The catalytic role, realities, challenges, and effectiveness of digital technologies in higher vocational colleges

Abstract

This study survey-correlational study aimed to determine the catalytic role, realities, challenges, and effectiveness of digital technology in higher vocational colleges. The participants of the study were selected full-time teachers and administrative personnel in higher vocational colleges in Guangdong province categorized into personal profile in terms of age, sex, educational background, and teaching experience; and non-personal profile in terms of availability of digital technology facilities and digital technology training attended. Statistical data analysis employed were frequency count, percentage, mean and standard deviation for descriptive statistics; while the t-test for independent samples, One-Way Analysis of Variance, and Pearson’s Product Moment Coefficient of Correlation for inferential statistics, set at 0.05 level of significance. Through the questionnaire survey, results showed the participants as an entire group and classified according to their personal and non-personal profile assessed the catalytic role of digital technologies of higher vocational colleges on a transformational level, the realities were on the level of interactive augmentation; they further assessed digital technology as challenging, and fairly effective. Significant differences existed in their assessments of the catalytic role, realities, challenges, and effectiveness of digital technologies among the participants categorized according their personal profile in terms of age, sex, educational background, and teaching experience; and non-personal profile in terms of availability of digital technology facilities and digital technology training. Significant, positive, and strong relationship existed among the catalytic role, realities, challenges, and effectiveness of digital technologies; however, significant, negative, and strong correlation existed between challenges and effectiveness of digital technologies. The lesser the challenges, the higher the effectiveness of digital technologies; the greater the challenges, the lesser the effectiveness.