Impact of Internet on Students Towards Education

Topics |Page No. | |
|List of Tables |1 |
|List of Charts |3 |
|1. Introduction |5 |
|Project description |7 |
| Problem Statement |7 |
| Research objectives |7 |
| Review of Literature |7 |
|Research Methodology |12 |
| Research design |12 |
| Sampling design |13 |
| Data Collection |13 |
| Limitations |13 |
| Data Analysis |13 |
|Findings |38 |
|Conclusions |41 |
| Suggestions |41 |
|Appendices |43 |
|Bibliography |46 |

CONTENTS

LIST OF TABLES

|S. No. |Title of tables |Page No. |
| |Age distribution |14 |
| |Gender distribution |15 |
| |Experience in using personal computers |16 |
| |Frequency of using internet services |17 |
| |Place of accessing internet services |18 |
| |Various activities performed using computers |19 |
| |Membership in social networks |20 |
| |Activities through Internet |21 |
| |Reasons to use Internet Services |22 |
| |Usage of web for day to day activities |23 |
| |Usage of Internet Services per week |24 |
| |Analysis on usage of Internet Services per week |24 |
| |Mostly used serve in web |25 |
| |Chi- square test on mostly preferred web services |25 |
| |Preference of sources for subjects |27 |
| |Usage of Internet for Seminars/Assignments by students |28 |
| |Preference for class presentations |29 |
| |Source that provides more knowledge for subjects |30 |
| |Usage of library |31 |
| |Opinion of the students on the best way to learn |32 |
| |Analysis using weighted average method on student’s opinion |32 |
| |Level of satisfaction of the students on their text books |33 |
| |Weighted average method on satisfaction level of students |33 |
| |Rank Correlation on priorities of students on various activities |34 |
| |Opinion on habit of reading |35 |
| |Opinion on filling the questionnaire |36 |

|S.No. |Title of the charts |Page No. |
| |Age distribution |14 |
| |Gender distribution |15 |
| |Experience in using personal computers |16 |
| |Frequency of using internet services |17 |
| |Place of accessing internet services |18 |
| |Various activities performed using computers |19 |
| |Membership in social networks |20 |
| |Activities through Internet |21 |
| |Reasons to use Internet Services |22 |
| |Usage of web for day to day activities |23 |
| |Preference of sources for subjects |27 |
| |Usage of Internet for Seminars/Assignments by students |28 |
| |Preference for class presentations |29 |
| |Source that provides more knowledge for subjects |30 |
| |Usage of library |31 |
| |Opinion on habit of reading |35 |
| |Opinion on filling the questionnaire |36 |

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1. Introduction
Internet has changed our lives and it is not different for students. The World Wide Web offers a wealth of information which can be useful for every kind of information. Many students don't need to visit the library anymore for research because you can find plenty of encyclopedia's (for example, the Britannica encyclopedia) and many education sites when you browse through different Internet sites.
[pic]All these manipulate teenagers in what concerns culture, politics, social life, religion, fashion, education and other interests. Almost each teenager has a TV in his room and he may stay stuck for hours in front of it to watch a show, a movie or to find out some interesting information on a discovery channel. Then, the internet has become much more important than the TV because it offers a range of facts on different areas of interest. Now teenagers prefer to download a movie from the internet and watch it at home instead of going to the cinema as it is much more comfortable and, at the same time, cheaper. Moreover, through e-mails they can communicate with teenagers in other countries and find other ways of thinking and behaving in society. Girls, buy all types of magazines so find out some spicy facts about famous people and stars, while boys prefer magazines about cars or technology.

Anyway, in what concerns newspapers young people almost don't buy them, as they prefer to read them on the internet and the same happens with books, too. Teenagers find out about fashion from the internet and they like to navigate on the internet to see which trends have appeared lately. They can also read about sports, music, politics and culture.

