.66
211
No
66.57
13.83
589
e. availability
of Personal
computer at
home
Yes
74.76
13.48
145
c. Stream of
subject
No
67.08
13.61
Calculated
Significance
‘t’ value
at 5% level
5.44
S
0.63
NS
3.54
S
6.65
S
6.16
S
655
(Table value of ‘t’ at 5% level of significance is 1.96)
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Table -9
Data and results of the test of significance of difference between mean scores of
computer attitude based on relevant sub-samples
Variable
Category
Mean
S.D
N
Male
78.96
9.37
400
Female
77.27
9.72
400
Urban
78.85
9.48
389
a. Gender
b. Location
Rural
77.42
9.64
411
Science
78.88
9.89
399
Art
77.36
9.21
401
d. Parents
knowledge
about
computer
Yes
80.71
8.67
211
No
77.19
9.73
589
e. availability
of Personal
computer at
home
Yes
80.30
8.35
145
c. Stream of
subject
No
77.63
9.77
Calculated
Significance
‘t’ value
at 5% level
2.50
S
2.11
S
2.25
S
4.64
S
3.05
S
655
(Table value of ‘t’ at 5% level of significance is 1.96)
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Table-10
Data and results of the test of significance of difference between mean scores of
achievement in computer science based on relevant sub-samples
Variable
Category
Mean
S.D
N
Male
33.45
8.10
400
Female
33.56
8.17
400
Urban
33.59
8.18
389
Rural
33.43
a. Gender
b. Location
c. Stream of
subject
Science
33.74
8.10
8.20
8.06
401
d. Parents
knowledge
about
computer
Yes
33.79
8.11
211
No
33.40
8.14
589
e. availability
of Personal
computer at
home
Yes
33.30
8.08
145
8.15
‘t’ value
at 5% level
0.19
NS
0.28
NS
0.82
NS
0.60
NS
0.34
NS
399
33.27
33.55
Significance
411
Art
No
Calculated
655
(Table value of ‘t’ at 5% level of significance is 1.96)
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Table 11
Data and results of the test of significance of difference between mean scores of selfefficacy in computer based on relevant sub-samples
Variable
Category
Mean
S.D
N
Male
34.88
5.36
400
Female
34.78
5.51
400
Urban
34.72
5.23
389
a. Gender
b. Location
Rural
34.93
5.62
411
Science
34.54
4.61
399
Art
35.12
6.12
401
d. Parents
knowledge
about
computer
Yes
35.27
4.73
211
No
34.68
5.66
589
e. availability
of Personal
computer at
home
Yes
35.49
4.71
145
c. Stream of
subject
No
34.68
5.57
Calculated
Significance
‘t’ value
at 5% level
0.26
NS
0.53
NS
1.53
NS
1.36
NS
1.62
NS
655
(Table value of ‘t’ at 5% level of significance is 1.96)
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Table 12
Data and results of the test of significance of difference between mean scores of internet
attitude in computer based on relevant sub-samples
Variable
Category
Mean
S.D
N
Male
42.32
8.39
400
a. Gender
Female
41.60
8.46
400
Urban
42.31
8.39
389
Rural
41.64
b. Location
8.47
44.10
8.07
399
Art
39.85
8.26
401
d. Parents
knowledge
about
computer
Yes
42.54
7.97
211
No
41.76
8.59
589
e. availability
of Personal
computer at
home
Yes
42.32
7.66
145
subject
No
41.89
8.60
Significance
‘t’ value
at 5% level
1.21
NS
1.13
NS
7.37
S
1.15
NS
0.57
NS
411
Science
c. Stream of
Calculated
655
(Table value of ‘t’ at 5% level of significance is 1.96)
22
Table 13
Data and results of the test of significance of difference between mean scores of
computer anxiety based on relevant sub-samples
Variable
Category
Mean
S.D
N
Male
49.68
9.65
400
Female
47.52
9.54
400
Urban
49.05
9.31
389
a. Gender
b. Location
Rural
48.17
9.95
411
Science
49..68
9.65
399
Art
47.52
9.54
401
d. Parents
knowledge
about
computer
Yes
51.66
9.14
211
No
47.50
9.6
589
e. availability
of Personal
computer at
home
Yes
52.23
8.71
145
c. Stream of
subject
No
47.80
9.67
Calculated
Significance
‘t’ value
at 5% level
3.18
S
1.29
NS
0.08
NS
5.47
S
5.08
S
655
(Table value of ‘t’ at 5% level of significance is 1.96)
23