Exploring ICT-based learning adoption in higher education: An extended perspective of the technology acceptance model

This article analyses the self-perception of digital technology learning competence among engineering and science students. The use of information and communication technologies (ICT) is now considered highly essential in higher education. Today's higher education institutions (HEIs) seldom employ traditional methods of instruction; instead, sophisticated ICT is starting to emerge as a feasible paradigm for fundamental change. To this end, Pakistan's Higher Education Commission (HEC) has heavily invested in technology in the education sector and initiated several programs. The ramifications of ICT utilization on the environment, student academic performance, and capabilities remain ambiguous. In delving into how students embrace and utilize ICT systems for learning in HEIs, researchers felt the need to grasp the factors that influence students' acceptance and utilization of ICT skills through the lens of the Extended Technology Acceptance Model (TAM). This study develops an exclusive conceptual model by incorporating TAM with a set of latent variables identified in the available literature: interest, ICT self-efficacy, economic cost, and performance expectancy. The adapted TAM model developed in this study considers the influence of these variables on students’ ICT acceptance and its impact on academic performance in emerging countries. As part of this study, reports on the development of instruments and validation in the research field were managed using a cross-sectional survey method and SPSS-22 and Smart PLS-4 software. In addition, association rule mining applied in demographic data. A sample of 69 students was randomly selected from three universities representing engineering, medical, and general HEIs in the Sindh province. Though the sample size was small, it showcases that the reliability of the scales is within an acceptable range and can be used to test the main study hypotheses. A conceptual framework model is introduced to offer a comprehensive framework derived from the amalgamation of various acceptance and usage models of technology. The results demonstrate that the survey items are appropriate and suitable for further research.