Putting the right keywords in the search engines is already a good start to find the necessary information. It doesn't mean you don't need books anymore but Internet adds a certain value to the information students get at colleges. It is even impossible to imagine any education today without Internet use. Almost every school has some computers which have access to Internet and students can use these computers for research which may help them to make their daily tasks.
Internet is not only a source of information for students. It is also used for communication with other students and even professors. There are several kinds of education where you need to consult a certain protected Internet page to know your daily tasks and even the date and hour when the courses take place. Many universities also announce the moment when the examinations take place.
The Internet is certainly useful for education but you may come across different Internet sites which contain information which is not correct or not up-to date. It is important to check different sites to know if they use information which will be useful. Internet has certainly some disadvantages. The effect of the Internet is in most cases positive because the wealth of information but it is important that parents control their children that they don't use inappropriate sites. Internet will often improve the quality of education but ultimately it is with the students to decide on their purpose of using it.

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2. Project Description

Nowadays, the electronic information and communication services offered by the Internet strongly influence our society by reducing time and space boundaries in obtaining and communicating information. In this paper we focus on the influence of internet upon students in their education and behavioral change based on its effects.

2.1. Problem Statement

The main aim of the study is to analyze the impact of the Internet upon the young generation towards education.

2.2. Research Objectives

The objectives of the study are as follows:

i) To study the effect of usage of internet and computer based applications on students towards education. ii) To understand the level of interest among the students to use internet, with education as their main priority. iii) To prioritize the other activities students make the most by means of World Wide Web.

2.3. Review of literature

There has been number of research works contributed by various authors and being conducted in various educational institutions to understand the effects caused by internet on students. Here are few important works done previously which I have taken for my reference in this field of study;

I. Impact of computer technologies on learning outcomes

A number of studies have explored the impact of computer-based technologies on learning outcomes and reported on some improvements to student learning outcomes. Denton and Manus (1995) who analysed standardised test scores of students from 8 schools using computer technologies found that only some schools showed improvements but this was not evident in all subject areas.

Follansbee et al (1996) found that students with online access produced better projects in terms of presentation, integration of different perspectives and presentation of a full picture. Chessler et al (1998) found that teachers reported a higher quality of work from students who used laptops than those who didn’t. Tierney et al (1996) found that over time students who use computers begin to explore and express ideas in fairly sophisticated ways using graphical and other non-linear forms. Williams (1999) found that sixth graders who worked in a hyper media supported context were able to solve problems more effectively than those who didn’t. Richards (1996) who surveyed teachers found that they reported on improvements in their students reading, writing and team skills as a result of using computers.

A recent Market Research conducted by the Faculty of Education, Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, on behalf of SOCCI (Schools online curriculum content initiative) (Queensland University of Technology, 2001) confirms this. It points out that very little research has been done regarding the use of computer based learning technologies by students from a range of backgrounds.

However, one area where some research has been done relates to the impact of computers on students from different gender. The main findings, which have been reported so far, are: • At the kindergarten level boys tend to be more attracted to movement whereas girls are more attracted to visual aspects (Passing and Levin, 2000) • Boys in middle and high schools spend significantly more time on computers, see computers as a male thing and tend to have higher confidence levels than girls. (Young, 2000) • There is a difference in the ways in which males and females at the primary level process information from different modes of multimedia presentation (Riding & Grimley, 1999) • Boys and girls at the primary level tend to prefer software which align with their interests however girls don’t mind software which is gender neutral (Joiner, 1998) • Societies expectations of the roles of different genders is reflected n how boys and girls and their teachers view and use computers in the classroom (Huber et al, 1998) • Women in distance based universities had a significantly more negative perception of computer based technology and a preference for traditional methods than men. (Proost and Lowyck, 1997) • Men and women in higher education online learning environments display differences in their social and interactive behaviours (Barrett & Lally. 1999)

