STUDENT COMPUTER USE IN SELECTED UNDERGRADUATE AGRICULTURE COURSES: AN EXAMINATION OF REQUIRED TASKS

Abstract

Faculty members in a college of agriculture were surveyed to determine the computer tasks required of students enrolled in selected undergraduate courses (a = 63). Over 50% of the courses required students to complete one or more tasks in the areas of word processing, Internet use and electronic mail. Less than 50% of the courses required any use of spreadsheets, databases, computer graphics, specialized software, or completion of miscellaneous computer tasks. The typical course required students to complete 5.0 ( W computer tasks. The three individual computer tasks required in 50% or more of the courses were to: (a) type a lab or project report, (b) receive electronic mail from the instructor, and(c) search the Internet for information on a specific topic. Sophomore- and senior-level courses tended to require the most computer tasks (MU = 8.0), while junior-level courses required the least (MM = 3.0). Faculty members indicated plans to maintain or increase the number of required computer tasks over the next two to three years, especially in Internet and electronic mail use. Faculty demographics and course-related variables were not good predictors of current or planned student computer use.