Determinants of Instructor’s Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Use in Higher Education: A Scoping Review

Abstract

Information and communication technology (ICT) has the potential to improve the quality of and access to higher education. With this understanding, many higher education institutions in both developed and developing countries have invested huge money to expand ICT infrastructures. Despite considerable investment, ICT as a tool for promoting learning is not generally well used for teaching and learning purposes in Higher Education (HE). This scoping review, therefore, aims at investigating determinants of instructors’ educational use of ICT in higher education. In this study, 31 studies published in different international journals were reviewed to identify major determinants of ICT use by instructors. The review showed that institutional characteristics (policy and regulation, reward and motivation, infrastructure, funding, support, and professional development), individual characteristics (ICT perception, ICT attitude, ICT competence and time of instructors) and pedagogic factors (instructor’s pedagogic understanding and belief, and pedagogic support) are major determinants of instructor’s educational use of ICT. There is also evidence in this review that researches in African HE and the rest of the world differ in their focus areas. The findings from African HE show that institutional factors are the most widely reported determinants of ICT use by instructors in higher education. Finally, it is recommended that future studies should focus on a quantitative explanation of the complex interplay between these determinants and ICT use. Future studies should also focus on identifying determinants with strong predictive power to develop a tailor-made and at the same time efficent model of ICT use in higher education.