II. Internet Impact on Romanian Students by Alina Andreica from “Babeş-Bolyai” University of Cluj-Napoca (BBU), Romania

Nowadays, the electronic information and communication services offered by the Internet strongly influence our society by reducing time and space boundaries in obtaining and communicating information. The paper focuses on the impact of the Internet upon the young generation, our case studies being oriented towards Romanian students. We sustain our statements by administrating and analyzing web questionnaires, which enabled us to perform a quantitative and qualitative research in the field we concentrated on. The results show a considerably higher rate of Internet use in the academic medium (among students) than in the average Romanian population. An estimated percentage of around 90% Internet users in our student questionnaire sample gives a good indication on the extent of Internet use on Romanian youth (in particular, students), the most widely used Internet services being e-mail and WWW. The paper also proposes some sociological oriented interpretations on Internet use among Romanian students.

In Romania, the average level of ICT (Information and Communication Technologies) implementation is quite low, because of the difficulties generated by the economic transition, the low average income of the population compared to other European countries and the communication infrastructure which was poorly managed during the '80s (we note that in this respect there had been significant improvements in the last years). On this general background, there had been estimated only 5-9% computer and Internet users from the whole Romanian population (GFK Marketing Research). Neverthelss, the educational and academic medium and, more generally, the Romanian youth are characterized by much higher degree of Internet use, as we intend to prove in this paper. The Romanian Educational Network plays a significant role in improving and extending ICT implementation in the educational medium, which comprises a significant part of the Romanian youth.

Conclusions of the Study

Computer networks became genuine electronic information and communication media, which, sustained by an accessible software, tend to overpower classical means of communication. Internet services proved to be so useful on scientific, commercial and social fields, that people became more and more dependent of the new e-way.

Moreover, not only classical means of information / communication started to be replaced by electronic ones, but more and more every-day activities became computer controlled: computer networks ensure remote access to various services, consequently the person's physical presence becomes unnecessary. On this basis, any everyday activities received a new, electronic form: elearning, e-commerce, e-banking, e-working, etc.; consequently, the information / knowledge based society evolved. The new features of the information society were strongly promoted by computer networks and their applications. Taking into account the vivid rhythm that these transformation took place during the last decades and the continuous development of information technologies, which constantly emerge into our every-day life (in fact, computer history has less than 6 decades), we can imagine that the future of computers will also bring spectacular mutations into the human society. In Romania, on the background of economic transition difficulties and of a perfectible societal management, investments in the IT field are insufficient, although the dynamic and growing software industry and especially the powerful force of IT specialists are definitely important prerogatives. Despite the transition difficulties, Internet impact among Romanian youth, and especially among student population, opened to innovation, is very powerful. The attractiveness of Internet information and communication services rely in their rapidity, flexibility, diversity, up-to-date and accessibility. This dynamic force will definitely impose future developments of information and communication technologies and infrastructure. Our results show a considerably higher rate of Internet use in the academic medium (among students) than in the average Romanian population. An estimated 94% percentage of Internet users in our student questionnaire sample gives a good indication on the extent of Internet use on Romanian youth (in particular, students). The most widely used Internet services are e-mail and WWW; we noticed that male subjects are more likely to use information services, whereas female subjects' communicative nature is more oriented towards communication services, like e-mail and chat. As a final remark, we state that Internet services have a major impact upon Romanian students. This statement is sustained both by our quantitative results (number of users, average time of use) and qualitative ones (types of services, satisfied needs). Our results are very different from the average ones in Romania since the high education medium, strongly relying on efficient information and communication means, is highly dependent on IT and, moreover, it even offers IT facilities. The main Internet service provider for the academic medium is RoEduNet; its recent and major improvements in band width and service quality have obviously had a strong and worthy impact upon Romanian students. Taking into account the percentage of Internet users we obtained for our sample and the student and high school pupil percentages in the Romanian population (2.46%, respectively 3.17% in 2001 [15]), we might approximate that up to 50% of the Romanian Internet users are young people. This estimation which emphasizes both the importance of the Romanian Educational Network and the openness of the Romanian young generation towards the flexibility and efficiency of modern I&CT.

