The impact of institutional technology on student comprehension and retention levels:a study of traditional and non traditional student populations in the Kumasi metropolis

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to determine the impact of instructional technology on student comprehension and retention levels for traditional and non-traditional student populations. The subjects in this study consisted of two teacher colleges of education and three senior high school students who had been exposed to instructional technology during at least one of the courses taken at their secondary/postsecondary institution. The sample consisted of 90 males and 56 females. The sample contained 50 male and 30 female traditional students, as well as 40 male and 26 female non-traditional students. Respondents responded to a single research instrument, divided into two parts; a demographic data collection portion, and a portion which measured the subject's impressions of the impact that instructional technology they had been exposed to had on their comprehension and retention levels. Additional data captured in Section B of the instrument included anecdotal content and observations of apparent instructor comfort and ability to use the technology. Results of the data from the two groups indicated that while there was little difference between the two studied groups in terms of impact on their learning and retention, a difference did clearly define the separation in the areas of past computer use and exposure in education.