The technology adoption theories TAM, UTAUT2, VETA and DOI outline a myriad of factors that influence generalised technology adoption, much of which are still applicable during a pandemic although time has been a major influencer. What the theories do not consider is the ongoing adoption process as the technology and needs of the users evolve over time. This includes users individual emotional perspectives and sudden issues such as platform reliability or security concerns, for example “zoombombing”, along with external factors such as a global health crisis, environmental factors and political influences on technology adoption (such as tools not being available in China where we are heavily reliant on student numbers).
The pandemic and the fast shift into emergency online delivery has been pivotal towards the increase in technology adoption and will continue to have implications for the future adoption of education technologies. We cannot guarantee that it will cause a seismic shift in the delivery of education permanently, but the technology has achieved relatively overnight mass-adoption. For the near future there will be continued adoption of virtual classrooms technologies and increased utilisation of technical features (polling, whiteboard etc) to retain the social presence and important dialogue element between educators and students. Educational technologies generally will see an increase in adoption as institutions find ways to increase engagement, build online communities, and explore 21st century pedagogies such as online collaborative learning and connectivism, Figure 20 highlights recommendations. There is a need to be flexible due to changing lockdown restrictions and institutions need their staff and students to be adaptable. This level of flex to move between hybrid and online delivery models will inevitably strengthen their digital capabilities institutionally and could enable growth in online learning to meet demand in future years and to mitigate risks of future pandemics. There is a risk however that those who experience poor-quality or low value online learning will result in low perceptions which has repercussions for future technology adoption.
There is a real chance the pandemic could be a game-changer for education and more specifically technology adoption and online learning. Never would it have been imagined overnight exposure to online learning and explosion of technology adoption of this scale. Covid-19 has undoubtably made a momentous impact on higher education and the exposure to online learning could be the silver lining. As we move towards a new normal the research into the disruption of the Covid-19 pandemic on technology adoption and online learning and hybrid delivery should focus on how the factors of influence changed during and after the pandemic and whether external factors outside of our immediate control such as security, global, environmental or political impacts need incorporating more specifically into an expansion of UTAUT2. Values of tradition and achievement should be paid particular attention to. A strong tradition grounds higher education and how it is delivered in the form of a traditional ‘lecture’; will the Covid-19 pandemic and fast technology adoption alter the traditional delivery models and surface a new normal?
Technology Adoption in HE 