III. Publisher: Search for Common Ground

Resource Guide on Youth Media

Summary of Content:

This document consists of four parts: 1. Background Information, 2. Trends and Programme Profile, 3. How-To Guides, and 4. Useful Web Sites.

Part 1 provides background on the current issues facing producers of media by and for children. It also includes documents with general advice for those looking to create new media programmes. Part 2 profiles current and past youth media programmes from around the world. It presents lessons from the past and explores recent trends. Part 3 provides training manuals and how-to guides for developing and implementing media programmes, which an emphasis on radio. Part 4 offers a number of additional Internet resources for conducting further research.

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3. Research Methodology

In research special problems grow out of the need for concept precision and inventiveness. We design hypotheses using concepts. We devise measurement concepts by which to test these hypothetical statements. We gather data using these measurement concepts. The success of research hinges on
(1). How clearly we conceptualize and
(2). How clearly others understand our concept we use.
The challenge is to develop concepts that others will clearly understand.

3.1. Research Design

Research design is the plan and structure of investigation so conceived as to obtain answers to research questions. The plan is the overall scheme or program of the research. It includes an outline of what the investigator will do from writing hypotheses and their operational implications to the final analysis of data.
Design of the research process:

Fig 1: Overview of Research Design

3.2. Sampling Design

The basic idea for sampling is that by selecting some of the elements in a population, we may draw conclusions about the entire population.

Sample size

The sample size taken for the study is 60. And the population taken into consideration are the students undergoing their under graduation and post graduation courses during the study period.

Sampling method

We have chosen the Convenience sampling which is Unrestricted in nature as we decided to use the Non- probability sampling.

3.3. Data Collection

The data collection instrument used to collect the data is a self – administered questionnaire. A questionnaire is left to be completed by the respondent in a convenient location. The survey consists of 24 questions with measurement scales as nominal, interval and ordinal.

3.4. Limitations

In this study the limitations we faced are as follows, □ The research is confined with the number of samples as 60, which is really meager when compared to the population of students using internet in general. □ The students are not serious enough to understand the purpose of the study and their process of filling the questionnaire is unknown to the researcher. Hence the accuracy of their responses is questionable.

3.5. Data Analysis

Data analysis is the most technical part involved in a project report. It summarizes the methods used to analyze the data and describes the data handling, preliminary analysis, statistical tests, computer programs, and other technical information.

And the following statistical tools are used to check on the reliability of the data: • Percentage Analysis • Arithmetic Mean • Weighted Average • Chi-Square test • Spearman’s ranking correlation

In this study we are going to use tabular and graphical representation of data as follows:
Age distribution of the respondents

| | |Age distribution | | |
| |< 18 |18 to 20 |21 to 23 |> 23 |Total |
|No. of responses |0 |39 |16 |5 |60 |
|In Percentage |0 |65 |26.7 |8.3 |100 |

Table 1: Age distribution

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Chart 1: Age distribution

Inference: Among the 60 respondents 65% of them are between the ages of 18 to 20 and approximately 27% of them are of ages 21 to 23.

Gender distribution of the Students

| |Gender distribution | |
| |Male |Female |Total |
|No. of responses |24 |36 |60 |
|In Percentage |40 |60 |100 |

Table 2: Gender distribution

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Chart 2: Gender distribution

Inference: In the total of 60 students taken for sample 60% are female and 40% are male.

Question 1: Since what age have you been using personal computers? (In years)

| | |Experience in using personal computers | |
|Years |< 7 |7 to 10 |11 to 14 |15 to 18 |> 18 |
| |Everyday |2-3 times/week |Weekly |Every two weeks |Monthly |
| |At College |At home |Friends/Relativ|
| | | |es |
|Activities |Text editing |Access to |Using |
| | |internet |professional |
| | | |software |
|Social networks |Orkut |Facebook |linkedIn |None |Total |
|No. of responses |5 |39 |5 |11 |60 |
|Percentage |8.3 |65 |8.3 |18.4 |100 |

Table 7: Membership in social networks

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Chart 7: Membership in social networks

Inference: Among the 60 respondents 66% of them are members of the social network Facebook and 82% of the respondents are member of any of the social network prevailing.

Question 7: What kind of activities do you perform on the internet the most?

| |Activities Internet is mostly used for | | | | |
|Activities |General Information |E-mail |Access to |
| | | |news |
|Reasons |Updated information |
| |Yes |No |Total |
|No. of responses |24 |36 |60 |
|In Percentage |40 |60 |100 |

Table 10: Usage of web for day to day activities

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Chart 10: Usage of web for day to day activities

Inference: Among the 60 respondents 50% of them are using web for all their information searching processes for every day activities and 40% are not using internet services to such extent.

Question 10: How many hours do you access, in average, the internet services per week?

| |Usage of internet services per week | |
| |< 7 |8 to 16 |17 to 25 |> 25 |Total |
|No. of responses |33 |14 |10 |3 |60 |
|In Percentage |55 |23.3 |16.7 |5 |100 |

Table 11: Usage of Internet Services per week

Analysis on average time spend by respondents on Internet

|Time of usage (In Hrs)|No. of responses (f) |m |fm |
|(X) | | | |
|< 7 |33 |4 |132 |
|8 to 16 |14 |12 |168 |
|17 to 25 |10 |21 |210 |
|> 25 |3 |30 |90 |
| |∑f = 60 | |∑fm = 600 |

Table 12: Analysis on usage of Internet Services per week

Mean (X) = ∑fm / ∑f

= 600/ 60 = 10 hrs

Inference: From the above result we could find that the respondents are spending an average time of 10 hours on internet services for a week.

Question 11: In which of the following cases do you think internet services help you the most?
| |Mostly used service in web | | | | |
| |Recent |Education |Entertainment |Keep in touch with friends |
| |Information | | | |
|4 |3 |1 |1 |0.33 |
|4 |5 |-1 |1 |0.2 |
|7 |10 |-3 |9 |0.9 |
|19 |9 |10 |100 |11.11 |
|4 |4 |0 |0 |0 |
|7 |7 |0 |0 |0 |
|6 |4 |2 |4 |1 |
|4 |6 |-2 |4 |0.67 |
|3 |2 |1 |1 |0.5 |
|2 |1 |1 |1 |1 |
|0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |
|0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |
| | | | |∑(O-E^e)/E = 15.71 |

Table 14: Chi- square test on mostly preferred web services.

Calculation:

Formula: χ^2 cal = ∑(O-E^e)/E

χ^2 cal = 15.71
Degree of freedom = (r – 1)*(c-1) = (2-1)*(6-1) = 5. χ^2 tab = 11.07
Therefore, χ^2 cal > χ^2 tab

Since the calculated Chi value is greater than the tabulated Chi value, we reject the null hypothesis and therefore the alternate hypothesis is accepted.

Inference: The male and female students share same interest in using the internet services.

Question 12: What do you prefer the most, to gather information regarding your subjects?

| | |Preference of sources for subjects |
|Sources |Text books |Internet |Journals/Magazines |others |Total |
|No. of responses |20 |32 |8 |0 |60 |
|In Percentage |33.3 |53.3 |13.4 |0 |100 |

Table 15: Preference of sources for subjects

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Chart 11: Preference of sources for subjects

Inference: From the 60 respondents chosen for the study approximate of 53% of respondents prefer Internet to be their main source for collecting information regarding subjects and about 33% of them have text books as their main source of information for subjects.

Question 13: Do you use internet to prepare for your assignments, seminars and exams in colleges?

|Usage of Internet for Seminars/Assignments by students |
| | | | |
| |Yes |No |Total |
|No. of respondents |54 |6 |60 |
|In Percentage |90 |10 |100 |

Table 16: Usage of Internet for Seminars/Assignments by students

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Chart 12: Usage of Internet for Seminars/Assignments by students

Inference: About 90% of respondents among the total of 60 are using internet services for their seminars and assignment works from their colleges.

Question 14: What kind of presentation do you prefer for your classes?

| |Preference for class presentations | |
| |Lectures |Books/references |OHP sheets |PPT presentations |Total |
|Male (X) |6 |5 |0 |13 |24 |
|Female (Y) |9 |3 |2 |22 |36 |
|Total no. of responses |15 |8 |2 |35 |60 |
|In Percentage |25 |13.3 |3.3 |58.4 |100 |

Table 17: Preference for class presentations

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Chart 13: Preference for class presentations

Inference: About 59% of respondents prefer power point presentation for their classes and 25% feels that, lectures from their professors are sufficient for them.

Question 15: Which source is giving you more knowledge on your subjects?

| |Source that provides more knowledge for subjects |
|Source |Text Books |Internet |others |Total |
|No. of responses |11 |48 |1 |60 |
|In Percentage |18.3 |80 |1.7 |100 |

Table 18: Source that provides more knowledge for subjects

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Chart 14: Source that provides more knowledge for subjects

Inference: Among 60 respondents about 80% of them have agreed that internet is providing them more knowledge than text books and other sources available.

Question 16: Do you have the habit of referring books from library for your education?

| |Usage of library | |
| |Yes |No |Total |
|No. of responses |50 |10 |60 |
|In Percentage |83.3 |16.7 |100 |

Table 19: Usage of library

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Chart 15: Usage of library

Inference: In regarding to the usage of library about 83% of respondents have responded positively and 17% have confined that they don’t use library any more.

Question 17: “Browsing through internet is the best way to learn than to referring books for subjects”.

| | |Opinion of the students on the best way to learn |
| |Strongly agree |Agree |
|12 |5 |60 |
|25 |4 |100 |
|5 |3 |15 |
|10 |2 |20 |
|8 |1 |8 |
| |∑W = 15 |∑(W*X) = 203 |

Table 21: Analysis using weighted average method on student’s opinion

Calculation:

Formula: Co-efficient of variation = (Standard deviation (X)) / (Mean (X))*100

Standard deviation (SD) = √ (∑d^2/n)-( ∑d/n)^2)

Mean (Xw) = ∑ (W*X)/ ∑W = 15

SD = 8.9

Mean (Xw) = 13.5

Co-efficient of variation = (8.9/13.5)*100 = 65%

Inference: The Co-efficient of variation of the responses is about 65% which indicates there is a considerable variation in the distribution of responses from the respondents.

Question 18: How much are you satisfied with your text books?

| | |Level of satisfaction of the students on their text books |
| |Highly Satisfied |Satisfied |
|14 |5 |70 |
|36 |4 |144 |
|3 |3 |9 |
|4 |2 |8 |
|3 |1 |3 |
| |15 |234 |

Table 23: Weighted average method on satisfaction level of students

Formula: Mean (Xw) = ∑ (W*X)/ ∑W

= 234/15

= 15.6

Inference: By using the weighted average method, we could find out that among the 60 respondents, the maximum score is obtained by the people responded to agree and strongly agree segment with 144 and 70 scores respectively.

Question 19: Which are your favorite free-time activities?

Analysis using Spearmann’s ranking correlation

| | |Priorities of students on various activities |
| |Ranking | | | |
|Q 19 |Male (R1) |Female(R2) |R1-R2 (D) |D^2 |
|Sports |1 |2 |-1 |1 |
|Meeting Friends |2 |6 |-4 |16 |
|Watching TV |5 |1 |4 |16 |
|Internet Surfing |3 |5 |-2 |4 |
|Voyages |7 |7 |0 |0 |
|Reading |6 |3 |3 |9 |
|Social activities |4 |4 |0 |0 |
| | | | |46 |

Table 24: Rank Correlation on priorities of students on various activities

Formula: R = 1- (6*∑D^2/n(n^2 – 1))
∑D^2 = 46

R= 1-(6*46/7*48)
R= 1-(276/336)
R= 1- 0.8
R= 0.2
Since R